Baked Roquefort with figs and balsamic onions

Ingredients

For the base
250g/8½oz oatcakes
125g/4½oz melted butter
For the filling
700g/1lb 8½oz ricotta cheese
300g/10½oz full-fat soft cheese
6 free-range eggs, beaten
salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g/7oz Roquefort cheese
200g/7oz dried figs, chopped
For the onions
200ml/7fl oz balsamic vinegar
200g/7oz caster sugar
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
200g/7oz baby onions
1 garlic clove, crushed
salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
watercress
small punnet mustard cress, snipped
beetroot leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. In a bowl, crush the oatcakes and mix in the melted butter, then press into a 25cm/10in springform cake tin.
3. For the filling, place the ricotta cheese, soft cheese, eggs and salt and freshly ground black pepper into a food processor and pulse until smooth.
4. Add the Roquefort cheese and dried figs to the food processor and pulse again.
5. Spoon the cheese mixture onto the oatcake base and transfer to the oven to bake for one hour. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
6. For the onions, place the balsamic vinegar, caster sugar, nutmeg, baby onions and garlic into a small pan over a medium heat. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer until the onions have softened and the liquid has reduced to a syrup.
7. To serve, cut the cheesecake and place a wedge of the cheesecake onto each plate. Top with some of the onions and place a small handful of watercress, mustard cress and beetroot leaves alongside. Drizzle around the remaining syrup from the onions.