Cheesecakes are one of those desserts that I’m always drawn to. However there are not that many that reach the standard I expect. I love it to be creamy, not too eggy, definitely no gelatinous texture involved. My absolutely favourite cheesecake is vanilla which makes these vanilla bean cheesecake bars my newest obsession.
About these Vanilla Bean Cheesecake Bars
Let’s make a roundoup of all the cheesecake recipes you find on this blog. First there’s the classic vanilla cheesecake followed by chocolate cheesecake Also on the mini territory there’s the mini cheesecakes with blueberries and mini blondie cheesecakes. See? I have an obsession.
It was really hard to stop myself from eating the whole mould! I swear I was just stuffing those vanilla bean cheesecake bars in my mouth nonstop. Just look at that texture and those tiny vanilla bean dots suspended in the filling. SO. DARN. GOOD. The nice thing about using vanilla bean in recipes is that the taste is so sutil and refined. It’s really nothing like vanilla essence.
Vanilla who?
Let’s talk vanilla while we’re at it, shall we? Vanilla comes from an orchid which explains why it’s so glorious. Inside the vanilla pod are lots of tiny seeds which is what we use for our vanilla recipes. The pod is also quite flavourful and can be used for infusing milk for vanilla-flavoured preparations. Another way in which we find vanilla is in paste form. Vanilla paste is made of lots of vanilla seeds plus a binding agent. I love using vanilla paste because it’s less messy.
On the other hand there’s vanilla extract which is a pod that’s left for at least a month in an alcoholic solution (vodka works really well). The alcohol takes all that beautiful taste and then you can use if to flavour recipes. You can definitely make this yourself at home. Finally there’s vanilla essence which actually has nothing to do with the vanilla pod. It’s just a bunch of flavourings that come together in a dyed liquid.
Ingredients
For the crust
- 110 g graham / vanilla crackers or similar taste them! If they need an extra oomph add ground ginger, cinnamon, vanilla essence and/or sugar
- 2 1/2 tbsp melted unsalted butter
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the filling
- 440 g cream cheese about 2 packages, at room temperature
- 120 g sugar
- 110 g sour cream at room temperature
- 1 vanilla pod seeds or 1 tbsp vanilla paste
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
For the crust
- Process the crackers until fine.
- Add salt and butter and mix.
- Cut a piece of baking paper to the side of the mould, including the sides. Grease the mould and use it to stick the paper in place.
- Place the cracker mix inside and flatten on the base. Take to the freezer for at least 15min while we make the filling
For the filling
- Mix the cream cheese with the sugar in a stand or handheld mixer with the whisk attachment until really smooth. Every once in a while stop to scrape the sides with a spatula so you know everything is getting mixed in.
- Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix some more.
- With the speed on minimum add the eggs one by one. You know you can add the next egg when the previous one has mixed in.
- Put the filling in the mould and take to a preheated oven at 150C.
- Cook for 20-30min or until it jiggles like gelatin if you move it.
- Wait for it to cool down completely and leave in the fridge overnight or at least 8 hours.
- On the next day unmould the cheesecake and use a damp knife to cut the cheesecake bars. Mine were 5cm wide. Make sure you clean the knife in between cuts so your bars stay nice and clean.
2 comments
What are the dimensions of the pan that you used? 9×13, 8×8, or 9×9?
Hi Dorothy! 8x8in 🙂