This was an intimidating endeavour for me for two reasons: 1) I haven't made cheesecake in over a decade; 2) I was going to serve this at a party where at least half the guests are good cooks and bakers (one is the head baker at a bakeshop, while the another is a microbiologist who happens to be a whiz at making Instant Pot cheesecakes). Anyway, the bottom line is that it was a huge success and everyone loved it. The recipe yields 12 slices and only 1 slice remained when all the guests had left--so yay!
Fair warning: this is a time-consuming recipe because you need the crust to bake, and cool, then the filling needs to be baked, and cooled, and only then can you spread on the topping. But trust me, the half-day kitchen affair is worth it once you taste it.
INGREDIENTS:
For the crust
1 1/4 c chopped pecans (or walnuts)
1 c almond flour
4 TBS unsalted butter, melted (I use grass-fed butter)
1 TBS sweetener of choice as long as it's a 1:1 substitute. (I use a Monkfruit Erythritol blend)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
For the filling:
3 blocks of 8 oz. cream cheese (this MUST be at room temperature or you'll have a hard time mixing the ingredients well)
2/3 c sweetener
1/3 c sour cream (this also needs to be at room temp)
1/2 c fresh blood orange juice, strained
a pinch or two of sea salt
3 eggs, at room temp
2 TBS blood orange zest
For the topping:
1 c sour cream
1 TBS blood orange juice, strained
3 tsp sweetener
3 slices of blood orange
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 350F. Take a 9" springform pan and line it with a round of parchment paper to make it easier to remove it later on. Wrap the outside of the baking tin with foil to catch any possible leaks later on.
Add all the crust ingredients into a bowl and combine them by hand until well-mixed. Transfer onto the springform pan and press down firmly to the bottom until it's even and compact. Bake it for 12 minutes or until the crust starts to brown. Once done baking, take it out and let it cool completely while you work on the filling.
Making sure that all your cold items are at room temp, take the cream cheese, sweetener, sour cream, salt, blood orange juice and zest, and mix together. DO NOT add the eggs just yet. It's important that you also DO NOT over mix and add excess air into the filling.
Now add the eggs last and add this one at a time to ensure the mixture is combined thoroughly. Again, do not overheat the mixture. Mix it only until it is combined. Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake for 45 minutes. After the 45 minutes is done, turn the oven off but continue to bake the cheesecake for another 10 minutes (remember: oven is OFF and the oven door is CLOSED).
When the last 10 minutes is up, vent the oven by opening the door and letting some of the air out. Keep the cheesecake in there for another half hour until the oven completely cools. When that's done, remove the cheesecake and allow it to come down to room temperature.
While waiting for the cake to cool, get your "frosting" together. Take your topping ingredients: sour cream, blood orange juice, and sweetener, and mix together by hand until well combined and even in colour. Spread it evenly onto your cheesecake and refrigerate until you are ready to serve it. Take your blood orange slice and place nicely on top before serving. Enjoy!
Yields 12 slices.
444 calories per slice
10g Protein
9g Carb
40g Fat