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Slice of vanilla bean cheesecake on white spatula.

Vanilla Bean White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake

Yield: 12 Slices
Prep Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Chilling Time: 8 hours
Total Time: 10 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

Crust:

  • 1 ½ cups (150 g) finely crushed graham crackers
  • ¼ cup (53 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, melted

Cheesecake:

  • 16 ounces (454 g) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup (227 g) sour cream
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 cup (212 g) granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • vanilla bean seeds scraped from one pod OR 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste

White Chocolate Mousse:

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 4 ounces (113 g) cream cheese, softened
  • 4 ounces (113 g) white chocolate baking squares (NOT almond bark or white chocolate chips), melted

Sweetened Whipped Cream:

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
  • vanilla bean seeds scraped from one pod OR 1-2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

Instructions 

  • For the crust, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a medium bowl, mix the graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and mix; then stir in the melted butter. Press the graham cracker mixture into the bottom and just barely up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan (could also use a 10-inch pan although all the layers will be slightly thinner). Bake the crust for 8 minutes. Remove and let cool completely. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
  • For the cheesecake layer, in a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese with an electric handheld mixer (or stand mixer) until soft and creamy. Add the sour cream, cornstarch, sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth. Mix in the vanilla bean seeds or vanilla bean paste until well mixed.
  • Spread the cheesecake over the cooled crust and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
  • For the white chocolate mousse, in a medium bowl, beat the cream and vanilla with an electric mixer (handheld or stand mixer) until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and mix until combined and the peaks are slightly stiffer.
  • In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the white chocolate and mix until smooth and creamy. Fold in the whipped cream, taking care not to deflate the whipped cream, and mix gently with a rubber spatula, lifting and turning the cream, until the mousse is combined and creamy.
  • Spread the white chocolate mousse over the cooled cheesecake.
  • For the sweetened whipped cream, beat the whipping cream and powdered sugar together until soft peaks form. Add the vanilla bean seeds or vanilla bean paste and mix until slightly stiffer peaks form.
  • Spread the whipped cream evenly over the white chocolate mousse. Refrigerate at least 1-2 hours before serving (or up to overnight).

Notes

Vanilla Beans: here is an easy tutorial on scraping out the vanilla bean seeds.
Egg-Free Crust: since the cheesecake batter is egg-free, if you need the crust to be egg-free also, simply omit the egg yolk.