Cajeta Quemada Cheesecake

I have so many cookbooks, it’s not funny… I think it’s an illness (no matter how many you have you just want more).

Well, I was browsing through one of my latest acquisitions The New York Times Dessert Cookbook and I was thinking to myself, hmmm… I haven’t made cheesecake in a long time. For a while there I was on a cheesecake kick, I was making one almost every week!

When I came across Sonora Restaurant’s Dulce de Leche Cheesecake I was inspired… but time was not on my side (just being lazy) so I decided to forgo the homemade Dulce de Leche, sorry Rafael Palomino.

Off I went into the pantry, on a scavenger hunt for a substitution… when lo and behold I came across a little bottle of Coronado’s Cajeta Quemada!

The perfect replacement, I lucked out.

Cajeta Quemada Cheesecake

Inspired by Sonora Restaurant’s Dulce de Leche Cheesecake
The New York Times Dessert Cookbook

Crust
2 cups finely ground Nilla Shortbead cookies
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter

Melt butter over low heat. In a bowl combine the crumbs and sugar, pour the melted butter and stir until combined.

Wrap the bottom of a 9″ spring form pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. Cover the bottom and half way up the sides of an 9″ spring form pan with the crumb mixture, pressing the crust tightly up against the pan.

Cheesecake Batter
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup prepared cajeta quemada (such as Coronado Cajeta Queamada)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In the bowl of a food processor place the cream cheese and process until soft. While the processor is running slowly drop in one egg at a time through the tube followed by the heavy cream and finally the cajeta quemada. Continue processing until your batter is smooth and evenly combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared crust and bake for about 50-60 minutes. Don’t remove the cheesecake from the oven right away. Crack the oven door open slightly and wait about 5-10 minutes. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and let it cool for 1 hour before placing it in the refrigerator.

(Note: To ensure a nice smooth top, fill an oven safe dish half-way up with hot water and place it in the rack below your cheesecake.)

Tagged as: Cinco de Mayo, Coronado cajeta quemada, cream cheese, eggs, granulated sugar, heavy cream, mexican, new york times dessert cookbook, Nilla shortbread cookies, unsalted butter