Peach and Ginger Cheesecake
Do you have ever an idea pop into your head and you’re not sure how it got there? This cheesecake is that for me. One day, I just thought I want a cheesecake with a ginger snap crust and peaches involved somehow. I ruminated on it, trying to figure out how to incorporate the peach and what would be in the filling and this cheesecake is the result. It’s pretty dang tasty, if I do say so myself.
Let’s get to it!
The first order of business is making the crust. Preheat your oven and put your ginger snap cookies in a food processor.
Blend until most of them are in crumbs, a few big cookies chunks is fine. Now add the almond meal, brown sugar and melted butter.
Then blend in the food processor until is all starts to clump together.
I like to put a disc of parchment paper down first, so that I can more easily get the cheesecake off the metal disc of the springform pan later.
Pour that mixture into your springform pan and press it firmly into the pan so it’s nice and compressed.
Now bake that for ten minutes. This will help the crust stay crunchy. Let that cool while you start on the cheesecake filling and crank the heat up on your oven.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat your cream cheese for a couple of minutes to get it nice and smooth.
Now add half the sugar and beat another minute. Next, add the rest of the sugar, sour cream, the lemon zest, and the vanilla bean seeds. The vanilla bean adds a really nice vanilla flavor and I like that you can see them in the cheesecake so people know it’s vanilla.
Mix until it’s all combined. Now add your eggs (and yolks) two at a time, beating until they are all mixed in. Scrape down the sides of your bowl with a rubber spatula and blend once more just to get out any large clumps of cream cheese (a few small clumps is fine).
Before pouring the filling into your pan, I recommend covering the outside with foil. I’ve never had any problems in the past, but I’m always a little paranoid that my springform pan will spring a leak. The last think you want is cheesecake mixture crusted on to the bottom of your oven, gross!
Now pour in your cheesecake mixture on top of that lovely gingersnap crust and smooth it out.
Bake for ten minutes at 500° and then turn the temp down to 200° and bake another hour and a half until it’s browned on top and mostly set in the center.
Let that cool at room temp for about two hours. While it’s cooling, you’ll make the peach mixture.
Add the peaches, lemon juice, sugar, a pinch of salt, and ground ginger to a saucepan and cook over medium-high heat.
I added enough ginger to give it a kick. If you don’t want that much, cut it in half and you will still be able to get the ginger flavor. Once it starts to bubble, cook another few minutes until it’s thickened. Now let it cool to room temp.
Once both the cheesecake and the peach topping are at about room temp, pour the peaches over your cheesecake and put it in the fridge to cool for a few hours.
When you’re ready to serve, take the cheesecake out of the fridge and run a knife around the edges. Unfasten your springform pan and remove the outer ring. I would do this on a large cutting board or plate because some of the peaches may ooze. Now move your cheesecake from the springform pan metal bottom to whatever you’re going to serve it on. I left the parchment paper on and was just careful when cutting it, but you can also try to remove that.
Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to three days.
This cheesecake is fluffy and full of flavor. The gingersnap crust is nice and crunchy and is perfectly balanced with the creamy lemon and vanilla filling. The peaches are soft and syrupy, almost like a jam and have that lovely kick from the ginger.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 30 gingersnaps, about 3 cups
- 1 stick unsalted butter melted
- 1/2 cup almond meal
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 1/2 lbs. (40 ozs.) cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- zest of one large lemon
- seeds from one vanilla pod
- 6 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 3 cups fresh diced peach
- 1 cup sugar
- juice form 1 large lemon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Blend ginger snaps in a food processor until most of them are crumbs. Add almond meal, brown sugar and melted butter and blend until it starts to clump together.
- Put a disc of parchment paper in your springform pan if desired and pour in ginger snap mixture. Press to compress.
- Bake 10 minutes.
- Let the crust cool and turn the oven to 500 degrees.
- Beat cream cheese with a paddle attachment for a couple of minutes, or until smooth.
- Add half the sugar and beat another minute. Add remaining sugar, sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla bean seeds. Mix until combined.
- Now add your eggs (and yolks) two at a time, beating until they are all mixed in. Scrape down the sides of your bowl with a rubber spatula and blend once more just to get out any large clumps of cream cheese (a few small clumps is fine).
- Cover the outside of the springform pan in foil. Pour in cheesecake mixture smooth it out.
- Bake for 10 minutes at 500° and then turn the temp down to 200° and bake another 1 1/2 hours until it's browned on top and mostly set in the center.
- Cool at room temp for about 2 hours.
- Add peaches, lemon juice, sugar, a pinch of salt, and ground ginger to a saucepan.
- Cook over medium-high heat. Once it starts to bubble, cook until thickened. Cool to room temp.
- Pour peaches over cheesecake and chill in the fridge for a few hours.
- Remove cheesecake from fridge and run a knife around the edges. Unfasten springform pan and remove the outer ring (I would do this on a large cutting board or plate because some of the peaches may ooze).
- Move cheesecake from the springform pan metal bottom to serving plate.
- Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- This cheesecake is fluffy and full of flavor. The gingersnap crust is nice and crunchy and is perfectly balanced with the