Piña Colada Cheesecake

Step 1

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan and place on a baking sheet. (You can securely wrap your pan with a double thickness of foil. I have a leak proof pan and skip this step.)

Step 2

In the bowl of a food processor, combine cookie crumbs, coconut flakes and nuts. Pulse until finely ground, about 1 minute. Drizzle in butter over crumbs and mix until moist and wet. Press the crust mixture into bottom and 1 ½ inch up the sides of pan. Bake until set and lightly browned, about 8-10 minutes. Let cool on wire rack.

Step 3

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add in eggs, one at a time and beat until well after each addition. Beat in the cream of coconut, rum, milk, zest and coconut extract. Mix until blended. Fold in crushed pineapple. Pour mixture into prepared crust.

Step 4

Bake cheesecake at 325 degrees F until edge is set and center still jiggles slightly, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. (Note: I did not use a water bath and my cheesecake baked just fine. If you would like to use a water bath, wrap your cheesecake pan with double foil and place pan in a large baking pan and add about 1 inch of hot water to larger pan). Turn off oven and open door. Let cheesecake remain in oven for at least 30 minutes to an hour.

Step 5

Remove from oven and let cool in pan on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Refrigerate overnight.

Step 6

To make topping: In a small saucepan, combine the reserved pineapple juice, cornstarch, sugar and two tablespoons water. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until it boils. Boil for 1 minute until it slightly thickens. Cool for about 20 minutes at room temperature.

Step 7

When ready to serve, spread glaze over the top of cheesecake. Top with pineapple chunks and toasted coconut.

Step 8

Store leftovers refrigerated.