Apple Crumb Cheesecake Pie

This is the dessert I made for my "competition" with Cathy (after we went to the Country Mill and split a 1/2 bushel of Northern Spy apples we somehow turned it into having a bake-off to see who could make the better apple dessert - really, why do I turn even getting apples into a competition? LOL!!). She made an apple spice cake with warm rum sauce which was fantastic, reminded me a lot of the apple pudding cake I make for Dave that is so, so good. I didn't get her apple spice cake recipe, but click here for my apple pudding cake recipe.

I found two recipes for this 2 desserts-in-one apple pie/slash/cheesecake;  it's weird but it seems they are both using a third person's recipe but use different amounts of ingredients to make the filling - I'm curious what the original recipe calls for. I bet one of these recipes is the original and one is modified but I don't know which is which! click here and here for the recipes I based this on. I sorta combined the two recipes to come up with my version:

Ingredients:

• dough for 1 piecrust (homemade or store bought)

APPLE PIE FILLING:

• 6 cups apples, peeled and diced
• 2 T. lemon juice
• 6 T. brown sugar
• 6 T. white sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 1/2 cup water

CRUMB TOPPING:

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 T. unsalted butter, melted
• pinch of coarse salt

CHEESECAKE:

• 1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 Tablespoons sour cream

GARNISH (optional):

• 1/4 cup caramel sauce (I used Sanders)

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 375'

APPLE PIE FILLING:

1. Drizzle the lemon juice over the apples and toss to coat. Set aside.
2. Stir together the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a large saucepan. Whisk in the water until everything has dissolved.
3. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat slightly and simmer for 2 minutes.
4. Add the apples and increase the heat to medium-high to bring the mixture to a full boil again. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally for 10-12 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool.
5. Refrigerate the filling in an airtight container for 4-6 hours to thicken. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

FOR THE PIECRUST:

1. Spray a 9" pie plate with nonstick baking spray.
2. Place the dough in the pie plate. Fold the edges of the dough under and crimp them. Refrigerate until ready to sue.

FOR THE CRUMB TOPPING:

1. Mix together all crumb topping ingredients and set aside.

FOR THE CHEESECAKE:

1. Beat the cream cheese until creamy. Add the sugar and beat the mixture until smooth.
2. Add the egg and beat until fully incorporated but do not over beat the batter.

ASSEMBLY:

1. Spread the cheesecake batter in the prepared pie crust.
2. Gently spoon the apple pie filling on top of the cheesecake batter.
3. Sprinkle the crumb topping evenly over the pie filling.
4. Bake for 40 minutes
5. Drizzle with caramel sauce if desired.

notes: Either I didn't cut the apples in small enough pieces, or I didn't cook them long enough before adding them to the pie because they were crunchy even after the pie was baked. It still tasted great, but the apples needed to be cooked a bit more. My advice is to cook your apples until they are just soft and not crunchy - don't overcook tho or it'll be mushy. Mine didn't soften much during the baking of the pie. 

German Chocolate Cheesecake

Every year I make LeDonna something German chocolate for her birthday - in the past I've made layered cake, bread, stuffed cupcakes, this year I decided to try a German chocolate cheesecake (because I'm now on a cheesecake roll). I was a tiny bit hesitant to experiment with a different recipe after the other two (plain and strawberry swirl) turned out so flawless (!) but knowing that it was going to be topped with a thick layer of coconut-pecan frosting I wasn't as worried about it cracking.

It's a similar recipe though with 4 eggs and a bit of flour (or corn starch) and her technique is along the same lines with turning the oven off for a bit, and then cracking the door for a while before removing it from the oven to cool. This one also turned out great tho - no cracks, creamy and smooth and very rich. My new-found love of making cheesecakes continues!

Before I added the frosting I weighed the cake because it's so heavy and I was curious - 4.5 pounds. And then I added the frosting and weighed again - 6 pounds! 6! Goodness. I texted LeDonna that she needed to have a party to have help eating all of this dessert ;)

I looked at a bunch of different recipes before deciding on this one from Life Love and Sugar, click here to see the original source. I didn't change a thing so am just copying her recipe for you (and me, so I don't misplace it for next time - and there will be a next time!). Oh wait, I did change a couple things - no drizzle of chocolate sauce, I used unsweetened coconut flakes, and I made the filling in a food processor because I read somewhere that doing that versus in a mixer creates less air in the filling which helps keep down cracking. Don't know if that's true, but it didn't crack so...

You make a crust out of oreo cookie crumbs - I bought a small package of oreo thins and put all of them in the food processor, it took the whole package which was 40 thins to make 2 cups (actually it was 39 thins because Dave ate one before I could stop him!).

INGREDIENTS

COCONUT PECAN TOPPING 

• 4 egg yolks
• 12 oz can evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, cubed
• 2 2/3 cups sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 1/4 cups chopped pecans

CRUST

• 2 cups Oreo crumbs (leave filling in Oreos)
• 4 tbsp butter, melted

CHEESECAKE FILLING 

• 24 ounces packages of cream cheese, room temperature (three 8 oz packages)
• 1 cup sugar
• 8 oz german chocolate, melted
• 1 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp cocoa
• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

COCONUT PECAN TOPPING 

1. In a large saucepan, combine the egg yolks, milk and vanilla and whisk until well combined.

2. Add sugar and butter and cook on medium heat for 12-15 minutes, or until thickened (almost pudding-like) and golden brown, stirring constantly.

3. Remove from heat and add coconut and pecans. Mix well.

4. Allow to cool completely.

CRUST

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees.

2. In a small bowl, combine crust ingredients and mix well.

3. Press mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan.

4. Bake crust for 10 minutes then remove and set aside.

5. Cover the outsides of the pan with aluminum foil and set aside.

CHEESECAKE FILLING

1. Reduce oven to 300 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, blend the cream cheese, sugar, chocolate, flour and cocoa with an electric mixer until combined (Use low speed to keep less air from getting into the batter, which can cause cracks). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

3. Add eggs one at a time, beating slowly and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.

4. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until well combined.

5. Put a little bit of the cheesecake filling in the bottom of the crust. Then add about 1 1/2 cups of coconut pecan topping and spread evenly.

6. Pour remaining cheesecake filling into the springform pan and spread evenly. The pan will be very full.

7. Place springform pan inside another pan. Fill outside pan with enough warm water to go about halfway up the sides of the springform pan. The water should not go above the top edge of the aluminum foil on the springform pan.

8. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

9. Turn off heat and leave cheesecake in oven with door closed for 20 minutes.

10. Crack oven door and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another 20 minutes or until set. This cooling process helps the cheesecake cool slowly to prevent cracks.

11. Remove cheesecake from oven and chill.

12. Once the cheesecake is completely cool, remove springform pan sides from cheesecake and place cheesecake on a serving plate.

13. Top cheesecake with remaining coconut pecan topping and drizzle with chocolate sauce.

#lifeloveandsugar.com 

one year ago: paper sunflowers in wine corks
two years ago: wood box with chalkboard message
three years ago: the hulk sized zucchini!

Strawberry-Swirl Cheesecake

Last week I made "perfect" cheesecake with blueberry and strawberry sauces, I mentioned then that it was so easy to do I turned around and made another cheesecake the next day - here it is! This one is is swirled with strawberry glaze and has a chocolate crust instead of graham cracker.

 I'll be honest, the filling of this one is delicious (just like the original one) but I prefer the graham cracker crust to the chocolate - I was thinking chocolate and berry, that goes together, and I wanted to experiment with a different crust...but next time I will do this exact filling in a graham crust and it'll be the bomb. I'll give you the chocolate crust recipe that I found on Food Network from Bobby Flay, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it and it did taste good, if you want to try it. If you're like Dave and I and prefer the graham one I am also including that one below. I used the same recipe for the filling as the "perfect" one last week, which I'm reposting, with the addition of a few spoonfuls of strawberry glaze or seedless jam.


Ingredients ~

 for the crust:

• one 9 oz. box chocolate wafers (I found them by the ice cream toppings)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 stick butter, melted

for the cheesecake:

• 2 pounds full-fat cream cheese (4 8oz. boxes), room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk (save the white for another use)

Directions ~

for the crust:

1. Spray a 9" springform pan with non-stick baking spray, line the bottom with parchment (optional)
2. preheat oven to 325'
3. add the cookies and sugar to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to fine crumbs. Drizzle in the butter and pulse until the crumbs are completely coated with the butter.
4. Press the crumb mixture firmly into the bottom of the springform pan. Bake until set, 10-13 minutes (or 15-18 minutes if you're using a 10" pan). Let cool completely on a rack. 
5. 
   
   

for the cheesecake: 

• Cut two large pieces of foil and place them on your work surface on top of each other in a cross. Place a piece of parchment on top of the foil (so there are 3 layers total). Set the springform pan in the middle and fold the edges of the foil up and around the sides of the pan. The foil gives you extra protection against water getting into the pan during the water bath step. 

• Mix the cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, and salt together in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. (Or use an electric handheld mixer and a large bowl.) Mix on medium-low speed until the mixture is creamy, like thick frosting, and no lumps of cream cheese remain. Scrape down the beater and the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

• Add the sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla, and beat on medium-low speed until combined and creamy. Scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl with a spatula.

• With the mixer on medium-low speed, beat in the eggs and the yolk one at a time. Wait until the previous egg is just barely mixed into the batter before adding the next one. At first, the mixture will look clumpy and broken, but it will come together as the eggs are worked in. Note: you don't want to over mix it once you're adding the eggs - it creates too much air in the batter and that could lead to cracking. Be gentle with this step.

• Scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl with a spatula. Stir the whole batter a few times by hand, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. The finished batter should be thick, creamy, and silky. Don't worry if you see a few specks of un-mixed cream cheese here and there; they will melt into the batter during baking and won't affect the finished cheesecake. 

• Put the batter in the fridge for at least an hour to chill it. 

• Pour the batter over the cooled crust and spread it into an even layer. Run a knife thru the batter a few times to release air bubbles. 

• Put a few spoonfuls of strawberry glaze or seedless strawberry jam on the top of the batter and run a knife top to bottom and side to side thru the glaze to create a marbled pattern. Don't do this too many times or it'll get all muddled together. 

• Transfer the pan to a roasting pan or other baking dish big enough to hold the springform pan. Have a few cups of hot water standing by. 

• Put the roasting pan containing the cheesecake into the oven, carefully pour hot water into the roasting pan being careful not to splash any water onto the cheesecake. Fill the roasting pan about half way up the sides of the springform pan (I used about 2 cups of hot water). This is creating a "water bath" for the cheesecake. 

• Bake for 55-60 minutes (for a 9" springform pan. You'll need to adjust the time for different sized pan). The cheesecake is done when the outer two to three inches look slightly puffed and set, but the inner circle still jiggles (like Jell-o) when you gently shake the pan. Some spots of toasted golden color are fine, but if you see any cracks staring to form move on to the next step right away.

• Leave the cheesecake in the oven. Turn off the oven and crack the door open (or prop it open with a wooden spoon). Let the cheesecake cool slowly for 1 hour.

• Remove the cheesecake from the oven and from the water bath, unwrap the foil, and transfer it to a cooling rack. Run a thin-bladed knife around the edge of the cake to make sure it's not sticking to the sides (which can cause cracks as it cools). Let the cheesecake cool completely on the rack.

• Chill the cheesecake, uncovered, for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days in the refrigerator. This step is crucial for letting the cheesecake set and achieving perfect cheesecake texture - don't rush it.

• Take the cheesecake out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before you plan to serve. Untold the cake and top the cheesecake just before serving.

Dave liked it with blueberry sauce on top!

optional Graham Cracker crust:

• 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 5 tablespoons melted butter

1. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter together. 
2. Transfer it into a buttered pan (or spray with non stick spray) and use the bottom of a glass to press it evenly into the bottom. I didn't spread them up the sides but you can if you want.
3. Bake at 350' for 6 minutes; remove from oven and let cool before filling.

click here for last week's perfect cheesecake recipe with graham crust
click here for blueberry and strawberry sauces
click here for original source of Bobby Flay's crust




one year ago: how to make paper mugs
two years ago: stretchy bracelets with words
three years ago: make a dog crate cover

"Perfect" Cheesecake

You know the saying "do one thing a day that scares you"? Well today my scary thing is making cheesecake. I know, I know - food should not be scary. Bears, scary. Sharks, scary. Spinning blue wheel of death on my MacBook, scary. Instead of scary food let's just say that I find the thought of making cheesecake to be intimidating, anxiety-inducing, and stressful...so when my sis tells me that her co-worker has requested cheesecake this year for his birthday, I had a mini panic attack. Great, I'm already afraid of it and now I need to make one not only for someone's birthday but also for it to be shared with all the co-workers? Yikes. No pressure.

Needless to say, I spent lots of time reading tips and tricks for making the "perfect" cheesecake and came across this site titled, appropriately enough, "How to Make Perfect Cheesecake" (click here for the source). I'm skeptical in general when someone says their recipe is "perfect" but I followed her instructions and guess what? It turned out SO GOOD!! I didn't mess up anything - no cracks on the top, didn't over- or under- bake it, it's level and pretty, creamy and smooth...if there's such a thing as "perfect" then this is about as close as I'm going to come. Whew. High 5.

This seems like lots of steps but it's just because there are so many tips - read thru everything before starting, none of it is hard! Just follow the instructions and you'll be fine. This one went together so easily and turned out so good that I made a second cheesecake (strawberry swirled) the next day - I totally wouldn't do that if it was too hard! I followed the instructions given by the site above, and also added a few changes of my own that I incorporated from other sites I read...

Ingredients ~

 for the crust:

• 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs 
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 5 tablespoons melted butter

for the cheesecake:

• 2 pounds full-fat cream cheese (4 8oz. boxes), room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk (save the white for another use)

Directions ~

for the crust:

Spray a 9" springform pan with non-stick baking spray, line the bottom with parchment (optional)

1. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter together. 
2. Transfer it into the pan and use the bottom of a glass to press it evenly into the bottom. I didn't spread them up the sides but you can if you want.
3. Bake at 350' for 6 minutes; remove from oven and let cool before filling.

for the cheesecake:

• Cut two large pieces of foil and place them on your work surface on top of each other in a cross. Place a piece of parchment on top of the foil (so there are 3 layers total). Set the springform pan in the middle and fold the edges of the foil up and around the sides of the pan. The foil gives you extra protection against water getting into the pan during the water bath step. 

• Mix the cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, and salt together in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. (Or use an electric handheld mixer and a large bowl.) Mix on medium-low speed until the mixture is creamy, like thick frosting, and no lumps of cream cheese remain. Scrape down the beater and the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

• Add the sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla, and beat on medium-low speed until combined and creamy. Scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl with a spatula.

• With the mixer on medium-low speed, beat in the eggs and the yolk one at a time. Wait until the previous egg is just barely mixed into the batter before adding the next one. At first, the mixture will look clumpy and broken, but it will come together as the eggs are worked in. Note: you don't want to over mix it once you're adding the eggs - it creates too much air in the batter and that could lead to cracking. Be gentle with this step.

• Scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl with a spatula. Stir the whole batter a few times by hand, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. The finished batter should be thick, creamy, and silky. Don't worry if you see a few specks of un-mixed cream cheese here and there; they will melt into the batter during baking and won't affect the finished cheesecake. 

• Put the batter in the fridge for at least an hour to chill it. 

• Pour the batter over the cooled crust and spread it into an even layer. Run a knife thru the batter a few times to release air bubbles. 

• Transfer the pan to a roasting pan or other baking dish big enough to hold the springform pan. Have a few cups of hot water standing by. 

• Put the roasting pan containing the cheesecake into the preheated 350’ oven, carefully pour hot water into the roasting pan being careful not to splash any water onto the cheesecake. Fill the roasting pan about half way up the sides of the springform pan (I used about 2 cups of hot water). This is creating a "water bath" for the cheesecake. 

• Bake for 55-60 minutes (for a 9" springform pan. You'll need to adjust the time for different sized pan). The cheesecake is done when the outer two to three inches look slightly puffed and set, but the inner circle still jiggles (like Jell-o) when you gently shake the pan. Some spots of toasted golden color are fine, but if you see any cracks staring to form move on to the next step right away.

• Leave the cheesecake in the oven. Turn off the oven and crack the door open (or prop it open with a wooden spoon). Let the cheesecake cool slowly for 1 hour.

• Remove the cheesecake from the oven and from the water bath, unwrap the foil, and transfer it to a cooling rack. Run a thin-bladed knife around the edge of the cake to make sure it's not sticking to the sides (which can cause cracks as it cools). Let the cheesecake cool completely on the rack.

• Chill the cheesecake, uncovered, for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days in the refrigerator. This step is crucial for letting the cheesecake set and achieving perfect cheesecake texture - don't rush it.

• Take the cheesecake out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before you plan to serve. Unmold the cake and top the cheesecake just before serving.

notes: store leftovers uncovered in the fridge for several days, covering will cause condensation to build up.

ideas for topping your cheesecake:

• spread with a thin sweetened sour cream layer* (see below for recipe)
• pour soft chocolate ganache over the top
• add chopped fresh fruit
• spoon blueberry or strawberry sauce over top of individual slices

* to make an easy sour cream layer - stir together 1 cup of sour cream, 1/4 cup powdered sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.

For the record - my sis reported that someone said I probably put the sour cream layer on top to hide the cracks (I have pics to prove that it didn't crack, woohoo) so do what you want with that info. Maybe leave the topping off if you want to prove it didn't crack - and if it did crack? Big whoop. It's still going to taste delicious and really, is anyone not going to eat it because of that hahahah? 

Other birthday desserts I've made for my sister to take to work include:

2017: funfetti brownie cake
2016: sprinkles no-bake cheesecake
2015: giant whoopee pie (before I started the blog. I'll post that recipe in the future tho!)