Chocolate and Mandarin Cheesecake

This recipe was inspired by a favourite dessert of my in a coffee shop many years ago called Escape in Bray (Co Wicklow, Ireland). I've taken the chocolate and madarin and applied it to a cheese cake, it's a little different from other cheesecakes in that it has a layer of madarins between the base and the creamy layer. There isn't much chocolate in it save for the chocolate digestive base. I've also used light cream cheese because I'm using double cream, if you don't understand why, you've never supersized and ordered a diet coke simultaneously and I'm afraid it can't be explained to you



1 pkt of Chocolate Digestives
100g Butter
4 heaped tblsp Icing Sugar
1 tin mandarins in natural juice
1 tin mandarins in syrup
1 pkt light philadelphia cream cheese
1 carton double cream

1. Put chocolate digestive biscuits in a bag and smash them to crumbs with a rolling pins. Melt the butter in microwave and mix biscuits and butter.

2. Press the biscuit mix in to the base of a loose bottomed or springformed tin.

3. Drain the mandarins in syrup and mush them up and layer them on top of the biscuit base and then pop in the fridge to set.

4. Into a bowl place the remainder of the ingredients with the exception of the mandarins and whisk. Drain mandarins retaining a little of the mandarin juice. Add the mandarin and a little of the juice and whisk thouroughly so that the segments are fully and evenly dispersed throughout the mixture.

5. Pour the mixture on top of the base. I've sliced some fresh mandarins on top for decoration and put a little dot of chocolate in the middle of each mandarin to hint at the chocolate base beneath.

6. Refridgerate until its set at least an hour but overnight would be best. Remove from tin and serve with on its own or with cream.