Pomegranate Cheesecake

First, I am going to start by wishing everyone a happy Victoria’s Day. Second, I HAVE to offer a prefect table centerpiece for your celebrations. Guys, this Pomegranate Cheesecake with pistachio crust is a bomb! Your family and friends are going to love it!

Cheesecake is my favorite dessert in the whole wide world. I know, I say this pretty much every time I make desserts, but seriously I love any type of cheesecake. However the smooth, light and creamy texture is a must for all of them. This creamy and rich yet tangy cheese filling with sweet and mildly tart pomegranate sauce and crunchy pistachio crust all create a combination of flavors and textures that is truly unique in its tastiness.

This is the best food gift you can give to yourself!

Cheesecake Filling Ingredients:

4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 cup POM pomegranate juice

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 eggs

2 teaspoon lemon zest

Pistachio Crust Ingredients:

1 cup roasted pistachios

4 tbsp butter, melted + more for greasing

2 tbsp sugar

 

Pomegranate Sauce Ingredients:

2 cups POM pomegranate juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

seeds from 1/2 pomegranate

1 tbsp corn starch

+ remaining pomegranate seeds and 1/4 cup pistachios for decorating

Preheat the oven to 350F and lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan with butter.

In the meantime blend the pistachios in the food processor. Melt the butter over medium heat and combine it with crushed pistachios and sugar until evenly moistened. Spread the crumbs mixture on to the bottom of your pan.

Separate the pomegranate seeds and set aside.

In a large bowl stir room temperature cream cheese and sugar until evenly combined. Add pomegranate juice, lemon, vanilla, eggs one by one and mix well. In a separate bowl whip the heavy cream and combine with the mixture.

Pour mixture into prepared springform pan and bake for 1 hour. After 1 hour the edges should be slightly puffed and centre wiggly if you try shaking it. Turn off the heat and let the cheesecake cool inside the oven for 3 to 4 hours. This will prevent the cheesecake from cracking.

While the cheesecake is baking, prepare the pomegranate sauce. Add pomegranate juice and half of pomegranate seeds into a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until it reduces to 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Dissolve corn starch in 2 tablespoons of cold water and whisk into the sauce along with the sugar. Turn of the heat and let it cool.

Decorate the Pomegranate Cheesecake with the sauce, remaining pomegranate seeds and pistachios. I also decided to put more pistachio crumbs on the side of the cheesecake. Just because I can 🙂

Now excuse me, while I go the fridge to get some more creamy deliciousness.