Mango Cheesecake

This mango cheesecake always gets praised whenever I serve to friends.  I think it is partly due to them never having seen or tried it before.  When was the last time you heard your waiter tell you they had a mango cheesecake.  More often than not, it is always the same basic New York cheesecake with strawberry or blueberry topping.  This recipe is from Epicurious.com.

The last time I made this cheesecake, I opted to cut slices of fresh mangoes to place on top of the cheesecake.  This time I wanted to try serving with a sauce instead.  In my opinion and this was supported my wife, we found that using the fresh mango slices brought out the mango flavour much more than using a sauce.  Next time, perhaps I should try both the fresh mango slice as well as the sauce.

MANGO CHEESECAKE
Printable Recipe 

Ingredients:

Crust
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup sugar
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling
3 large very ripe mangoes (each about 13 ounces), peeled, pitted, coarsely chopped
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs
Sliced peeled pitted mangoes

Directions:

For crust:
1)  Preheat oven to 325°F.
2)  Lightly butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides.
3)  Stir cracker crumbs and sugar in medium bowl to blend.  Add melted butter and stir until evenly moistened.
4)  Press crumb mixture firmly onto bottom (not sides) of prepared pan.
5)  Bake until crust is set, about 12 minutes.  Cool completely.  Maintain oven temperature.

For filling:
1)  Puree mangoes in processor until smooth.  Set aside 2 cups mango puree (reserve any remaining puree for another use).
2)  Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in large bowl until smooth.  Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.  Add 2 cups mango puree and beat until well blended.
3)  Pour filling over crust in pan.
4)  Bake cake until set and puffed and golden around edges (center may move very slightly when pan is gently shaken), about 1 hour 25 minutes.
5)  Cool cake 1 hour.  Refrigerate uncovered overnight.
6)  Run small knife between cake and sides of pan to loosen.  Remove pan sides.  Transfer cake to platter.  Cut into wedges and serve with sliced mangoes or leftover mango sauce.