Cranberry Cheesecake Spread
I wanted to have a cheese based appetizer at our holiday party last weekend. Since I can’t eat brie, and I wanted to try something new, I went with this Cranberry Cheesecake Spread. I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect from it. Even after I baked it, I wasn’t sure if it would go over well. I was worried it would be too sweet and dessert-like.
But let me tell you, this Cranberry Cheesecake Spread was the surprise hit of the evening. Everyone really enjoyed it and the plate was scraped clean early in the evening. The cheesecake itself had a beautifully smooth texture and the cranberry sauce on top provided a subtle scent of vanilla bean. The toasted pecans added a touch of texture to the whole experience.
I can definitely see myself making this again for get togethers because it came together in a snap. I made the cheesecake, cranberry sauce, and toasted the pecans a week in advance. Once the cheesecake was cool, I wrapped it in plastic wrap and foil and popped it into the freezer. I moved it to the fridge the morning of the party for it to defrost. The cranberry sauce and pecans sat in the fridge all week as well.
One Year Ago: Gingerbread Caramels and Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Two Years Ago: Gingerbread Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Three Years Ago: Butter Ball Cookies
Cranberry Cheesecake Spread
Ingredients:
For the Bourbon Vanilla Cranberry Relish
3 cups cranberries
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup bourbon
1 vanilla bean
2 jalapenos, whole or finely chopped
For the Cheesecake
1 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp graham cracker crumbs
8 oz package cream cheese
5 oz Greek yogurt
1 egg
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
For Garnish
1/2 cup pecan pieces, toasted
Directions:
For the Bourbon Vanilla Cranberry Relish
Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan. While stirring, bring the mixture to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for approximately 5 minutes, or until most of the cranberrries have burst.
Remove from heat to cool. If you left the jalapeno pepper whole, remove it now and discard. Retrieve the vanilla bean from the sauce and set aside. When the vanilla bean is cool enough to handle comfortably, split it in half and scrape the seeds into the sauce. Stir until the vanilla seeds are distributed throughout the sauce. Discard the remaining hull.
For the Cheesecake
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Use 1 Tablespoon butter to generously grease the bottom and sides of a 6-inch spring form pan. Add the graham cracker crumbs, tilting and tapping until the crumbs thoroughly cover the bottom and sides of the pan. Set aside.
In a small mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the yogurt and egg, beating until well combined. Add the brown sugar and vanilla. Continue mixing until smooth.
Pour filling mixture into the prepared pan.
Randomly drop 1/3 cup of the cranberry sauce on top of the cheesecake batter with a tablespoon. Tap the pan on the counter top to settle the batter. Insert a butter knife straight down into the batter, not quite touching the bottom of the pan, and drag it back and forth at 1 to 2 inch intervals, front to back then side to side. Repeat as necessary to achieve a marbled effect in the batter.
Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until done.
Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
Loosely cover and refrigerate until completely cooled, several hours or overnight.
To Assemble
To serve, top cheesecake with remaining cranberry relish and toasted pecans. Set on a platter with an assortment of crackers.
Recipe from My Own Sweet Thyme
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
I too didn’t have a pan big enough for a water bath. I just cooked it for 1 hour and 30 minutes and then let it cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. I didn’t even cool it in the oven. I haven’t tasted it yet, so I don’t know if it turned out ok…but it looks just like my other that I made.
Hey if it tastes good who cares what it looks like?!
Regardless of how it looks, it’s the taste that matters! My cheesecakes look similar when I don’t do a water bath. Another idea with cheesecake is to make cheesecake truffles with leftovers (that is, if you even have any!) 🙂
If you get an answer to your cake running over problem would you mind sharing it? I had the same problem, despite the fact my pan met Dorie’s requirements. I’m also curious where I went wrong.
I’ve had similar problems, especially with the cracking, which I believe is from cooking too long. Once I started taking cheese cakes out based on time and not appearance the problem went away. I think a lot of cooking still takes place from the internal heat…just a theory…BTW, great marble effect on your cake!
Aawwww poor little cheesecake. To be honest I am not sure why your cheesecake fell but I know when I make cheesecake mine always bakes more evenly when I use a water bath also if the internal temperature reaches 160F (don’t quote me) it starts to make the cheesecake crack. Maybe next time don’t bake it as long? Either way taste is the most important IMO. 🙂
Clara @ iheartfood4thought