The vote came in over at
Crazy Ingredient Challenge and the winners were Carrots and Graham Crackers. CIC is a fun little group where each month the members vote on 2 sets of 4 ingredients. The ingredient with the most votes from each group get joined together to give us the mandatory ingredients to be used in a recipe. It is fun and you can join us by emailing Lori at lorisculinarycreations@hotmail.com.
I was extremely pleased with this month's ingredients and immediately knew that I was going to make a cheesecake to serve up after Easter dinner. Carrots and Easter just seem to go together so well...I guess because of that cute little bunny rabbit that hides eggs all over the world.
I found
this recipe at Taste of Home and knew it would be perfect. I adapted the recipe slightly by using frozen carrots that I thawed and pureed instead of cooking my own. I also omitted the streusel topping and added a dollop of whipped cream to each slice before serving.
The cheesecake is baked in a water bath so the top was perfect without a crack to be seen. The recipe recommends allowing the cheesecake to refrigerate overnight which was perfect because I certainly had enough to do on Easter Sunday and was happy to have as much prepared as possible beforehand.
My friend, Rob, who joined us for dinner said that it was "the best cheesecake" he had ever had. Music to every cook's ears.
Carrot Cheesecake
adapted from Taste of Home
2 sleeves full size graham crackers
1/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. butter, melted
3 packages cream cheese
1 1/4 c. sugar
2 T. brown sugar
3 eggs
1/4 c. heavy cream
2 T. cornstarch
1 T. sour cream
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 t. lemon juice
1/2 t. ground cinnamon.
1 (12 oz) package frozen carrots, thawed and pureed
1 pint heavy cream, whipped
Place the graham crackers in a heavy duty gallon sized bag that zips shut. Using a rolling pin, smash and roll the crackers into crumbs. Add the 1/4 cup sugar and butter to the bag. Shake and knead to combine. Press this mixture into the bottom and 2" up the sides of a 9" springform pan. Bake in a preheated 350* oven for 6-8 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.
While crust is cooling, beat cream cheese and sugars in the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until smooth. Add the eggs, cream, cornstarch, sour cream, vanilla, lemon juice and cinnamon. Beat at medium speed until well combined, scraping as necessary. Add the carrot puree and mix in on low speed.
Pour filling into crust. Place pan on a double thickness of foil and securely wrap the foil around the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Place the springform pan into a flat bottomed roasting pan and add hot water to come up to 1" on the sides of the pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes, until the center is just set. Cool on a wire rack for half an hour. Remove the sides of the springform pan and cool to room temperature. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight before serving with a dollop of whipped cream.
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