Oh Yum – Creamy Perfection

Recently one of those silly surveys popped up on my Facebook Page – if you could only have 1 slice of pie, which would you choose? There were nine different pies to pick from. Cheesecake wasn’t one of them, but Key Lime Pie was.

Years ago there was a wonderful Micro Brewery near our house. Hubby and I aren’t beer drinkers, and Kiddo was just a little kid at the time. However, this brewery also made Root Beer. We are talking the best darn root beer on the planet. My personal favorite was a root beer with an unmistakable splash of vanilla – almost like a float, but more subtle. Another thing I liked about this Brewery was their small restaurant. They had amazing dishes such as Fried Lobster Ravioli and a Key Lime Pie with a crushed Pretzel Crust. Yeah, this was more a high end establishment rather than a beer bar.

Anyway, today is National Cheesecake Day – so any Cheesecake will do. And that got me to thinking – Key Lime. I adore Key Lime. Why not celebrate National Cheesecake Day with a dreamy, creamy Key Lime Cheesecake Bar? Oh yeah!

Key Lime Cheesecake Bars
Graham Cracker Crust
4 tablespoons Butter, melted
10 Cinnamon Graham Crackers
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 tablespoons Sugar

Heat oven to 350-degrees. Melt butter and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, roughly crumble graham crackers. Add the Vanilla Extract and sugar, then pulse. Drizzle in the melted butter while pulsing.

Press crust mixture evenly into a 9-inch by 9-inch square baking pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Let crust cool completely.

Key Lime Filling
3/4 cup boiling Water
2 teaspoons Key Lime Zest
1 Vanilla Bean
2 envelops unflavored Gelatin
1/4 cup Key Lime Juice
1 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Powdered Sugar
8 oz Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup Cane sugar
8 oz of Crème Fraiche

Bring water to a boil. As the water comes to a boil. zest lime, set zest aside. Split vanilla bean, scrape pod and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine gelatin with water, stir to dissolve. Add key lime juice and zest. Stir and set aside.

Fit stand mixer with whisk .Whip the heavy cream with the scraped Vanilla Bean seeds. Add powdered sugar, whip until stiff peaks form. Transfer to small bowl.

Wash mixing bowl, return to stand mix and attach paddle attachment. Combine cream cheese, cane sugar, and Crème Fraiche; beat on medium speed until smooth and silky. Add the gelatin mixture and blend on low until fully incorporated. With a rubber spatula gently fold cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream.

Pour cheesecake filling onto the crust. Spread evenly around pan, smooth top. Refrigerate for two hours before serving.

When ready to serve, cut into squares. Garnish with Key Lime Wedges if desired.