Tis the Season

December has arrived and the holiday season is in full swing. I don’t know about you, but I find the holidays to be a mix of much joy, some sadness and a little anxiety. The joy and sadness seem to be a natural part of life illuminated every year by the tradition of holiday cards. It’s lovely to see how our family and friend’s children have grown and changed and, in the same breath, I’m reminded of the loved ones we’ve lost as I remove names from our address list.

At least a few of the anxieties, however, seem like they could be more in my control. As you can imagine, I love the food and cooking part of the holidays, but they can also create stress, mostly due to pressure I put on myself and a serious lack of forethought. In an effort to prove that old dogs can, in fact, learn new tricks, I thought this year, I’d adopt a kinder, gentler approach and actually do some planning (what a concept!). And because I’m a food blogger, I’d love to invite you to join me. (only if you’d like to, of course!) I have created, and will share with over the next four Mondays, my go-to happy holiday recipes designed to make life easier for all of us.

Because life is short, we’ll start with dessert. This Vanilla Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust is a delicious compliment to any holiday celebration. It’s the perfect ending to a great family meal or a fabulous addition to a party table. Everyone will love it!

I will share recipes over the next three weeks for my favorite beef tenderloin and horseradish, mustard sauce a terrific holiday or New Year’s Eve dish, an easy make-ahead potato gratin (perfect with beef, turkey or ham) and a fantastic breakfast dish for you and your family to enjoy as the holidays wind down.

I hope you will enjoy these dishes too, and I look forward to sharing a small piece of the holidays with you.

Vanilla Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

This is a delicious dessert that, like all the recipes on this blog, just happens to be gluten free. The rich, creamy cheesecake works beautifully with the gingery crust. It's a perfect holiday treat on your family table or at a party. (This recipe is adapted from The Ultimate Cheeesecake by Tyler Florence)

Servings people

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1

Total Time 5 30

Ingredients

The Gingersnap Crust

1 8 oz bag gluten free gingersnaps I like the Trader Joe's brand
1 tablespoon sugar
4 tablespoons butter melted

The Vanilla Cheesecake

2 8 oz packages cream cheese softened
3 large eggs
2 cups sour cream be sure it's gluten free
1 cup sugar
1 small lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and bring 4 cups of water to a boil - turn off the heat on the water - you'll be using it later
Place the gingersnaps in a food processor or blender. I used the Trader Joe's gluten free gingersnaps for this recipe, but any gluten free gingersnaps will work. You'll need a total of 2 cups of crumbs
Blend the cookies until crushed
Pour the crumbs into a bowl and and add the tablespoon of sugar
Add the 4 tablespoons of melted butter and mix to combine. Be sure all the gingersnap crumbs are coated with the butter
Place 1.5 cups of the moist crumbs into a 9 inch cheesecake or springform pan. (reserve the remainder of the crumbs to add to the top of the cake later, if you like)
Use a small glass to spread the crumbs evenly across the bottom and slightly up the sides. Bake the crust for 8-10 minutes until slightly toasted, but not burned.

Make the Vanilla Cheesecake

Place the 2 packages of cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer or into a bowl and get your hand mixer out
Mix the cream cheese until creamy - scrape the sides down often to ensure all the cream cheese is soft
Add the eggs one at a time. (I usually break the eggs into a measuring cup so I can be sure there are no shells in the cake and it's easy to pour the eggs in one at a time)
Mix until the eggs are incorporated and the mixture is creamy - scrape the side often during the process
Zest the lemon using a Microplane, or peel the skin and chop very fine
Add the 2 cups of sour cream, the 1 cup of sugar, the teaspoon of vanilla and the lemon zest to the mixture
Mix on medium speed until creamy. Scrape the sides one last time to be sure you've incorporated all the cream cheese
Pour the cheesecake mixture into the prepared crust
Cover the bottom of the cheesecake pan with foil and place it in a baking pan. Fill the baking pan with enough boiling water to come half-way up the side of the cheesecake pan
Bake the cheesecake for 45 minutes and check it. It will take between 45 minutes and an hour. When the cake has a slight jiggle in the center, it's done.
Let the cheesecake cool completely and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Use a knife to loosen the sides, or loosen the spring on the pan.
Add some of the reserved ginger crust to the top of the cake, if you like and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.