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slice of apple cheesecake

Apple Cheesecake

A vanilla cake topped with cinnamn & sugar apples and cream cheese.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings: 8
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

The cake
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 oz cook & serve dry vanilla pudding mix don't use instant, use the cook & serve
  • 3 tbsp butter, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup whole milk You could use other milks other than whole milk, but I have only used whole milk so I can't guarantee how it would turn out. I prefer whole milk for cooking and baking.
Cream cheese topping
  • 1 8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 3 tbsp reserved juice from the cooked apples.
Sugar topping
  • 1 tbsp white sugar
Apple filling
  • 4 Medium apples I prefer Honeycrisp or Golden Delicious but use what you prefer.
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup white sugar We like things pretty sweet around here so whether I am making apple pie, apple crisp, or an apple cake, I'm usually right around 1/2 cup of sugar. However, if you want more tartness stick with about 1/4 of a cup.
  • Cinnamon to taste I think cinnamon can be a light or a strong flavor and it's really a personal preference. So, I don't have a measurement for it. I judge by how brown the apples look after shaking some cinnamon in. We LOVE cinnamon, so mine are coated, but you may prefer a little less.

Method
 

Cook the apples
  1. Peel and slice all of the apples.
  2. Place the apples in a bowl and add the sugar and cinnamon. Toss gently to coat the apples.
  3. Warm up a sauté or fry pan on a low to medium heat. Once it's warm, add 1/4 cup of butter and allow it to melt.
  4. As soon as the butter melts, put the apple mix into the pan and stir the apples around.
    apples frying in pan
  5. Continue to cook and stir the apples (stir often). Cook them until they are soft but not mushy, and until there is a nice thick sauce from the juice and sugar.
  6. When the apples are soft, Remove the pan from the heat, and scrape the apples along with the sauce into a bowl. Set aside.
The cake
  1. Mix all of the cake ingredients in an electric mixer until well blended.
  2. Pour the cake batter into a well-greased 9-inch pie plate.
  3. Using a fork or a pair of tongs, lay the apples around the cake. It's okay if some of the apples double up. Using a fork or tongs will allow you to reserve the juice for later.
    sliced apples on cake batter
Cream cheese topping
  1. Mix the creamed cheese, sugar, and three tablespoons of the reserved juice from the apples together until smooth and creamy.
    ingredients in mixing bowl
  2. Using a spoon, drop dollops of the cream cheese mixture around the cake. Leave about one inch of space at the edge of the cake.
Cinnamon and sugar topping
  1. Stir together the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle it all over the top of the cake.
Bake
  1. Bake the cake in a 350° oven for 30 - 35 minutes. Look for a golden-brown crust. The center is soft until it sets.

Notes

The photos for this recipe were taken the first time I made this cake with apples instead of peaches. What I learned was that two apples were not enough. So, keep in mind that as you look at the photos, you'll see a smaller number of apples sliced, in the bowl, in the pan, and also on top of the cake. I decided it would be best to use four apples instead. 
Also, as mentioned, I prefer to cool the cake and then refrigerate it for a couple of hours before slicing it. However, if you prefer it warm, refrigeration isn't necessary. For some reason, I like the cold texture for this recipe. 
** To make this a peachy cheesecake instead of apple, replace the apple filling instructions with 1 (15-ounce) can of peaches in juice or syrup. Drain the peaches and save the juice. Place the peaches on top of the cake just as you would the apples. When it's time to mix the 3 tablespoons of liquid with the cream cheese for the cream cheese topping, use the reserved peach juice.