Chai Cheesecake

Since I have been in a “chai mood” lately, I thought it could be good in cheesecake too. I took my recipe for amaretto cheesecake and spiced it up. I swapped in a ginger snap crust too and I am quite pleased with the result.

Spice Infusion:
1/2 cup of water
1/3 of a cinnamon stick
8 green cardamom pods
6 cloves
6 peppercorns
1/2 star anise
5 chai tea bags

Add the spices to the water and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or so. Add the tea bags and steep for 10 minutes. Cool.

Crust:
300 grams of gingersnaps, crushed (about 3 cups)
7 Tbsp. of butter, melted

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Mixed crushed gingersnaps with melted butter and press into a 9″ springform pan. Bake 5-10 minutes and set aside.

Filling:
2 (8 oz.) packages of cream cheese
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
spice infusion from above
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. allspice
4 eggs

Combine the cheese, sugar and cornstarch. Mix until smooth. Add the sour cream, vanilla, spice infusion, spices, and salt. On low speed of mixer, add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Pour batter over crust. Bake 60 minutes. Cool.

To serve, sift icing sugar and cinnamon over the top. Add candied ginger as garnish if you wish.