Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with White Chocolate Mousse

This recipe does require overnight chilling, so plan ahead.

For the graham cracker crust:
Preheat oven to 375°F and line a standard size spring-form pan with parchment paper. I line the bottom and sides with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine crushed graham crackers and brown sugar and mix with a fork. Add the melted butter, egg and vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated.

Press into the bottom of the lined spring-form pan and bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

For the vanilla bean cheesecake filling:
Preheat oven to 320°F.

In a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter and sugar until light and fluffy Add the sour cream, cornstarch and vanilla bean seeds and mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Pour over the graham cracker crust and bake for one hour.

Remove it from the oven. Let it cool for one hour and then place into the refrigerator overnight.

For the white chocolate mousse:
Place mixing bowl in the freezer or refrigerator to chill.

Melt white chocolate squares in the microwave according to directions on the package then let it cool completely.

In the cold mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Gradually add powdered sugar as you mix it. Whip until it forms stiff peaks and place in the refrigerator to keep chilled.

In another bowl, beat the melted white chocolate and cream cheese together until light and fluffy.

Take the whipped cream and fold it into the white chocolate and cream cheese mixture. Place it back into the refrigerator to chill overnight. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to put the mousse onto the cheesecake.

Take the cheesecake out of the spring-form pan, put it onto a serving platter and spread the mousse on top of the cheesecake. Carefully remove parchment paper from the bottom and then garnish with whipped cream and/or fresh berries. Serve chilled!

Recipe adapted from The Inner Gourmet’s recipe for Vanilla Bean Cheesecake.