This baked cheesecake is a favourite—the ricotta and quark mean that it’s light and not too-sweet. Around this time of year fresh fruit may be in short supply, but with lemons available year-round there’s no better way to treat your tastebuds to sunny, bright Italian flavours.

• 150g digestive biscuits
• 100g butter, melted
• 1 egg white
• 200g caster sugar
• 1tsp fresh thyme leaves, picked
• 4tbsp cornflour
• 500g ricotta, drained
• 250g quark
• 3 eggs & 1 egg yolk
• 1 lemon, zested

To garnish: fresh thyme and blueberries

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. Put the biscuits in a bag, bash them with a rolling pin and mix in the melted butter. Press the biscuit crumb into a 23cm springform cake tin, and bake for 15 minutes.

3. Whisk the egg white and brush it over the hot biscuit base—leaving it to harden as it cools, creating a seal.

4. Meanwhile, grind 1tbsp of the sugar with the fresh thyme in a pestle and mortar. Tip it in a mixing bowl with the rest of the sugar and then stir in the cornflour, ricotta and quark, beating until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by with the final egg yolk and lemon zest.

5. Tip the filling over the base and cook for ten minutes. Then turn the temperature to 140°C and cook for 1.5 hours until the filling is set round the edges with a slight custardy wobble in the middle. Take the thyme and blueberries and serve at room temperature.

Read more: International bread recipes

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