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A slice of Bananas Foster Cheesecake drizzled with rum caramel on a black plate in front of gold, green, and purple Mardi Gras beads.

Bananas Foster Cheesecake with Oatmeal Cookie Crust

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: North American
Keyword: bananas, cheesecake
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
cooling time: 5 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 7 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 548kcal
Author: Marta Rivera
Bananas Foster Cheesecake is a banana cheesecake batter in a buttery oatmeal crust covered in a caramel rum sauce and whipped cream garnish.
Prep time includes an extended cooling period. Begin a day before you plan to serve it.
Please use caution when flambeing the sauce.
Print Recipe

Equipment

  • 9-inch springform (cheesecake) pan
  • long handled lighter or match

Ingredients

Oatmeal Cookie Crust

  • 2 cups (355 grams or 27 oatmeal cookies (or graham crackers)
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar optional
  • 1/2 cups (113 grams) unsalted butter melted

Banana Cheesecake

  • 4 8-ounce packages (904 grams) cream cheese room temperature
  • 1 cup (205 grams) light brown sugar lightly packed
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher salt
  • 4 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon dark rum (or rum extract)
  • 1 tablespoon banana liqueur (or banana extract)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups (350 grams or 3 large) bananas very ripe, peeled and mashed
  • 1/2 cup (60 grams) cornstarch

Caramel Rum Sauce

  • 4 tablespoons (57 grams) salted butter (or unsalted butter and a pinch of kosher salt)
  • 1/2 cup (110 grams) brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) dark rum
  • 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) banana liqueur
  • 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) heavy cream room temperature

Optional Garnishes

  • whipped cream recipe linked in post
  • chopped walnuts
  • dehydrated banana slices

Instructions

Prepare the Oatmeal Cookie Crust

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C).
    In a mixing bowl, use a rubber spatula or your hand to combine the oatmeal cookie crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until they hold together. 
  • Grab a handful of the crust and squeeze your hand into a fist. If the crust holds together firmly, transfer the mixture to a 9-inch springform pan.
    If, on the other hand, the crust immediately falls apart after you release your fist, add more butter until it reaches the proper consistency. On the contrary, if butter oozes from between your fingers when you squeeze, dry out the mixture by adding more of the oatmeal cookie crumbs (a tablespoon at a time). 
  • Use the bottom of a measuring cup to pack the crust into the bottom of cheesecake pan creating a 1/4-inch side border as you form the crust.
    Once the crust is formed, bake it for 10 minutes in the preheated oven. 
  • After the crust is baked, remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool.
    Keep the oven on for baking the cheesecake.
  • Once the pan is cool enough to handle, wrap the bottom and side in 2 layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil. 
    Set the crust aside while you prepare the cheesecake batter.

Make the Banana Cheesecake

  • In the bowl of your stand mixer (or in a mixing bowl), use the paddle attachment to blend together the cream cheese, brown sugar, nutmeg, and salt on low speed.
  • Once the mixture is free of lumps, add the eggs, one a time, to the bowl.
    Blend the batter until each egg is incorporated before adding the next egg. Continue adding the eggs, scraping down both the bowl and beaters in this manner.
  • Add the vanilla, dark rum, and banana liqueur with the final egg. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl again. 
    Add the mashed bananas to the batter. Blend the banana into the batter at low speed, before adding the cornstarch. 
    Blend the mixture at low speed just until the cornstarch is blended in. Don't over-mix the batter after adding the cornstarch, or it will result in a gummy texture.

Bake, then Gradually Cool the Banana Cheesecake

  • Pour the banana cheesecake batter into the cooled oatmeal cookie crust. Level the batter in the pan to make sure the surface is even. 
    Set the foil-wrapped cheesecake pan into a pan that has a larger circumference. Pour boiling water into the outer pan and carefully slide the whole set up into your preheated oven. 
    Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour 15 minutes. 
  • After the bake time has elapsed, turn the oven off and prop open the door. Gradually cool the cheesecake in the oven for 1 hour.
  • After an hour of cooling in the oven, remove the cheesecake from the oven. Remove the cheesecake pan from the water-filled pan, then remove the aluminum foil from the cheesecake pan.
    Allow the cheesecake to cool at room temperature for a half-hour. Once the cheesecake reaches room temp, cover it and refrigerate it for 4 hours-24 hours before slicing it. 

Prepare the Caramel Rum Sauce

  • Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium-low heat.
    Once the butter melts, whisk in the brown sugar and cinnamon. Slowly cook the brown sugar, stirring every 30 seconds or so to encourage it to dissolve. It will go from looking like a gritty paste to curdled within 2 minutes.
  • After 3-4 minutes of cooking over medium-low, the sugar will begin to dissolve and mix with the butter.
    Once the sugar dissolves- it will look like thick gravy- and begins to mix with the butter, add the dark rum and banana liqueur to the pan.
    Heat the alcohol for 20 seconds.
  • Turn off the stove and use a long-handled lighter or match to light the alcohol in the pan. Remember to keep, anything flammable (hair, clothing, cabinetry, your arms and face) away from the pan as you light the alcohol!
    Without stirring or tilting the pan, allow the liquor to ignite and burn out on its own. Once the flame dies out, whisk the caramel again. The sauce should be a beautiful brown color at this point. 
  • With the heat still off, whisk in the room temperature heavy cream. 
    Allow the sauce to cool for one hour for a thinner sauce or refrigerate it overnight for a very thick caramel sauce.

Garnish and Enjoy the Bananas Foster Cheesecake

  • Remove the collar of the springform pan and smooth the sides of the chilled cheesecake.
    Spoon the caramel rum sauce onto the surface of the cheesecake.
  • Use a piping bag fitted with a 1M tip to pipe a border of vanilla whipped cream onto the cheesecake's edge
    Arrange dried banana slices and chopped walnuts on the whipped cream border to complete the decoration. 
  • Slice and enjoy within 3 days of slicing or 4 days after baking.
    Refrigerate leftover cheesecake.

Notes

Oatmeal Cookie Crust Swaps:

Instead of oatmeal cookies use:
  • Graham crackers
  • Vanilla wafers
  • Chocolate animal crackers
  • Zwieback cookies
Make sure the cookies or crackers you replace the oatmeal cookies with are crisp. Use the same quantity as called for in the recipe. 

Safety Tips to Observe when Flambeing (I am not responsible for any damage or injuries as a result of failing to follow these instructions):

  1. If you're not comfortable lighting the alcohol in the pan, you cook off the alcohol, instead. Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes after adding the alcohol to cook off as much of the alcohol as possible. Keep the heat low to avoid burning the sauce. 
  2. Check your surroundings. Ensure there's no cloth (especially your clothes), hair, cabinetry or flammable materials within 1 1/2 feet of the pan.
  3. Make sure you have a fire extinguisher or flour close at hand to douse any unintentional flare-ups. 
  4. Use a long-handled light or match to light your alcohol.
  5. Move the pan from under any wood cabinets if they're less than 1 1/2 feet away before lighting the alcohol.
  6. Pay close attention to any invisible flame in the pan. It will appear as a blue flame, mirage or "air waves".

Make Ahead Caramel Instructions (up to 1 week ahead):

  1. Make the caramel as instructed.
  2. Transfer the sauce to a glass jar and store it in the fridge.
  3. When you're ready to cover the cheesecake, warm it for 30 seconds in the microwave to thin it.
  4. Pour the caramel over the top of the banana cheesecake as desired. 
  5. You can also double this caramel rum sauce recipe and use it as a topping for frozen custard or poundcake or a dipping sauce for churros or fresh fruit.  

Storage Instructions:

  1. Keep the cheesecake chilled until you're ready to serve it.
  2. Press a piece of wax paper or parchment paper against the cheesecake's exposed sides to keep it from drying out in the chilled air.
  3. The cheesecake will keep, in the fridge, for 3 days after cutting or 4 days after baking.
     

Freezer Instructions:

  1. Freeze the Bananas Foster Cheesecake prior to topping it with the caramel rum sauce and decorating it.
  2. Remove the collar of the springform pan and wrap the cheesecake in two layers of plastic film. Follow the plastic with a layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil.
  3. Store the cheesecake in the freezer for 2 months.
  4. Thaw it completely in the refrigerator before topping with the caramel, whipped cream, and your desired garnishes.
     

Nutrition

Calories: 548kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 358mg | Potassium: 198mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 551IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 2mg