CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE

Ingredients.......Pastry, 4 tbs of butter/ marg, 150gm of plain flour, 2 tbs of cocoa powder, 2 tbs of golden castor sugar, 25 gm of almond meal, 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten. Ingredients...Filling, 2 eggs separated, 75gm of golden castor sugar, 350gm of cream cheese, 25gm of cocoa powder, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, 150ml of thickened cream, icing sugar for dusting. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Grease with cooking oil a 20cm/ 8"round loose based cake pan. First let's make the pastry, mix together the flour and cocoa powder in a medium bowl and rub in the butter/ marg with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and almond meal. Add the the lightly beaten egg yolk and a little water to form a soft dough. Next roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Carefully remove to and line the prepared cake pan. Chill in your refrigerator for 30 minutes. Meanwhile prepare the filling. Beat the egg yolks and and sugar together in the bowl of your mixer until until thick and pale. Beat in the cream cheese, almond meal, cream, vanilla extract and cocoa powder until well combined. Now beat the egg whites in a dry clean bowl until stiff. Stir a little of the egg white into the cheese mix, then fold in the remainder. Pour this mixture into the pastry case. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes or until well risen and just firm to touch. Remove from the oven and carefully run a knife blade around the side of the pan and remove the circular side. To serve dust with a sprinkle of icing sugar.