Iced VoVo cheesecake

Method

1. Preparation

   Lightly grease and line the base and sides of a 20 x 30 x 3 cm lamington tray with baking paper. Ensure the baking paper comes above the sides of the tray as you will use them as a handle to help remove the slice from the tray when set.

2. Base

   Place the flour and icing sugar in a food processor and blitz, to combine. Add the butter and blend until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the egg yolk and water and pulse, until the dough begins to come together. Turn out onto a clean kitchen bench and shape into a rectangle, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Roll dough out between two sheets of baking paper to make a rectangle, approximately 3 mm thick, to fit the base of the prepared tray. Lay the dough into the tray, trimming and pressing into the edges and corners as required. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

3. Cooking

   Preheat oven to 180 °C. Prick the dough with a fork a few times. Cover with a piece of baking paper and fill with pastry weights or dried rice. Blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove paper and weights and bake for a further 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool.

4. Filling

   Place the raspberries, ¼ cup (55 g) of the sugar and the lemon juice into a small saucepan over low heat. Simmer for 10 minutes, or until sugar dissolves and raspberries soften and lose their shape. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, using a spoon to press the pulp through. Discard the seeds. Measure volume and either reduce further or add water if required, to make 300 ml. Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes, or until softened. Transfer 1/2 cup (125 ml) of the raspberry coulis into a small saucepan and warm over low heat. Remove the softened gelatine from the bowl, squeezing out the excess water. Add gelatine to the warm coulis and stir to melt. Set aside to cool to room temperature. Place the cream cheese, coconut cream, remaining sugar and vanilla in a food processor and blend, until smooth. Gradually pour in the cooled raspberry gelatine mixture, blending to combine. Pour over the pastry base, spreading to create a smooth surface. Firmly tap the tray on the bench to remove any air bubbles. Refrigerate for 2 hours, up to overnight, until set.

5. Cream topping

   Pour the remaining raspberry coulis from the filling into a small saucepan. Add the caster sugar and simmer over low heat for 3-4 minutes, until thick and jammy. Set aside to cool. Whip the cream, icing sugar, vanilla and a few drops of pink food dye together, until soft peaks form. Add more pink food dye as required to tint cream a pale pink. Continue whipping, until firm peaks form. Transfer into a piping bag fitted with a wide plain nozzle.

6. Decorating

   Visualise the slice being cut into thirds lengthways. Mark out with a knife if necessary. Pipe the cream down the outer two thirds in a side to side wave like fashion. Spread the jam down the centreline in an even layer. Arrange the marshmallow halves, cut side up, two across, down both lines of cream. Sprinkle the entire VoVo with coconut.

7. Serving

   To serve, cut the cheesecake in half lengthways, down the middle of the jam. Cut acrossways two marshmallows thick, to make ten slices.