Mulled wine cheesecake with speculatius

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 250 g speculatius biscuits
• 60 g butter
• 500 g low-fat curd cheese
• 3 eggs, size M
• 125 g butter
• 140 g sugar
• 3 packets of vanilla sugar
• 1 pack of vanilla pudding powder, approx. 40 g
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• 200 ml mulled wine
• 50 ml water
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 pack of cake glaze, red
• 1 handful of blueberries
• 1 handful of cranberries, sugared
• some rosemary sprigs
• some star anise
• 100 g speculatius biscuits
• 50 g dark chocolate

Instructions

Working time approx. 50 minutes; Rest time approx. 4 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes; Total time approx. 6 hours

for an 18cm springform pan

For the speculatius base, grind the speculatius biscuits very finely (e.g., using a food processor). It’s important that the biscuits are really fine. Melt the butter and immediately mix it with 200g of the speculatius biscuits (set aside the remaining 50g; this will go into the cheesecake batter). Pour the mixture into an 18cm springform pan and press down with a spoon or a glass onto the bottom and about 3-4cm up the sides. Preheat the oven to 180°C (top/bottom heat). For the cheesecake filling, place the quark in a bowl and whisk in the eggs. Stir until the eggs are no longer visible, then set aside. Beat the softened butter with the sugar and vanilla sugar with a mixer until fluffy. Fold in the custard powder. Whisk together the quark mixture and the butter mixture, along with the remaining ground speculatius biscuits and cinnamon powder. Stir only until the mixture is smooth. Pour the finished quark mixture into the springform pan and gently move the pan back and forth to ensure the mixture is smooth. Bake the cake at 180°C (top/bottom heat) on the middle rack for about 10 minutes. Place a wooden spoon in the oven door so that it can remain slightly open. After 10 minutes, reduce the temperature to 160°C (320°F). Important: The spoon remains in the door. Check the cheesecake after another 45-50 minutes. If the cake has already reached the desired color, place some aluminum foil over the cake. Place the spoon back in the door. If the cake is not yet golden brown enough, the aluminum foil can be left out. After another 5 minutes, the cheesecake should be done, depending on the oven’s power. To check, open the door and shake the cake gently. If the center is still soft but the cake wobbles and is golden brown, it is done. The cake now needs to cool in the oven; simply leave the door open to do this. The total baking time is approximately 65-70 minutes. Once the cake has cooled completely, remove it from the tin. For the mulled wine topping, combine the mulled wine, water, sugar, and cake glaze in a saucepan and stir well until no lumps remain. Bring to a boil briefly and remove from the heat. Pour the hot mixture onto the cooled cheesecake and spread it evenly. Decorate the cake as desired. I used sugared cranberries, blueberries, star anise, and rosemary sprigs as a topping. For the speculoos cookie border, melt the chocolate over a double boiler. Using a spoon, cover the back of the speculoos biscuits with the melted chocolate, about halfway up, and press them onto the edge of the cake. Repeat this process until the edge of the cake is completely covered.