Banana Cream Cheesecake

I know that I may have mentioned this before, but I LOVE CHEESECAKE!  It doesn't really matter what flavor; plain, chocolate, peanut butter, I love them all!  When I came across this recipe for Banana Cream Cheesecake I knew I had to give it a try; while I had never had banana cheesecake before, I like banana cream pie....so how could this not be good?

I made this for the dessert course of my football party, let's just say that things were not going so well for our team by the time I brought this out, but this seemed to perk everyone up right away!  We all loved this spin on cheesecake, some opted for whipped cream and others kept it plain, but the results were delicious nonetheless!  I think this is only the second cheesecake I had ever made in my life, and it uses a unique low temperature cooking method, but it turned out just perfect and the top didn't even crack! 

Banana Cream Cheesecake

adapted from Our Krazy Kitchen

CRUST:

20 vanilla cream-filled sandwich style cookies

1/4 c. buter, melted

FILLING:

3 (8 oz. each) pkgs. cream cheese, softened (I used light)

2/3 c. sugar

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

3 eggs

3/4 c. finely mashed banana (I just threw two into the mixer and let it do the mashing!)

1/2 c. whipping cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. maple extract (I didn't use this)

Use a blender to finely chop the cookies; add melted butter and stir until well blended.  Press mixture into the bottom of a 10" springform pan and smooth it out.  Refrigerate crust while making the filling.

Beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy.  Add in the sugar and corstarch, followed by one egg at a time.  Beat in the bananas, whipping cream and vanilla until smooth.  Pour mixture into the crust.

Place pan on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Then, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees and bake an additional 75 minutes, or until center is almost set.  Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes, then refrigerate, uncovered for at least 6 hours before serving.

Slice and serve with whipped cream, banana slices and/or even caramel sauce!