The fresh taste of summer is captured in this amazing blueberry peach cheesecake with a gingersnap crust. The perfect seasonal dessert for any special occasion, you’ll be sure to impress with these vibrant flavors that pair beautifully together!
Here in Oman produce can be really pricey, so when I saw blueberries and peaches really inexpensive, I couldn’t help but hoard a bit. We also happen to be going away at the end of the week, and since I got carried away I knew the best way to prevent any of these delicious fruits from becoming over ripe: make a cheesecake, of course. It’s one of those new recipes you try and instantly know it will become part of an annual summer tradition to make it up.
Why you’ll love it:
- It’s super easy – and no water bath or special equipment is needed!
- It’s not overly sweet – You’ll really love this cheesecake because it’s delicious and rich, but not indulgently sweet like in an Oreo cheesecake or something. It’s just the right amount of sweet, and let’s the fresh produce shine.
- The topping is flavorful, simple and fresh – The cheesecake filling is topped with fresh blueberry jam, and honestly you could just stop there and called it blueberry cheesecake – but of course we added fresh peaches and blueberries ! We simply sliced the peaches into thick wedges and placed them on top of our cake. Fresh berries and peaches on top of cheesecake was just delightful.
- It’s unique! – Instead of graham crackers for our crust we used delicious ginger snaps, which made this cake extra special
INGREDIENTS:
Before starting, it’s very important to bring your eggs and cream to room temperature in cheesecake recipes, because cold ingredients don’t come together smoothly, and you want a smooth, luscious cheesecake! So take the time to bring your ingredients to room temperature before starting to make your cheesecake. I like to take mine out first thing in the morning and measure out everything else in advance.
FOR THE COOKIE CRUST.
- 1 14 oz sleeve of ginger sap cookies, or similar light colored cookies, like graham crackers or digestive biscuits.
- 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, melted
FOR THE FILLING:
- three 8-oz packages (680g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup (198g) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
FOR THE TOPPING:
- 1/2 cup blueberry jam
- 3 medium peaches, sliced
- 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
- course sparkling sugar for sprinkling on top(optional)
HOW TO MAKE IT:
START WITH THE CRUST:
- Preheat oven to 375 F or 176 C and lightly grease a 9″ springform cheesecake pan.
- Add your full sleeve of cookies into a food processor or blender and grind them up. If you don’t have a food processor, crush up the graham crackers in a plastic bag, but just be sure to get things nice and crushed. You want them to be finely processed.
- Add your cookie crumbs to a large bowl.
- Melt your butter and add the melted butter to the cookie crumbs, processing briefly or stirring until the mixture is evenly crumbly. It should be the consistency of wet sand. Press the moist crumbs into the bottom and partway up the sides of the prepared pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet, to catch any potential drips of butter.
- Bake the crust for 10 minutes in your preheated oven. Remove the pan from the oven, and set it aside as you make the filling.
Note: Depending on the type of cookies you use, you might need slightly slightly more butter than listed in this recipe. Start by adding the recommended amount of butter, incorporate it completely into the cookie crumbs, and if you need more, add it very slowly until you reach the consistency of wet sand.
NOW MAKE THE FILLING:
- Reduce the oven heat to 350°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugar at low speed, until thoroughly combined. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and beat briefly, just until smooth.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating to combine after each one.
- Stir in the vanilla, then the flour.
- Pour the cheesecake batter atop the crust in the pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet; this will make it easier to get the cake in and out of the oven safely and prevent butter from dripping out of spring form pan into your oven.
- Bake the cake (remember, the oven temperature should now be preheated to 350°F) for 45 to 50 minutes, until the outer edges are set but the inside is a bit jiggly. A digital thermometer, inserted at the same point, should read 175°F at the internal temperature. The center may not look set; that’s normal!
- Turn off the oven, crack the door open several inches, and allow the cake to cool in the oven for 1 hour. Remove the cake from the oven, and set it on a rack to finish cooling. Do not remove it from the pan yet. Let it cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes – one hour to add your toppings.
- Once chilled, add your blueberry jam first, then add some sliced peaches and fresh blueberries. Add a tablespoon of sparkling sugar sprinkled over the top, if desired.
- You’ll want to refrigerate the cake for at least 6 hours total before removing from springform pan, slicing and serving. Otherwise it’ll won’t set properly.
- Note: To remove from the spring form pan, give the cheesecake several hours to cool at room temperature. Run a non sharp, non serrated knife (like a butter knife) down the edges of the pan, where the cake and the pan meets ensuring the cheesecake isn’t sticking. Unlatch and remove the band of the pan and remove it. If easily removed, remove the bottom. If the cheesecake is sticking the the bottom of the pan, Cut into slices directly from the springform bottom or carefully transfer to a serving plate and then slice.
Happy baking!
EXPERT TIPS FOR PERFECT CHEESECAKE:
- Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature – this is particularly important for the cream cheese, yoghurt and eggs (or other add-ins if you’re making another type of cheesecake).
- Turn off the oven while the cheesecake is still wobbly in the middle. For this cheesecake, this is around the 55-60 minute mark. The remaining heat of the oven will fully set the cheesecake without over-baking it.
- Finally, you’ll want to be sure you chill your cheesecake in the pan until it’s at room temperature, and then refrigerate for at least 6 hours in the fridge before removing from springform pan, slicing and serving. Otherwise it’ll won’t set properly.
Frequently asked questions:
How long do cheesecakes last?
If you tightly wrap the cheesecake in plastic wrap or store it in an airtight container, it will last up to 3 days in the fridge.
Can you freeze a cheesecake after it’s been baked?
Yes you can, here is how we freeze cheesecake to ensure it’s just as tasty as when we put it in the freezer.
- Let the cheesecake cool and set completely.
- Remove it from the springform pan and place it in the freezer for one hour.
- After one hour, wrap it tightly in plastic cling wrap
- Place the wrap in aluminum foil or a bag, dated.
Can I use different fruits?
Yes, you can use your favorite fruits and change the jam flavor. The fun part about this cake is it’s adaptable! Try it with apples and pears or rhuararb and strawberries, for example!
How do I remove my cake from the spring form pan?
Give the cheesecake several hours to cool at room temperature. Run a non sharp, non serrated knife (like a butter knife) down the edges of the pan, where the cake and the pan meets ensuring the cheesecake isn’t sticking. Unlatch and remove the band of the pan and remove it. If easily removed, remove the bottom. If the cheesecake is sticking the the bottom of the pan, Cut into slices directly from the springform bottom or carefully transfer to a serving plate and then slice.
Serve with:
Blueberry peach cheesecake
Ingredients
- FOR THE COOKIE CRUST.
- -1 14 oz sleeve of ginger sap cookies or similar light colored cookies, like graham crackers or digestive biscuits.
- -4 tablespoons 57g unsalted butter, melted.
- FOR THE FILLING:
- -three 8-oz packages 680g cream cheese, room temperature
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- -1 cup 198g granulated sugar
- -4 large eggs at room temperature
- -1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- FOR THE TOPPING:
- -½ cup blueberry jam
- -3 medium peaches sliced
- -½ cup fresh blueberries
- -course sparkling sugar for sprinkling on top optional
Instructions
START WITH THE CRUST:
- Preheat oven to 375 F or 176 C and lightly grease a 9" springform cheesecake pan.
- Add your full sleeve of cookies into a food processor or blender and grind them up. If you don’t have a food processor, crush up the graham crackers in a plastic bag, but just be sure to get things nice and crushed. You want them to be finely processed.
- Add your cookie crumbs to a large bowl.
Melt your butter and add the melted butter to the cookie crumbs, processing briefly or stirring until the mixture is evenly crumbly. It should be the consistency of wet sand. Press the moist crumbs into the bottom and partway up the sides of the prepared pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet, to catch any potential drips of butter. - Bake the crust for 10 minutes in your preheated oven. Remove the pan from the oven, and set it aside as you make the filling.
Note: Depending on the type of cookies you use, you might need slightly slightly more butter than listed in this recipe. Start by adding the recommended amount of butter, incorporate it completely into the cookie crumbs, and if you need more, add it very slowly until you reach the consistency of wet sand.
NOW MAKE THE FILLING:
- Reduce the oven heat to 350°F.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugar at low speed, until thoroughly combined. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and beat briefly, just until smooth. - Add the eggs one at a time, beating to combine after each one.
- Stir in the vanilla, then the flour.
- Pour the cheesecake batter atop the crust in the pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet; this will make it easier to get the cake in and out of the oven safely and prevent butter from dripping out of spring form pan into your oven.
- Bake the cake (remember, the oven temperature should now be preheated to 350°F) for 45 to 50 minutes, until the outer edges are set but the inside is a bit jiggly. A digital thermometer, inserted at the same point, should read 175°F at the internal temperature. The center may not look set; that's normal!
- Turn off the oven, crack the door open several inches, and allow the cake to cool in the oven for 1 hour. Remove the cake from the oven, and set it on a rack to finish cooling. Do not remove it from the pan yet. Let it cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes - one hour to add your toppings.Once chilled, add your blueberry jam first, then add some sliced peaches and fresh blueberries. Add a tablespoon of sparkling sugar sprinkled over the top, if desired.
- You’ll want to refrigerate the cake for at least 6 hours total before removing from springform pan, slicing and serving. Otherwise it’ll won't set properly.
Note: To remove from the spring form pan, give the cheesecake several hours to cool at room temperature. Run a non sharp, non serrated knife (like a butter knife) down the edges of the pan, where the cake and the pan meets ensuring the cheesecake isn’t sticking. Unlatch and remove the band of the pan and remove it. If easily removed, remove the bottom. If the cheesecake is sticking the the bottom of the pan, Cut into slices directly from the springform bottom or carefully transfer to a serving plate and then slice.
Notes
- Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature – this is particularly important for the cream cheese, yoghurt and eggs (or other add-ins if you’re making another type of cheesecake).
- Turn off the oven while the cheesecake is still wobbly in the middle. For this cheesecake, this is around the 55-60 minute mark. The remaining heat of the oven will fully set the cheesecake without over-baking it.
- You’ll want to be sure you chill your cheesecake in the pan until it’s at room temperature, and then refrigerate for at least 6 hours in the fridge before removing from springform pan, slicing and serving. Otherwise it’ll won't set properly.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
How long do cheesecakes last?If you tightly wrap the cheesecake in plastic wrap or store it in an airtight container, it will last up to 3 days in the fridge. Can you freeze a cheesecake after it's been baked?
Yes you can, here is how we freeze cheesecake to ensure it's just as tasty as when we put it in the freezer. -Let the cheesecake cool and set completely.
Remove it from the springform pan and place it in the freezer for one hour.
-After one hour, wrap it tightly in plastic cling wrap
Place the wrap in aluminum foil or a bag, dated.' Can I use different fruits?
Yes, you can use your favorite fruits and change the jam flavor. The fun part about this cake is it's adaptable! Try it with apples and pears or rhuararb and strawberries, for example! How do I remove my cake from the spring form pan?
Give the cheesecake several hours to cool at room temperature. Run a non sharp, non serrated knife (like a butter knife) down the edges of the pan, where the cake and the pan meets ensuring the cheesecake isn’t sticking. Unlatch and remove the band of the pan and remove it. If easily removed, remove the bottom. If the cheesecake is sticking the the bottom of the pan, Cut into slices directly from the springform bottom or carefully transfer to a serving plate and then slice.
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