real food, real flavor, real life.

I love to bake, in fact when I was working in Newcastle over 30 years ago, I used to make all the desserts for the Fisherman’s Wharf seafood restaurant on the quayside below the Tyne Bridge. Three days a week I’d drop of cakes, desserts and pastries to be sold in the restaurant, all freshly made on the same day that I delivered them. I became good friends with Simon Tennet the then executive chef at the time, as we were both studying for our City & Guilds 706/3 advanced culinary exam at Newcastle College. The restaurant at the time was very up scale and trendy. What I loved was everything was local, all the seafood came from the North Sea, all the fresh produce from local farms within Northumberland. Even all the chefs were hired from Newcastle or the surrounding area. 30 years ago this was pretty innovative to say the least, as most restaurants today emulate what Simon was doing in the 80’s & 90’s.

One of the most requested desserts on the menu was cheese cake, I’d use a variety of seasonal fruits depending on the time of year, beautiful English strawberries early summer, peaches or blackberries late summer to early autumn. Blueberries which were not so common in the UK at the time, but had just been cultivated in a nearby farm. So blueberries were added to the winter menu one year and became an instant hit with the regulars. Now living in America you can buy blueberries anytime of the year, so why not give this blueberry and thyme cheese cake a try and see if it’s a hit with you and your family?

And if you don’t think making your own cheesecake is healthier than a store bought one. Look at the list of ingredients for a typical cheesecake bought at one of the national food stores.

“Ingredients: Cream Cheese (Milk, Cream, Bacterial Culture, Salt, Carob Bean Gum), Sugar, Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour (Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Skim Milk, Milk, Palm Oil, Eggs, Margarine (Soybean Oil, Palm Oil, Water, Salt, Mono- And Diglycerides, Nonfat Dry Milk, Soy Lecithin, Preservative [Sodium Benzoate], Artificial Flavor, Vitamin A Palmitate, Beta-Carotene Color), Graham Flour, Contains Less Than 2% Of The Following: Hydrogenated Coconut Oil, Whey, Brown Sugar, Honey, Rice Flour, Cornstarch, Soybean Oil, Gelatin, Modified Cornstarch, Bacterial Culture, Mono- And Diglycerides, Salt, Natural And Artificial Flavor, Carob Bean Gum, Datem, Baking Soda, Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Cinnamon, Disodium Phosphate, Modified Tapioca Starch, Sodium Caseinate, Sodium Citrate, Soy Protein Isolate, Xanthan Gum, Soy Lecithin, Beta-Apo-8′-Carotenal Color”

Now compare that list with the list of ingredients for my cheesecake. Happy cooking and enjoy!

Wild Blue Berry & Thyme Cheese Cake

Serves

8 to 10

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 2x 8oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch kosher salt
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour, sieved
• ½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• 2 cups fresh wild blueberries
• Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting (optional)

How to make:

Pre-heat oven to 360’F and grease an 8 inch spring-form pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Unwrap the pastry and dust your work surface with flour, gently roll the puff pastry out to 1/4 inch thickness. Press the pastry inside the pan and up the sides of the pan. Transfer to the fridge and chill while you prepare the batter.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugar on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl until very smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time until the eggs are fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then reduce the mixer speed to medium-low. Add cream, vanilla, and salt, and beat until combined, about 1 minute.

Add the flour and thyme leaves to the batter, then beat again to combine, about 30 seconds. Pour the batter into the prepared pastry-lined pan. Gently sprinkle the blueberries over the batter, then gently fold the corners the pastry over the berries.

Place the cheese on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 60 to 70 minutes, until lightly golden brown on top, but still slightly wobbly in the center. Let the cake cool 5 minutes, then unmold. Let cool completely. Slice into wedges and serve at room temperature or chilled with a light dusting of confectioners’ sugar. Enjoy.

Estimated Nutritional Breakdown

Per serving, based on 10 servings

• Calories: 360–430 kcal
• Protein: 6–8 g
• Carbohydrates: 28–36 g
• Fiber: 1–3 g
• Total fat: 26–32 g
• Saturated fat: 14–19 g
• Added sugar: 14–18 g
• Sodium: 220–330 mg
• Calcium: 70–110 mg
• Potassium: 100–180 mg

Per serving, based on 8 servings

• Calories: 450–540 kcal
• Protein: 8–10 g
• Carbohydrates: 35–45 g
• Fiber: 2–4 g
• Total fat: 32–40 g
• Saturated fat: 18–24 g
• Added sugar: 18–23 g
• Sodium: 280–410 mg
• Calcium: 90–140 mg
• Potassium: 130–220 mg

Nutrition will vary depending on the puff pastry, cream cheese, heavy cream, and serving size.

Why This Homemade Cheesecake Fits MW&B Criteria

Real Food First

This cheesecake is made with a short list of recognizable ingredients: puff pastry, cream cheese, sugar, eggs, heavy cream, vanilla, flour, thyme, blueberries, and salt. It is not a “health food,” but it is made from ingredients most people understand and could find in a home kitchen.

The MW&B message is not that cheesecake should become breakfast, lunch, and emotional support. It is that when you do enjoy dessert, making it yourself gives you far more control over what goes into your body.

Reduce Harmful Inputs

Compared with many store-bought cheesecakes, this homemade version avoids artificial flavors, artificial colors, preservatives, hydrogenated oils, modified starches, gums, stabilizers, and long ingredient lists full of things most people would never keep in their pantry.

That matters because MW&B is not about perfection. It is about reducing unnecessary processed ingredients where you can.

Healthy Skepticism

Homemade does not automatically mean “healthy.” This cheesecake still contains sugar, cream cheese, heavy cream, pastry, and flour. The difference is transparency. You know what is in it, you control the portion, and you can choose better-quality ingredients.

That is a much more honest approach than pretending every dessert needs to be “guilt-free,” which is one of the more exhausting phrases invented.

Purpose, Connection, and Community

This recipe carries memory, place, family, training, and craft. It connects Newcastle, Fisherman’s Wharf, local farms, North Sea seafood, seasonal British fruit, and the discipline of professional baking.

MW&B is about more than nutrients. Food also creates connection. A dessert like this is meant to be shared around a table, not eaten standing in front of the fridge while negotiating with yourself like a hostage situation.

Plant Diversity

The blueberries add color, natural sweetness, fiber, and plant compounds. The thyme brings an unexpected herbal note that makes the cheesecake feel more refined and less one-dimensional.

Assessment and Adjustment

This dessert can be adjusted depending on your goals. Cut it into 10 smaller slices instead of 8. Skip the confectioners’ sugar. Serve with extra fresh berries. Reduce the sugar slightly if desired. Add lemon zest for brightness.

Small changes can make it fit more comfortably into a balanced eating pattern.

Real Life Enjoyment

MW&B allows room for food that brings joy. A healthy lifestyle should include fresh vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, beans, nuts, seeds, movement, sleep, and purpose. It can also include a homemade slice of cheesecake shared with people you love.

Because a wellness plan with no joy in it is just punishment wearing yoga pants.

MW&B Plate Balance

This is a dessert, so the balance is different from a main meal:

• Fruit: wild blueberries
• Protein and calcium: cream cheese, eggs, heavy cream
• Flavor builders: thyme, vanilla, salt
• Treat component: puff pastry and sugar
• Best serving approach: small slice with extra fresh berries

Optional MW&B Serving Ideas

• Serve with extra fresh blueberries or raspberries
• Cut into 10 portions for a more modest serving
• Skip the confectioners’ sugar dusting
• Add lemon zest to the filling for freshness
• Serve with unsweetened Greek yogurt on the side
• Pair with mint tea or coffee after a balanced meal

Chef Mark Note

This cheesecake is a reminder that homemade food carries more than ingredients. It carries memory, training, place, craft, and love.

The blueberries bring sweetness and color. The thyme adds a subtle herbal note. The puff pastry gives the cheesecake a rustic, bakery-style finish. It is rich, satisfying, and meant to be enjoyed slowly.

The MW&B approach is simple: enjoy the treat, make it yourself when you can, use better ingredients, and keep the portion sensible. Real food, real flavor, real life.