Gluten Free Showcase| Toffee Cheesecake w. Graham Cracker Crust

Oh heavens me. This. was. divine. And like nothing I ever thought I’d be able to eat back when I was first diagnosed with gluten intolerance. When I went gluten free in May of 09, after receiving a ‘positive’ test for gliadin antibodies, I didn’t know what I’d eat when I wanted to have a treat or sweet. You see, chocolate cake & brownies were the key to my sweet tooth’s heart. But alas, even though gluten free brownie mixes are starting to improve, to me, there just is no replacement for a real- gluteney-brownie and since THOSE would never be on my meal plan again, I started exploring other dessert options as the opportunity arrived.

Around the same time, I started really exploring my cooking/baking abilities. I found that I really enjoyed meals that used simple, fresh ingredients & simple cooking techniques that really let the true flavor of the food shine. Which is why if I was going to bake something, it needed to be fresh tasting, fairly easy to make & using minimal amounts of ingredients to make the end product. Enter cheesecake.

 To be honest, cheesecake was never on my radar. I enjoyed it pre-gluten free days, but wouldn’t actively seek it out for dessert. And post gluten intolerance diagnosis, I still had to avoid cheesecake unless certified GF due to the crust & because you just never know what a chef or baker puts into their food. Prior to this recipe, I had even forgotten what cheesecake tasted like! I had nothing to compare to in my minds’ memory of cheesecake as I made this recipe recently. But I have someone very close to me, who loves cheesecake – and since I got the best cookbook ever for gluten free folks at Christmastime – I knew I needed to test drive this recipe for them. It’s a traditional flavored cheesecake, but I added to it my friend Marnie’s toffee (which is to die for also, and she sells it- so if you want some, you should request info from me…you’ll eat the box in one day…or less). Here it is, you know you’d like a piece of this!

Creamy, slightly tart, INSANE graham cracker crust (this is fast becoming my favorite crust to use for any dessert I’m making for some gluten-free-dessert requirement), chunks of toffee & chocolate throughout that make it impossible to have one bite without getting a crunchy, gooey chunk of candy….this was beyond good.

This recipe came from the cookbook 1,000 Gluten Free Recipes by Carol Fenster, which is massive, as you’d imagine a book that contains 1,000 of anything in it to be. It’s got plenty of baking recipes from bundt cakes to muffins, but also has a huge section for main entrees like salmon en papillote, arroz con pollo, and shrimp vindaloo. If you’re interested in cooking good food that is good for you, without any gimmicks or fake-food-additives – this would be a good book to have in your kitchen.

New York-Style Cheesecake (W/Toffee added as a personal touch by me)

*this recipe originally called for a deep springform pan to make a cheesecake that has a crust bottom but no crust sides, but as I said above, the crust is one of my favorite parts of this thing! So I scrapped the springform pan in favor of a basic pie pan with sides so I could make a crust all the way around the edges

Crust:

• 1 package gluten free graham style cookies
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter

Filling:

• 2 packages cream cheese or cream cheese alternative, such as Tofutti, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup sour cream, or sour cream alternative, such as Tofutti, at room temp.
• Juice & grated zest of 1 lemon (I grated the zest off half the lemon)
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 3 large eggs, at room temp.

1. Place a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 325. Spray bottom & sides of pie pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Place the cookies and sugar  in a food processor and process until they are fine crumbs. Add the butter and process until the mixture is crumbly. Pat the mixture onto the bottom & sides of the pan, making an even crust all the way around. Bake crust for 10-12 mins or just until the crust is fragrant. Cool the crust while preparing filling, but leave the oven on.

3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer (*I only had a hand held, and after some wrestling, I got it to beat everything together) on medium speed until light & fluffy. Add the sugar and sour cream and beat 1 min, scraping the sides of the bowl. (*Here is where I added the smashed toffee bits.)Add the lemon juice & zest, vanilla extract, and salt & beat until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, just until blended. Pour the filling over the crust & smooth with a spatula.

4. Bake 1 hour or until the top is firm (*the outside should be firm but the middle should still wiggle when you take it out, as it will set up more once it’s out of the oven). Cool the cheesecake 15 mins on a wire rack. Wrap the cheesecake in plastic & refrigerate overnight. Remove from fridge when ready to serve!