Foodie Friday: Bourbon Banana Cheesecake

Planning a Valentine’s Day dessert is always a struggle for me. Everything I see is always chocolate, understandably, but Nathan is more of a fruit dessert kinda guy. I don’t discriminate. Any kind of sweet is good by me! I played with a few different ideas over the past few years; chocolate raspberry truffles, blackberry cobbler, chocolate strawberry cups.. they were all good, but I wanted to do something different this year. I’m also a fan of doing something a little healthier. That way I don’t feel so bad when I eat all of it 😉

I’d seen a few cheesecake recipes floating around the interwebs and thought that might be fun, but I wanted to make it a little more special than just a regular cheesecake. One of Nathan’s favorite recipes is bananas foster [if you recall our wedding cake] so I played around and had a little fun [read: broke out the alcohol!].

Bourbon Banana Cheesecake

Serves 9
Adapted from Skinnytaste Skinny Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Ingredients
– 2 medium bananas; mashed
– 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp raw sugar; divided
– 1-2 oz. bourbon
– 2/3 cup crushed cinnamon graham crackers
– 1 tbsp coconut oil
– 8 oz. reduced fat cream cheese; softened
– 6 oz. fat free Greek yogurt
– 2 large egg whites
– 1 tsp vanilla extract
– 1 tbsp all purpose flour

Optional Toppings
– 1 can full fat coconut milk; refrigerated
– 1-2 oz. bourbon
– 1 tbsp maple syrup
– Dark chocolate bar [for shavings]

Directions
Place a small pot over medium heat and add the mashed bananas and 1 tbsp raw sugar. When the sugar has dissolved and the bananas are smooth, take the pot off of the heat and add in the bourbon. I say 1-2 oz. so you can do to your taste. Let cool completely.

While the bananas are cooling, preheat the oven to 350°F and spray an 8×8 pan with non-stick spray.

Crush the graham crackers [I used my food processor to make sure they were really crushed!] and mix with coconut oil. Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, 1/4 cup raw sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually add in the Greek yogurt, egg whites, and flour. Finally, mix in the bananas until just thoroughly combined. You don’t want to overmix. Pour the mixture over the crust.

Bake 30-40 minutes until the center is just set. Allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for a few hours before slicing. When you’re ready to serve, slice into 9 equal squares and top however you like!

I served ours with bourbon coconut cream.. it was really supposed to be whipped cream, but the coconut milk just didn’t want to whip.. whoops! That didn’t make it any less tasty though. I also used my zester and to add some dark chocolate shavings over top.

Nutritional Information
Per square, without toppings

183 Calories  /  7g Fat  /  21g Carbs  /  14g Sugar  /  1g Fiber  /  7g Protein

Not too shabby for a rather decadent dessert, huh? 😉

Food for Thought

What is your favorite dessert?