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Spiced Cheesecake

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baking cheesecake dessert

This Spiced Cream Cheesecake looks like a million bucks and tastes even better. It is a dessert that is far easier to pull off than it looks and when I share it at parties there is more than one comment of, “Look! Someone brought a cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory!” But you’ll have the last laugh when that same guest takes a bite and says, “Oh! This is 1,000 times more delicious than ______________________!”

I top my cheesecake with sweet sour cream because my mom and grandmother topped their cakes that way. Some traditions are tough to let go of.

baking cheesecake dessert
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Spiced Cheesecake

Spiced Cheesecake with a ginger snap crust and fresh grated nutmeg
Course Dessert
Keyword Cheesecake, Dessert
Total Time 2 hours 35 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

Crust

  • 1 1/2 cup Ginger Snaps I use Whole Foods Ginger Snaps
  • 1/4 cup Granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup Ground almond meal or ground pecans I have also used a combination of nuts for interesting flavor variety
  • 5 Tbsp Melted butter
  • 1 pinch Kosher salt

Filling

  • 5 large eggs, separated yolks from whites
  • 3 8 oz pkg cream cheese, at room temperature MUST BE AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. If your cream cheese is cold it will not incorporate and you will not have a smooth cheesecake.
  • 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided set aside 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour sifted
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 2 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp Kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp fresh ground nutmeg I use whole nutmeg and grate with a rasp. You can find this in the bulk spice section of Sprouts or Whole Foods

Instructions

  • MAKE THE CRUST
    Crush the ginger snaps with a rolling pin.
    If using pecans or almonds, rather than almond meal, pulse the pecans or almonds in a food processor until fine.
    Combine crushed ginger snaps, sugar, ground nuts or almond meal, and salt in a bowl.
    Drizzle melted butter and stir until evenly moistened. Press into the bottom and up the sides (as far as it'll go) of a lightly buttered 10-inch springform pan.
    Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to set.
  • Preheat oven to 325°
  • MAKE THE FILLING
    In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, and salt and beat until smooth.
    Add flour and egg yolks and mix thoroughly. Stir in sour cream, lemon juice, vanilla and nutmeg and beat until smooth.
    In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with remaining 1/4 cup sugar until it forms stiff peaks.
    Fold thoroughly into cream cheese mixture; no need to be too gentle with it, just be sure the whites are evenly incorporated.
    Pour into chilled crust.
  • Bake cheesecake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until top is puffed and lightly golden brown. There will be cracks in the top, but your sour cream topping will fill that in.
    Without opening the oven door, turn the oven off, and let the cheesecake cool inside for 1 hour. DO NOT take the cheesecake immediately out of the hot oven or it will fall.
    After an hour, remove cheesecake and heat oven to 450°.
    While the cheesecake is cooling, make the sour cream topping by whisking the sour cream, 1/4 C. sugar and vanilla together until smooth.
    Once the cheesecake has cooled on the counter for an hour, pour the sour cream mixture over top. Using a rubber spatula, smooth out the surface.
    Place back into the oven (remember the oven should now read 450° F) and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack to let cool to room temperature.
    Refrigerate the cheesecake overnight to set.
    DON’T PUT THE CHEESECAKE IN THE FRIDGE UNTIL IT HAS COMPLETELY COOLED. THE DRASTIC TEMPERATURE CHANGE WILL CAUSE IT TO CRACK.
  • To serve, sprinkle top with ground nutmeg, shaved chocolate or pile on cherries or berries.

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