Halloween Candy Cheesecake

Please don't let the close proximity of dessert posts this week fool you.  I swear we have been eating relatively balanced meals all week.

But remember when I was complaining about the inconveniences of rental living?  Well... here's another one for ya: The main light in the cooking area of our kitchen is a fluorescent light.  You know, the kind like they have in schools.  For the record, I despise fluorescent lighting, but it's just one of those things you have to live with in a rental.  Lo and behold, the light went out Saturday morning.  With any other light I would just change it myself (read: make Alex change), but we are supposed to have maintenance change the fluorescent lights.  Having one light out is of course not an emergency, so we had to wait until Monday, making the already poor lighting in my kitchen absolutely dismal.  I did attempt a new recipe of mashed cauliflower (which Alex has been bugging me to make since we had some over the summer at Ruby Tuesday's that was absolutely yummlicious!), but the pictures didn't really turn out, and I think the recipe needs a little tweaking, hence no blog post.

Plus, I'm still working on clearing out the stock of leftovers in my refrigerator and freezer.  And Alex worked late two nights this week, leaving him to eat sandwiches and me to microwave Lean Cuisines.

So rest assured, despite appearances based on this blog, we have been eating fruits, vegetables, proteins, and whole grains.... not just cookies, candy, and cake as one might think.  Promise!

That said, let's get down to discussing this truly delectable way to make use of some of that leftover Halloween candy I am sure you have lying around.... unless it's been banished to the office (like mine) or scarfed down in the middle of the night after digging it out from your *secret* hiding place (no judgment... we've all been there...).

Recipe: (from Sweet Peas and Pumpkins)

Crust
3 cups Cheerios
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Filling
3 8-ounce packages light cream cheese
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 or so snack size candy bars

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a food processor, process the Cheerios and brown sugar until fine.  Add the oil and vanilla and process until fine and resembling cornmeal.

Press Cheerio mixture into bottom and half way up the sides of a springform pan.  Bake for 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix the cream cheese and add one egg at a time, scraping the sides between eggs to ensure good mixing.  Add the sugar, vanilla, and flour and mix until fully incorporated.

Take 3 snack size candy bars and crumble into bite-sized pieces  (I used 100 Grands and Crunch).

Increase oven temperature to 365 degrees.  Pour half of the cream cheese mixture into the pan with the crust.  Sprinkle with candy.  Cover candy with rest of cream cheese mixture.

Bake for 35-38 minutes or until the middle of the cheesecake is no longer jiggly.  Cool and let firm in a refrigerator 8 hours or overnight.

(Diva Question: This is only the second cheesecake I've ever made.  Anyone with more experience know what caused the cracks to form as it cooled?  Is it unavoidable or is there a technique that I can try that might help prevent it in the future?)

When ready to serve, crumble 2-3 snack size candy bars (or seasonally colored M and Ms like I did) on top of cheesecake.

Verdict:
Well first of all, what's not to like about cheesecake?  

Exactly.

So we all know this recipe was delicious.  At least in my book.  Alex loved it too.  If I had to change one thing it would be the crust.  I was a bit surprised to see this departure from traditional graham cracker crust, but I thought I'd give it a try...  It didn't stop me from eating the cheesecake, but I'll be returning to graham cracker crust in the future.

The filling was absolutely perfect.  Moist.  Sweet.  Smooth.  Everything I love about cheesecake.  And with the use of light cream cheese, not as heavy and rich as it can sometimes be.  The added candy in the middle made for a sweet surprise, but I advise leaving pretty large chunks.  If you get too carried away with your crumbling, the chocolate just sort of melts away into the filling.

All in all, LOVE!  Will make again!

Need some other candy-use inspiration?  Here's an idea.  Or here.  Or here.  (The possibilities are endless...)