Summer screams strawberries and the vanilla notes of white chocolate make it their perfect partner especially with a hit of zingy lemon zest. I love making the base with white chocolate-coated biscuits – because why wouldn’t I? But you can happily use plain or dark chocolate-coated biscuits instead. It’s delicious with the optional (and super simple) strawberry compote but equally tasty without it.

Method:

• Preheat oven to 165°C.
• Line the base and sides of a 20cm square baking tin with baking parchment.
• In a food processor, process the biscuits to the texture of breadcrumbs — if you have a few more nubbly bits that’s ok — it gives it texture.
• Add the melted butter and pulse a couple of times to incorporate. Pour into the lined baking pan and press down with a large spoon then level it off with the base of a glass. Bake for 10 minutes. Then set aside to cool.
• Melt the white chocolate — you can do this in a microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring with a spatula between each burst to prevent it burning or you can do it in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Be careful not to get water in the bowl. Once it is melted and smooth, set aside to cool.
• Put the cream cheese, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and sugar to the food processor and mix until it’s smooth and lump free.
• Wash, dry and hull the 100g of strawberries. Chop them into small dice — about 1cm square.
• Pour the mixture into the tin then scatter the chopped strawberries evenly over it.
• Bake for 45 – 50 minutes until the edges are cooked the middle jiggles slightly.
• Place on a cooling rack for 10 minutes while you melt the remaining 100g chocolate. Allow the chocolate to cool for five minutes if it’s very hot then stir in the sour cream. Return to the oven for 10 minutes then put on a wire rack to cool completely before refrigerating for at least 3 hours.
• If you are making the compote, place the prepared strawberries in a saucepan with the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer over low to medium heat and cook for 10 – 20 minutes, until the berries have softened and are a little jammy. Set aside to cool.   
• To serve, decorate with either fresh or freeze-dried strawberries and slice into 12 rectangular bars. Top with berry compote if using.

@victoriaprever