A cocoa almond flour crust makes an addictive base for fluffy cheesecake kissed with goat cheese and sour cream and smothered in Earl Grey tea poached pears and ruby pomegranate arils. Gluten-free and adapted from Alternative Baker: Reinventing Dessert with Gluten-Free Grains and Flours.
Today's post is extra special as it features not only a dessert loaded with CHEESE, but also because I've teamed up with the lovely folks at Rodelle and KitchenAid to give away a KitchenAid® Artisan® Mini Stand Mixer, a box of delicious organic baking ingredients, and a copy of my book! See below for details.
I love cheesecake (and really anything sweet made with cream cheese) but I've always shied away from making large cheesecakes, favoring smaller bars, or just putting cream cheese frosting on everything. Among the perils of large cheesecakes lurk tricksy water baths, leaky springform pans, stale store bought cookie crusts, lumpy filling, changing oven temperatures, cracking, breaking... the list goes on.
But a few months ago, Sarah and I styled this cheesecake for The New York Times, an old family recipe from Amanda Hesser. It boasts a chocolate cinnamon crust and an easy-peasy filling laced with vanilla bean. Its shorter size means it cooks evenly without any problems, with a good crust-to-filling ratio. It's perfectly creamy, not too sweet, a little tangy, and completely addictive.
The crust reminded me of something else addictive: the cocoa almond tart crust from my book. So I decided to mash up a couple of different recipes (cocoa almond crust and chevre cheesecake bars) and flavor loves (Earl Grey, pears, and pomegranate) from my book and brave a full-grown cheesecake. I'm so glad I did.
The crust may be made from scratch but, once you have the ingredients on hand, it's nearly as easy to mix up as a cookie crust: just toss all the ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer, and paddle until it comes together in moist clumps, then press into the sides and bottom of the pan. Freeze, parbake, and voilà: a crispy, crumbly crust that tastes like deep chocolate wafer cookies, but fresher and naturally gluten-free. The crust creates an airtight barrier to prevent leaking, and a sturdy springform pan, such as the KitchenAid® Springform Pan that I used here, helps, too.
Sarah and I are particularly enamored of Rodelle's dutch process cocoa powder – it's soft and dark, with a creamy chocolate flavor. (Stay tuned for a couple of videos that we made in collaboration with Rodelle and KitchenAid highlighting this lovely product!) Rodelle also makes divinely tasty vanilla extract and plump vanilla beans, both of which flavor this luscious cheesecake from top to bottom in every layer – vanilla extract in the crust and sour cream topping, vanilla seeds in the filling, and vanilla pods in the poached pears. It's a chocolate and vanilla lover's dream come true.
Both the crust and the filling are easy to whip up with the help of a stand mixer. I grew up with a KitchenAid® stand mixer and can't imagine life without one. I inherited my grandmother's avocado green stand mixer which dates back several decades and never failed me. Then I bought one used from a colleague in pastry school 12 years ago – it lives on top of our refrigerator and works beautifully, though it takes a bit of hefting to move it to the counter when needed. Thus I was thrilled to learn that KitchenAid came out with a smaller stand mixer that's about 20% smaller and 25% lighter than the full size KitchenAid® tilt-head stand mixer but gets the job done for most home projects. I'm smitten with my new mini.
The cheesecake requires a few steps – baking the crust, making and baking the filling, mixing up the sour cream topping, and poaching the pears – but all can be done ahead of time, including the whole cheesecake which keeps beautifully, refrigerated airtight, for several days. The cheesecake pops out easily with the help of the sturdy crust. To slice, just be sure to use a large chef's knife dipped in hot water and wiped clean between each cut.
Top slices with the poached pears, pomegranate arils, and a drizzle of the reduced poaching syrup. The cocoa crust crunches in your mouth as the fluffy cheesecake dissolves into a puddle of creamy lusciousness, vanilla and tangy dairy playing off the subtle flavors of citrusy bergamot, floral black tea, and bright pops of pomegranate. The whole thing is well-balanced and completely addictive. I use a fairly mild chèvre made by Sierra Nevada Cheese Company, and it makes an especially divine filling that doesn't taste at all funky or savory; it just tastes like the best cheesecake you've ever had.
I fact, I think I'll have another slice.
THE GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED!:
- a KitchenAid® Artisan® Mini Stand Mixer in the color of your choice
- a box of Rodelle organic baking ingredients including Organic Baking Cocoa, Rodelle Organics Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans, Rodelle Organics Pure Vanilla Extract, and Rodelle Whole Gourmet Cinnamon Sticks
- and a copy of Alternative Baker to one lucky winner! (Head over to Instagram for a second chance to win!)
TO ENTER: Leave a comment below about your favorite holiday dessert.
THE DETAILS: Open to residents in the U.S. only. Giveaway will run from Tuesday, November 22nd through Tuesday, November 29th, 2016. A winner will be chosen at random and notified by email by Sunday, December 4th.
Also! If you're in the San Francisco area, I'll be at Green Apple Books tonight (Tuesday 11/22) with my pal Irvin Lin, signing our books and sharing sweet treats. We'd love to see you there! And if you'd like to order a signed copy, we're offering a special deal over at GFF Magazine.
More Cheesecake Recipes:
- (Raw, Vegan) Chocolate Cheesecakes
- Gluten-Free Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies
- Berry Chèvre Cheesecake Squares with Gluten-Free Pistachio Crust
- Small Batch Cheesecake with Elderflower Peaches {gluten-free}
*Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest, purchase my gluten-free cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this gluten free chocolate cheesecake recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.*
Chocolate Crusted Chèvre Cheesecake with Earl Grey Poached Pears & Pomegranate {gluten-free}
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Crust:
- 1/2 cup (80 g) sweet white rice flour
- 1/2 cup (60 g) blanched almond flour (such as Bob’s Red Mill)
- 1/2 cup (45 g) cocoa powder (preferably dutch-process)
- 2 tablespoons (12 g) tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup (50 g) organic granulated cane sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon plus 1⁄8 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 5 tablespoon (70 g) cold, unsalted butter, diced into 1⁄2” cubes
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling:
- 8 ounce (230 g) fresh soft goat cheese, at room temperature
- 8 ounce (230 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (165 g) organic granulated cane sugar
- 2 tablespoons (15 g) sweet white rice flour
- Seeds from 1-2 vanilla beans (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream
Topping:
- 1 ½ cups (355 ml) sour cream
- 3 tablespoons (40 g) organic granulated cane sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Poached Pears:
- 4 cups (950 ml) boiling water
- 3 tablespoons loose Earl Grey tea leaves
- ¾ cup (165 g) organic granulated cane sugar
- 2 scraped vanilla pods (from above)
- 4 medium, firm-ripe pears (such as Bosc), peeled, halved, cored
- juice of 1 large lemon
Instructions
Make the crust:
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375ºF.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the almond and sweet rice flours with the cocoa powder, tapioca starch, sugar and salt. Scatter the butter pieces over the top and drizzle with the vanilla extract. Turn the mixer to medium-low and run until the dough comes together in clumps and the butter is worked through, 3–5 minutes. (It will seem as though the dough won’t come together, but don’t worry – it will!)
- Dump the crumbs into a 9-inch springform pan and press the dough evenly into the bottom and 1 ¼ inches up the sides, starting with the sides and then moving to the bottom, keeping the edges square. (It usually takes me about 5 minutes to make it look pretty.) Freeze until firm, 15–30 minutes.
- Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any drips) and bake until slightly puffed and firm to the touch, 18–22 minutes. Remove the crust from the oven and, while it’s still hot, press the sides and bottom with the back of a spoon. This will help it hold together when cool. Decrease the oven to 325ºF.
Make the filling:
- Wipe the bowl of the stand mixer clean and add the softened goat cheese, cream cheese, sugar, rice flour, vanilla seeds, and salt. Mix on medium low until smooth and creamy, 2-3 minutes, scraping the bowl and paddle a few times. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on medium-low until combined and scraping the bowl and paddle well between each egg, then stir in the the ¼ cup sour cream.
- Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake at 325ºF until gently puffed and mostly set when you give it a wiggle, 40-45 minutes. Remove from the oven.
Make the topping:
- While the cheesecake bakes, whisk together the 1 ½ cups sour cream, sugar, and vanilla. Gently spoon the sour cream mixture over the cheesecake, spread smooth, and return to the oven for 10 minutes. Remove the cheesecake and allow it to cool completely at room temperature, 1-2 hours, then chill until cold, 4 hours and up to 1 or 2 days.
Make the pears:
- In a large, heatproof measuring pitcher, pour the boiling water over the tea leaves and let steep 5 minutes. Strain the tea into a wide skillet with high sides, or another large pot. Add the sugar and vanilla pods and bring to a boil. Add the pears and lemon juice (the liquid should just cover the pears, but you can add more water if need be) and simmer the pears until just tender but still holding a shape, 8-12 minutes, turning the pears over halfway through. Remove the pears to a plate and simmer the poaching liquid until thick and syrupy, 10-20 minutes. Let cool. Cut the pears into chunks.
- To serve the cheesecake, release the edge of the springform pan and slide the cheesecake onto a platter or cutting board. Cut into slices with a large chef’s knife dipped in hot water and wiped clean between each cut. Serve slices topped with the poached pears, pomegranate arils, and a drizzle of poaching syrup. Extra cheesecake keeps well, refrigerated airtight, for up to several days (if you can make it last that long).
Notes
Nutrition
William Karcher says
I love cheese cake with cherrys and coolwhip !
Deb|EastofEdenCooking says
My favorite Thanksgiving dessert is homemade, Apple Pie. After Thanksgiving it's all about cookies. It's a tradition my mom started and I'm happy to follow along. The must make cookies are Russian Tea Cakes, Lemon Bars, Chocolate Chips and Peanut Butter Pillows. After making the traditional recipes it's a free for all! In keeping with the holiday spirit, the products of the cookie marathon are meant for sharing!
Have been wanting to ask, will you be doing a book signing down my way? Bookshop Santa Cruz?
Raymond Langer says
My favorite Holiday desert is cheesecake. it is so versatile. You can use many different toppings , or create your own.
Christine cruz says
My family loves Sugar Cookie Cheesecake.
Jennifer Essad says
My favorite is our mom bakes a chocolate cake ice cream cake roll and fills it with peppermint ice cream the kind with the peppermint candies. She'll make hot fudge sauce and whipped cream to top it off
Felice says
My favorite holiday dessert is a trifle.
Kathy Acevedo says
My favorite holiday dessert depends on the holiday but all of my favorites evoke memories of my mom taking out the @kitchenaidusa classic grey mixer and helping her bake by spooning in the vanilla and other ingredients. I love chocolate cheesecake for my birthday, pumpkin cheesecake for Thanksgiving , and carrot cake for Christmas. I hope to relive old memories and try new dessert recipes from the Alternative Baker in my little apartment with a kitchen aid mixer and Rodelle ingredients !
Elizabeth says
My grandmother always made a "date pudding" -which is a version of sticky toffee pudding. I have adapted it as a paleo cupcake (with almond flour), served with a caramel sauce. My family insists it is better than the original. Less sugar means more date flavor!
Lori Williams says
My favorite holiday dessert is a Triple Chocolate Truffle Cake!! It is the best chocolate cake I've ever had.
Jillian Too says
Looks delicious! My favorite holiday dessert is homemade apple crisp. It always tastes better when we've picked the apples ourselves.
Hannah says
Hi Alanna, thank you so much for your wonderful recipes. It's so encouraging to see that gluten-free baking can be delicious and not complicated!
My family is Korean so we enjoy both American and Korean desserts every holiday. My grandmother doesn't bake but she always serves ricecakes (naturally gluten-free) or sweet steamed glutinous rice mixed with dried fruits and chestnuts (also GF) during the holidays. When I became older and taught myself how to bake, I started incorporating American ingredients to Korean-style sweets to combine the two cultures that I grew up with and love dearly; for example, for Thanksgiving I'll make a sweet kabocha pumpkin mochi ricecake in addition to classic pumpkin pie. I love pumpkin so I would say both are my favorite holiday desserts.
Claire Miller says
Every year I've made a foolproof pumpkin cheesecake from the Santa Fe Cooking School cookbook my mom gave me when I moved away from home. Really. Foolproof! This year however, I'll be making Bill Smith's Atlantic beach pie, a lemon-lime pie with a saltine cracker crust. This cheesecake is also going in the mix sometime this year, maybe for Christmas dessert!
Christina says
I made a delicious persimmon pudding with whiskey sauce (and healthy flour substitutes) last Christmas, and I think it's my new favorite dessert!
Jaqueline says
I love pumpkin pie. Actually I am crazy about anything pumpkin; pie, cake, bars, bread etc... I can't wait to make my GF, dairy free pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving. I'm counting the hours until tomorrow's baking marathon of píe making! Your recipe looks amazing I will make that another day since I live up in the mountains and my pantry doesn't have all the ingredients otherwise I certainly would make it. I'm so glad I found your blog!
Maxie says
I am lying in bed, recuperating from spine surgery, reading this recipe and dreaming of standing in my kitchen to make this my new favorite holiday recipe. I will have to recruit someone hale and hardy to move my 30 year old Kitchen Aid mixer to my kitchen island. Can't wait!
Tanya says
This looks so pretty and fresh. I love chocolate peppermint crinkle cookies or a well made cup of chocolate peppermint cocoa is really delicious and satisfying.
Annette says
What a stunning cheesecake! For the holidays my favorite dessert to make is my mom's Red Velvet Cake recipe. It doesn't have cocoa in it and tastes more like a spice cake. Oh and the icing is incredible - it's made with milk that's warmed then cooled.
Kate says
My favorite holiday dessert has always been mom's apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream. They are a LOT of work, and every time I make them I wonder if it is really worth the effort....until that first bite when all of those thoughts disappear!
SUSHMA SRINIVASAN says
Any substitute for the eggs in the recipe....the pics are so tempting would love to give them a try.
Alanna says
You could try egg replacer?
Barbara Copeland says
Your recipe looks amazing, Wow. My favourite Holiday treat is the Original Gingerbread Loaf and a Raisin Pie, my mom used to make an incredible amazing beautiful runny raisin pie, Butter Tarts and I can't forget my Rolly Pollys. We all love those. Thankyou and Rodelle for this chance for a gift I've always wanted
Megan says
I always look forward to gingerbread and ginger snaps around the holidays. This year I let myself make them before thanksgiving, because it's just not necessary to wait until December! I cannot wait to make this cheesecake - it looks so good!
Janet Hall says
Love the sound of the cheesecake as I am looking for a gluten free base for my stepdaughters ,my favourite holiday dessert is lemon meringue roulade
Erin says
My favorite holiday dessert is a white cake that I decorate differently every year. I only ever make it for our Christmas Eve party and my sisters birthday. I also enjoy experimenting with different cookie recipes and I can't wait to try out this cheese cake but the white cake is my favorite.
Amy Castellano says
Favorite holiday dessert is a flourless chocolate torte I make for Christmas Eve every year.
Katie Hill says
Spice cake with caramel icing. Love your blog. Love this recipe! Thank you.
Sarah Leitner says
This recipe looks amazing! One of my favorites are spiced persimmon galette with nutmeg, cardamom, and sweetened with dare honey.
Renee says
The more I look at this cheesecake, the more delicious looks and the flavors sound amazing , that chocolate crust filled with tangy goat cheese...... mmmmm.
Hard to pick a favorite holiday dessert when you like them all... have to go with old fashioned apple pie for thanksgiving, as well for the holiday's love a spicy gingerbread cake with chocolate ganache and whipped cream! Your recipes always look amazing. Happy Thanksgiving! :)
Jaime Kooser says
Hello! My favorite holiday baked treat from my childhood onward is my mother's Mexican wedding balls. She always made them with walnuts. Seeing those perfect small cookies with their golden-brown bottoms hidden by that outer layer of powdered sugar made me salivate. I got to help by rolling them in powdered sugar while they were hot from the oven. Sometimes my Mom would spoil me for my birthday by sending me an entire batch, even though it was out of season.
Thank you for the opportunity to be in the drawing, and happy holidays!
Mary Wilson says
I like various desserts at the winter holidays - keflies, sugar cookies, cheesecakes, etc. The holiday season and anytime a regular FULL meal is served at my house - is dessert time - I like many different kinds - as long as it is somehow a good transition to from the dinner to the dessert.
Stacy says
I have celiac, so I don't usually get to have dessert at family gatherings unless I make something - which is usually gingerbread cupcakes from the king arthur flour website, or my new favorite is a triple chocolate peppermint trifle from Martha's website. I think I will try this cheesecake this holiday season!
Tamara B. says
My favorite holiday dessert is cheesecake. Plain cheesecake drizzled with melted but cooled white chocolate, topped with raspberries and sprinkled with cinnamon .
Maria C says
I don't discriminate between desserts! Cake, cookies, pie! I taste a little of everything.
lynn liccardo says
used to make a hazelnut cheesecake in a chocolate wafer crust. looking forward to trying it with the cocoa-almond crust.
favorite holiday dessert: so many choices; all involve chocolate. but, the most memorable is one i used to make for my late parents' christmas eve open house: chocolate-croissant bread pudding with raspberries.
visually, it was stunning: vanilla custard studded with dark brown chocolate and red raspberries. and the custard was rich -- egg yolks, heavy cream and half-and-half -- but not overly sweet.
one year, i noticed my uncle wrapping a piece in aluminum and slipping it into his pocket. when he saw me he winked and said, "don't tell your aunt."
Caroline says
I've been making a black bottom oatmeal pie for years now as an alternative to a pecan, and it's the best. Yum!
Morgan Lee says
Flourless chocolate cake. Easily!
Sally says
For Thanksgiving it's pumpkin pie in a gingersnap crust, apple pie with cranberries and walnuts (or just apple) and the favorite of the nieces and nephews, a chocolate chip pecan pie.
For Christmas, it's the chocolate wafer icebox cake with crumble peppermint stick and shaved chocolate on top. Looking forward to making this cheesecake!
Elizabeth says
Gingerbread all the way! Gingerbread cookies, gingerbread cake, gingerbread crusted pies... ALL the gingerbread!
Maria Roxas says
It used to be the Mille Feuille Crepe Cake...but your Walnut Frangipani with Concord Grapes has now taken top slot :)
Kelly M. says
I love Pumpkin carob pie! Tastes like chocolate, but it's AIP friendly :)
Ali says
My favorite is peanut butter fudge.
Jennai says
I always love to make Eggnog Tres Leches Cake at Christmas
Leslie says
Anything ginger. Or cranberry.
Brandi says
Can't wait to try this! My favorite dessert is banana pudding. Love your cookbook and experimenting with different flours.
Daryl says
My favorite dessert is Hawaiian sweet potato pie layered with coconut pudding.
Amy says
This looks amazing! Every year I always make this totally over-the-top cheesecake that is a normal cheesecake on the bottom, chocolate mousse in the middle and chocolate ganache on top. It's like a boom chicka wow wow in your mouth and always a big hit. On a side note, I just tried The Sweet and Simple Kitchen's Chewy Ginger Molasses cookies and may or may not have eaten them all by myself. Those will become my new go-to cookie for sure! Can't wait to get your book!
Sabrina says
Cranberry gingerbread with sipping chocolate. So good. And so irresistible.
Shiva says
Looks scrumptious!
I would love to try to make this cheesecake.
My Favorite holiday dessert is Vanilla Sponge Cake with Blackberry Tarragon Jam.
Manda Shank says
I like pecan pie.
Jennifer says
Our family's holiday favorite is snowball cookies- we have loved the twist with the pistachio lime and maths snowballs from your book!
Kate says
Apple pie will always be my absolute favorite! After baking cookies and smaller pastries all year, it feels a little more special for the holidays. Always always always with vanilla bean ice cream, and it has to be warm!