Guava Cheesecake

Step 1

Crush the graham crackers until fine crumbs form and they look sandy. Ideally this would be in a food processor, but you can also do it by hand with your fingers, a rolling pin or a mallet.

Step 2

Mix the graham cracker crumbs with the butter, then press the crumbs evenly and thinly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9” round pie pan. No need to grease the pan since the crust has enough butter. Also, you can use the butter wrapper and/or a straight edged dry measuring cup to help tamp the crumbs into the pan.

Step 3

Bake the crust at 325F for 10 minutes; I like to lightly tent the crust with foil.

Step 4

For the filling, mix the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, lime zest and juice, salt and eggs until smooth and homogeneous. There should be no lumps of cream cheese left, and the filling should look more aerated. I would recommend using a hand or stand mixer, but you can do this by hand if you don’t have electric equipment.

Step 5

Pour half of the filling into the crust. Spoon half of the jam on top of the crust spaced apart, then use a butterknife to swirl the jam into the filling. Add the rest of the filling on top, spreading it to the edge to cover the jam, then add the rest of the jam in dollops and swirl it in.

Step 6

Place the pie plate on a baking sheet, then bake the cheesecake for 35-40 minutes. The cheesecake is done when you shake it gently and it jiggles in the middle but the edges are set. It’s okay if it seems a little underdone, because the cheesecake will continue to cook.

Step 7

Turn the oven off, then prop the door openly slightly and let it cool completely before refrigerating it overnight.

Step 8

Keep the cheesecake in the fridge until ready to serve.