Bananas Foster Cheesecake

What can be better than cheesecake or bananas foster?  Bananas foster cheesecake is the answer!   Oh how lucky was I to have a bottle of banana rum, straight from my favorite Caribbean island of St. Martin in my cooking stash.  Flavored rums are all the rage there and high end restaurants serve complimentary flavored rum cordials following dinner (you get to sample many flavors)… my favorite is banana rum so I always try to bring some home with me. 

Here is the cheesecake recipe that I made.  To cut calories and fat, I used low fat cream cheese and sour cream & I used Splenda brown sugar.  I was pleased with the results… the topping is definitely bananas foster and the cheesecake itself was just “banana-ie” enough.  Give it a try; I think you’ll like it!  

Ingredients:

For Crust:

1 1/2 cups finely crushed graham crackers

1/4 cup light brown sugar

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For Bananas foster sauce:

3 bananas, sliced

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 Tablespoons light brown sugar

2 Tablespoons banana rum

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For cheesecake:

3 8-oz packages lower fat cream cheese

1/2 cup of bananas foster sauce (above)

2 Tablespoons sour cream

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 Tablespoons corn starch

1/2 cup light brown sugar

For Topping:

3 bananas, sliced

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 Tablespoons light brown sugar

2 Tablespoons banana rum

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Lightly spray a 9-inch spring form pan with cooking spray and set aside.

For crust: Crush the graham crackers in the food processor or use the graham cracker crumbs.  Blend in the sugar and melted butter.  Stir well and press graham cracker mixture into the pan evenly, over the bottom and a bit up the side.

For Bananas Foster sauce:  In a medium pan, melt butter on medium heat, add sugar and stir well. Add banana slices and saute for about a minute. Add the rum and vanilla.   Saute for 3-4 minutes, stirring often.

Take out enough banana slices to layer evenly over the crust. Set the remaining sauce and bananas aside to cool.

For Cheesecake:

Beat the cream cheese and sugar with a mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Add the eggs, one at the time, beating after each addition.

Add the corn starch, vanilla extract, sour cream, and the remaining bananas foster sauce (about 1/2 cup).  Beat in mixer until all ingredients are well combined, creamy and smooth.  Pour the cheesecake batter into the pan with crust. Bake for 50-55 minutes. Cool completely.

For Topping:

In a medium pan, melt butter on medium-high heat, add sugar and stir well. Add banana pieces and saute for about a minute. Add the banana run and vanilla extract & saute for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring often.

Spoon topping over the cheesecake before serving.  If you're planning to serve it later, refrigerate the cheesecake and the sauce separately & microwave the sauce for just a few seconds before topping the cake slices.