To make our delicious cold cake, we will need a total of 18 ounces of strawberries and 7 medium-sized kiwis (it might not be necessary to use them all, but I always take a few more because kiwis don’t all have the same size).

The number of servings is purely indicative, as it depends on the size of the slices cut.

1) Cover the base of our mold with a disk of parchment paper slightly larger than the base itself. Then cut a strip of parchment paper that should be 24 inches long and a bit taller than the walls of the mold. Dampen only the side of the strip that will come into contact with the mold walls; in this way, it will adhere perfectly without coming off.

2) Crumble the biscuits (but without pulverizing them) using a blender or meat tenderizer and place them in a large bowl. Grate the zest of a whole lemon and add three-quarters to the biscuits; it will give the base a scent and freshness that will mitigate the butter flavor.

3) Melt the butter, immediately add it to the biscuits, and quickly mix with a wooden spoon to distribute and absorb it evenly. Pour the mixture into the mold and, using a meat tenderizer (or any other object), press and level the biscuit base well, so it is uniform across the surface. Place the covered mold in the fridge for at least two hours to firm up the butter and, consequently, the biscuit base.

4) In the meantime, put the ricotta in a sieve to drain any whey.

5) Semi-whip the cream (i.e., when it starts to thicken), then add the ricotta and powdered sugar, the remaining lemon zest, finely grated, and continue to whip until you obtain a firm, dense mixture, in which the beaters “write,” leaving visible marks.

If you use sweetened vegetable cream, you do not need to add sugar to the cream.

Let’s move on to the decoration of the edges. (You can, however, decorate it as you like and let your creativity run wild).

5) Cut two kiwis into thin slices.

6) Take the base of our dessert and apply all around the walls of the mold, on the parchment paper, the kiwi slices as seen in photos 3 and 4, overlapping them slightly.

7) Wash, peel, and cut another 2 kiwis and 250g of strawberries into pieces and place them on the biscuit base.

8) Finally, pour the ricotta and cream over the fresh fruit. Using a spatula or the back of a spoon, distribute and level it evenly over the surface. Put the cheesecake back in the fridge, well covered.

9) A few hours before serving the cheesecake, cut another 250 grams of strawberries into slices or simply in half; cut another kiwi into thin slices about 2 millimeters thick. Decorate the cake as in the photo or according to your taste and creativity.

Additional Ideas. As I suggested in the introduction, the strawberry and kiwi cheesecake can be entirely made with gluten-free and lactose-free ingredients, as I have done:

-gluten-free biscuits (coconut ones are great as they go well with strawberries and kiwis)

-lactose-free butter

-lactose-free ricotta

-vegetable cream or lactose-free fresh cream of your choice