Apple Crumb Cheesecake

When cooking, more often than not, I try to find ways to make it healthier. I’ll use lean meats, reduced calorie options, lower sodium, and alternatives, like cauliflower rice. When making cheesecake, however, I do not attempt to find alternatives to the full fat options. One time my husband and I tried to make a reduced-calorie cheesecake. To this date, it is the only recipe we could not eat! Into the trash it went. So, this is not a low-calorie cheesecake, this is a decadent dessert! And I promise you, it is worth it!

This cheesecake can easily be enjoyed without the apple and crumb topping. The first time I made this cheesecake, we simply added a caramel drizzle and some whipped cream. I decided to elevate it with this apple crumb topping because we had just gone apple picking and the fall weather was inspiring me.

At first glance, this recipe might appear daunting with the 4 different stages, but each one is simple and it does not need to happen all at once. With an infant in the house, I often work in 15-30 minute increments. This is a perfect recipe for that amount of time!

First, you want to work on the crust. Melt the butter and add that to the sugar and crushed graham cracker. Once mixed, press it into your spring pan. If that is all the time you have, great. Set the crust aside while you tend to other things in your home. It will still be there when you return!

Once you have more time, work on the cheesecake filling. If you have a mixer, this is super quick, but hand mixing works too. Once mixed, you can set that aside as well. Do not pour it into the crust until you have the other stages done. Next, start on the crumb topping. When it is well-mixed, set that aside. The last step is washing, peeling, and dicing those apples. Once you mix the diced apples with the cinnamon and sugar, you are ready to build your cheesecake masterpiece!

This might be a controversial statement, but I do not like a lot of cinnamon. I just like a hint of it in my dishes, otherwise I find it overpowering. So you’ll notice, there is not a lot of cinnamon in this recipe, but feel free to add more! Additional cinnamon can easily be added to the apples and the crumb topping to boost that seasonal flavor!