3/2/10

banana cheesecake w/ caramel-rum sauce


Have I told you my love affair with banana cheesecake? I swear I must have at some point in this blogging life. I adore the banana cheesecake at The Cheesecake Factory, but sadly they are located far away from me. I've had it on my list for forever to create my own banana cheesecake to indulge in. And finally I've started that process; I think I've found the perfect recipe. I'm still kind of testing and experimenting, but this one is pretty darn good. And I just had to share it with you. My blogging friend at Chez What made a banana cheesecake and shared the recipe with me. I took his advice of using the lemon on the banana, but didn't take his advice on the sheddred wheat for a crust, but trust me I will next round.

I loved the addition of the caramel-rum sauce, but completely forgot the fresh whipped cream. If you do make this, please add on a large dollop of fresh whipped cream. The Cheesecake Factory does it, and it totally adds to the dish.

This cheesecake was so good, I had to give it away ASAP because I would eat the whole thing in one sitting. That crust, man that crust was amazing. Next time I might prebake the crust a bit to get it super-crunchy. This is a cheesecake I know Emeril Lagasse would be proud of, and that makes me happy happy. Emeril if you ever do read this--I will bake one for you and deliver it right to you or you can come to my house.

Can we get a close up of the crust?

banana cheesecake with caramel-rum sauce
print recipe

cheesecake filling:
1 1/2 lb. (24 oz) cream cheese softened
¾ cup white sugar
3 eggs
4 mashed bananas, really ripe!
2 ts. good quality vanilla
1 ts. fresh lemon juice for the bananas

crust ingredients:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 TB dark brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, melted, cooled a bit
(I put a pinch of salt in the crust)


for the crust:
preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan.
To make the crust, mix the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, salt and butter in a bowl until well combined. Firmly pat the crust into the bottom of the prepared pan. Use a glass to press in the edges—it really helps. I like to make some of the crust go up the sides, up to you of course. Then bake in the preheated oven about 10 minutes or until "almost" golden brown.

for the cheesecake:
Preheat the oven to 320˚F. (I found this was the right temp for me. I’ve heard of turning oven to 350 degrees and baking for 5 minutes then down to 310 for remaining 50-55 minutes. You really have to find what works best for you and your oven temps).

Mash ripes bananas well and sprinkle just a little bit of lemon juice, not too much about 1 ts, set aside.
In a mixing bowl or mixer, combine cream cheese and sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then add in the bananas and vanilla extract; mix well.
Pour into the crust. Bake for 1 hour. Or until the middle is not jiggly anymore.
Let cool in the oven for 1 – 2 hours. Do not open the oven door until cool. You must chill this in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours before serving. That amount of time was perfect for me.

caramel-rum sauce

1 cup sugar
6 TB unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, room temp (important!)
pinch of salt, optional
a splash of rum or dark rum, optional (room temp)

Cook notes: Please use a thick, sturdy pot for making caramel as you want even heat distribution and don't want your sugar to burn. And it is best to use a pan with high sides as the caramel mixture will bubble up. Please make sure your heavy cream is room temp and not cold. The cold will make the caramel not set up right.

Heat sugar on medium to medium-high heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. As the sugar begins to color and melt a bit, go ahead and stir it with spatula or wooden spoon. You want the sugar to come to a boil. Once it started boiling I stopped stirring.
Once all the sugar has melted and you have a dark amber color, this is the time to add the butter. Stir until butter melted, take off the heat, then add in the the heavy cream, very slowly. It will make a lot of noise and bubble up. Once added whisk/stir a lot! Keep stirring until smooth, add in your splash or two of dark rum (optional) and this is when you add in a tiny pinch of salt (optional). Keep stirring. Once smooth, let the sauce sit in pan for a while. If using straight away go ahead and do so, if storing let it cool a bit more before storing in glass jar. Make sure it's completely cool before placing in glass jar and storing in fridge.

70 comments:

  1. umm, why didn't you send it to me????? actually, i would've rented a car and found my way there by scent if i had known :) killer.

    how close are you to hyannis? have i asked this before? i can't remember... sorry for the absent-mindedness, i'm distracted by the cheesecake.

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  2. Oh, Dawn. How much do I need to pay you to overnight one of those to me? That looks to die for.

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  3. so if you halved the recipe for the cararamel and got about a cup. It sound like I'll need to double the recipe to get enough for my slice... GREG

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  4. Just when I think you can't possibly top yourself, you go and do something this outrageously incredible as this cheesecake. Without even tasting it beforehand, I already know it would become my favorite! Yes, we need a close-up . . . closer . . . closer . . . [chomp!]

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  5. Banana cheesecake is what I ALWAYS order at Cheesecake Factory. It is by far my favorite. This looks amazing!

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  6. I would like a glass of that sauce, please.

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  7. The caramel rum sauce draped over the cheesecake looks magnificent!

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  8. Oh man that caramel-rum sauce is just the icing on the cake!! Sticky gooey sweetness with the cheesecake. *drool*

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  9. paw - pow - I knew you would hit this out of the park - it looks so friggin' good! I think next time a chocolate crust since chocolate, caramel and bananas sounds so good!

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  10. Dawn, YOU ROCK! This is fit for a queen. I can only imagine how delicious this cheesecake is. I love banana anything.

    I can't stop starring at the darn picture!

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  11. That's like the most perfect slice I have ever seen!

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  12. Just give me the sauce:)

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  13. Wait, so just to be clear, you bake it for an hour, then turn the oven off and leave it in there for another 2 hours? I've made quite a few cheesecakes and I've never heard that tip, but it sounds like it probably works really well. I'll have to give this a go.

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  14. That crust IS divine - just perfect. Your photos do this justice. Uh, you do remember how close I live, right?

    Absolutely awesome recipe.

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  15. Dawn, who's eating all these scrumptious desserts you've been making lately? I keep popping in periodically to get my food porn fix and shazaam!...one after the other, a dessert-lovers paradise. I'm in heaven!!

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  16. This looks INSANELY good! Love bananas. Love cheesecake. Love caramel. Love rum. I'm pretty sure I would LOVE this!

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  17. Your blog is awesome!! Everything looks sooo yummy-it's my 1st time here i found you thru the blog that not what the recipe says:) I would love for you to come by and check out our new blog-The Peppered Pantry- see what ya think:)

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  18. cheesecake is one of my few addictions..this is yummy!

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  19. What a beautiful cheesecake! I don't mind to eat this everyday...mmm

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  20. Oh, dear...This looks divine! I sure could use a huge slice with my coffee this morning. And its healthy with the bananas in it. Right?!?! :) Have a great day!

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  21. Wow, this dessert looks mighty decadent and delicious. Good job : )

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  22. i have heard amazing things about cheesecake factory's banana cheesecake also! yours looks absolutely amazing.....i could really use a piece this morning!! thanks for a great recipe!!

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  23. I definitely love the banana cream cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory, along w/ 20 other ones there!
    I have been toying aruond w/ the idea of making a cheesecake like this, but prebaking the crust a bit, then adding some white chocolate ganache on top of the crust before pouring the cheesecake batter in. Then topping it w/ lots of whipped cream and now, thansk to you, lots of caramel sauce too!!

    Can't wait!

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  24. Brian- yep leave it in the oven for 2 hours. I've heard it so many times and thought I'd give it a try. It worked great for me. I think it all has to do with avoiding the whole cracking of the cheesecake. First time I tried it that way, loved it.

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  25. *drool....
    I must try this recipe! You had me at Rum Sauce! Oh and the Banana Cheesecake! Never had it but it's worth a try!

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  26. That looks incredible! I've never had a banana cheesecake. May be time to fix that...

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  27. Oh that sounds so good! bananas!

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  28. Oh my goodness, this could NOT look more delicious! I absolutely love your blog. yum yum yum.

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  29. I love this- it looks absolutely delicious. I love the way the caramel dresses it up.

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  30. nicely done, dawn! if it does anything close to what i've seen the cheesecake factory's version do to a person, it's powerful stuff. it sure looks good to this cheesecake-disliker...but that may be the sauce talkin'. :)

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  31. That crust does look amazing. So professional. I would have never thought of banana cheesecake, I am so deprived!

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  32. Mmm... this does sound sinfully delicious! I love the addition of the caramel-rum sauce!

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  33. Believe it or not but I have never eaten a banana cheesecake. That surely looks incredible.

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  34. how interesting - there's blueberry cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake - but banana cheesecake?! have never thought of it or heard of it but it makes TOTAL SENSE.

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  35. Yeah Dawn, not cool giving it away and totally passing me by! :P I haven't yet had a banana cheesecake but now I'm just wondering why. It's a perfect marriage!

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  36. I like how you left a drop of caramel on the plate...just to see how many of us will actually lick it off the plate. I would.

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  37. Gorgeous banana dessert. Dawn, you always make the best sweets using bananas, you really do!

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  38. Well if you would get your sorry ass down to Tampa, I would take you out to dinner. The Cheesecake Factory is like 8 minutes away.

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  39. I had to come back here for another peek at this. Okay? Ok?? Ok... GREG

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  40. You're a dessert queen for sure. You know that whipped cream is oh so necessary!

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  41. You are killing me with the caramel rum sauce!! What a killer dessert :)

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  42. Do you mind if I have a wee bit more caramel sauce on mine?

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  43. OH Wow! I have to say this looks really yummy!!

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  44. I just came across a caramelized banana cheesecake yesterday that I thought my friend would love, but I'm going t ohave to send her this way as well.

    Love the toppings!

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  45. Your cheesecake is beautiful!!!!

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  46. This has heaven written all over it. I love it!

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  47. Oh my... why have I never before seen banana cheesecake?! This looks absolutely fantastic!!

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  48. I am just here sitting, mesmerized at my screen.

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  49. Looks and sounds fantastic! We love bananas and I've been wanting to try a banana cheesecake.
    ~ingrid

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  50. Que pinta tiene este dulce. Sinceramente dan ganas de pegarle un bocado. Me apunto tu receta. Gracias y un saludo

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  51. I am definitely making this...it looks amazing! Thx for sharing.

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  52. Gave it away? I'm going to hunt them down! This is extra-ordinary!

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  53. What and amazing looking cheesecake!

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  54. omg. seriously. my all time favorite cheesecake (which I think actually is a Cheesecake Factory one, but I just don't get it there)-the Banana Foster's Cheesecake at Red Lobster. This sounds like it would be right up there as the same thing! *drooooools*

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  55. oh gosh, now I have to make this!

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  56. oh god...BANANA+CHEESECAKE=THE MOST AMAZING AND OBVIOUS COMBINATION! Why didnt I think about it? if u excuse me I'm gonna get myself a cup of Caramel Rum sauce...thanks!(: looks amazing.

    http://buttersweetmelody.blogspot.com/

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  57. DAMN you are killing me!! Or at least my waistline! WOW this is an incredible combination ::hitting print::

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  58. Banana cheesecake?! Must say I've never had it but it sure does look tasty.

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  59. Dawn, that looks amazing! I also love your photos.

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  60. YEAH!!!! THIS WAS GOOD!!!!!!!I wnat a chocolate PB cheesecake next with candied bacon bits on top!

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  61. The cheesecake was divine! I added chocolate chunks and a ganache layer with a crumb topping! Fabulous!! Thanks

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  62. Thank you for this recipe. It turned out even better than expected, so much so that another one is in the oven right now as a birthday present for a friend who declared it the Best Cheesecake Ever.

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  63. I'm about to try a slightly altered version of this recipe (basically making it a 10" instead of a 9" and using less butter in the crust) and was curious about whether I can refrigerate the caramel sauce or not. I'm taking the cheesecake to work and would like to pipe the caramel sauce & whipped cream on top (maybe serve the extra on the side if there are leftovers) but wasn't sure if it would get too hard sitting in the fridge. Also, I bake a lot of cheesecakes and this recipe looks absolutely divine. :D

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  64. roooosh: i would not put the caramel in the fridge. it will harden up. if you do/did, then let it come to room temp for a few hours or let it sit in hot water bath b4 serving.

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  65. I would like to know how to make the shredded wheat crust. I have trouble finding graham cracker without hydrogenated oils.

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  66. Hi lovely recipe and it looks soooo....yummmy i can't wait to try it out. I just had one small clarification most of the other cheesecakes on ur site u bake the base for 10-15mins how come this one doesn't require it?

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  67. thank you Madhavi! Changes noted! Didn't catch that one. All fixed now.

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  68. Replies
    1. I have never had any good luck with freezing a cheesecake.
      I haven't tried freezing the batter yet though.....

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