Autumn is here and I am 100% here for it. I love decorating my house with spooky spider webs, and skeletons. Hanging wreathes of fall leaves, dressing up in knits, and flannels, and of course carving pumpkins. Speaking of pumpkins, who doesn’t love pumpkin spiced Everything!!! Our favorite spices from cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice, to cardamom, and ginger all get to come out and play on our pallets. All the traditions of fall make it easy to say, “so long to summer.” This Perfectly Chai Spiced Caramel Cheesecake with a Biscoff Crust is yet another reason why summer is now completely in my rear view mirror. It will soon become a family tradition.
This cheesecake is a 3 step process. It can be done in small steps over a period of days and it can be beautifully frozen if you would like to make it well ahead of holliday festivals such as Halloween or Thanksgiving.
The crust is made of the delicious and crunchy Biscoff Lotus crackers that are subtly spiced to match with the chia spiced caramel. Just a little butter, sugar, crackers, and 10 minutes in the oven make for a deliciously flavored crust. Now if you would like to make this a gluten free cheesecake you could simply replace the biscoff crackers for your favorite gluten free cookies or crackers.
Then comes the creamy cheesecake. This is a non water bath cheesecake. If your pans consistently leak when you try cooking cheese cake in a water bath, you can breath a sigh of relief. This cheesecake is cooked in a warm 300 degree oven, low and slow. The result is nothing less than creamy perfection.
Finally the Chai spiced caramel…I mean it is so. dang. good. it dances on your pallet with notes of browned butter, caramelized sugar, cardamom, cinnamon …it is completely fabulous. Even, if you just made the caramel, you could enjoy it on apples, pears, ice cream, or blondies or brownies. It could be used to drizzle over a plain vanilla cake transforming it into a lovely fall desert. So many uses, so little time.
I love this dessert. It is absolutely worth your time. You will want to make it again and again and it will most certainly become a family tradition.
Perfectly Spiced Chai Caramel Cheesecake with a Biscoff Crust
Equipment
- Springform pan 9 inch
- Food processor
Ingredients
Biscoff Crust
- 22 crackers Biscoff Lotus Crakers (crushed into fine Crumbs) About 20-22 Crackers
- 1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
- 4 Tbs Butter (Melted)
Cheesecake Filling
- 16 oz Cream Cheese (Softened) 3 packages
- 1 cup Sugar (Granulated)
- 2 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 3 eggs Large Eggs
Chai Spiced Caramel
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
- 6 Tbsp Butter (softened)
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon (ground)
- 1/4 tsp Ginger (ground)
- 1/4 tsp Cardemom (ground)
- 1/8 tsp allspice
- 1/16 tsp Nutmeg (just a small pinch)
Instructions
Biscoff Crust
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Add 20-22 cracker to the food processor along with the sugar and process until it resembles the texture of sand.
- Add 4 tbs (half a stick) of melted butter to the food processor and pulse for about 30 seconds to a minute until well combined. The crust should resemble wet sand.
- Prepare your spring form pan the bottom must be “clamped” in and the clamp on the side must be closed
- Spray prepared springform pan with spray oil.
- Pour biscoff crust mixture into the springform pan and press it onto the bottom and partially up the sides until it is evenly covering the sides and bottom with about 1/4 inch of crust. **I do this with the bottom of flat dry measure measuing cup.
- Add the pressed crust to the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes remove and allow to cool, and place on a baking sheet for ease of putting into the oven and taking it out.
- Turn oven DOWN to 300 degrees.
Cheesecake filling
- In a stand mixer or medium sized bowl add (softened) cream cheese and sugar and cream on medium until well combined.
- To the cream cheese and sugar add the vanilla and eggs one at a time, wait until the first is incorporated before adding the next one.
- Scrape the bowl and mix until the cheesecake mixture is will combined for another 30 to 45 seconds.
Pour the cheesecake mixture into the cooled crust.
- Place the springform pan filled with the biscoff crust and cheesecake mixture into the 300 degree oven.
- Allow to bake for 45-55 minutes or until the sides are set and the center is only a little bit giggly. Do not wait for for the center to set completely.
- Turn off the oven and allow the cheesecake to cool with the oven for about an hour.
- Once cooled place into the refrigerator to chill.
Chai Spiced Caramel (TWO ways to do it.)
- In a measuing cup microwave 1/2 cup of heavy cream until hot, but be careful it doesnt boil over.
- Add a Chai tea bag to the hot Heavy whipping cream. (Like you would for hot water)
- **You can also do this in a heatproof measuing glass in the microwave. Heat cream for 30 seconds about 3 times watch to make sure it doesn’t boil over. Place tea bag into hot cream once warmed.
- Allow the chai to steep for 5 to 10 minutes and use to spoons to press the cream out of the tea bag. Your cream is now chia flavored. (This is the easier but more subtly flavored spiced caramel.
- OR Add Cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice, and nutmeg at the end. This results in a more prominent spiced flavor to the caramel.
- Turn the heat to medium low and in a small heavy bottomed pan add a cup of sugar to the heated pan and watch carefully and stir. (otherwise it will burn)
- Stir consistently until the sugar is melted…it takes about 5 minutes.
- Turn OFF the HEAT. It will be a medium brown.
- Add the butter cut up into tablespoon sized peices, carefully to the melted sugar.
- Stir melted sugar with a whisk as it the butter melts. Be careful of the pan “spitting” oil as it combines.
- VERY CAREFULLY … and slowly SLOWLY add the Chai flavored heavy cream in a slow stream whisking while pouring.
- It will bubble vigorously so stop if it begins to bubble over. Whisk until well combined.
- Turn on the heat to low and put the caramel back onto the cook top heat on low while whisking for 1 more minute.
- Remove from heat, and whisk in the salt and allow to cool for 30 minutes to an hour. Pour into a heatproof container.
Assembly of Chai Spiced Cheesecake
- Remove the cheesecake from the refrigerator and pour the chai spiced carmel on top while it is warm but not hot.
- spread the caramel until it is evenly distributed on the cheesecake.
- Allow to cool for 1 hour or overnight. (If you would like to freeze this for a later date, this is the step to freeze it.
- Enjoy chilled and garnished with biscoff crums on top.
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