Plum-Swirled Cheesecake Bars

Have you ever seen an ingredient in the supermarket and decided you just have to make something with it? This happens to me quite a bit.

Unfortunately, I normally do not have a recipe lined up to take advantage of my new purchase. I wanted to take a break from some peach recipes I’ve been making recently (Brown Sugar Cinnamon Peach Pie, Peach Cobbler, and Bourbon-Peach Lemonade to name a few)  and focus on a relative of peaches: the plum. I haven’t worked with plums much in the past (I actually only have once recipe: Plum Sweet and Spicy Chicken) but I just could not resist how great they looked!

I decided to take a Martha Stewart recipe for Apricot Cheesecake Bars and instead make my own Plum Compote as a substitute for the Apricots.

Ingredients:

Plum Compote:

• ½ cup port wine
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise
• The zest of one orange
• 6 plums, stones removed and sliced

Cheesecake:

• 18 graham crackers (I used cinnamon graham crackers)
• ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons vanilla powder (I used Nielsen Massey)
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract (I used Nielsen Massey)
• Coarse salt, to taste
• 2 large eggs, room temperature

Begin by making the plum compote. You can make this ahead of time. Just keep refrigerated until ready to use. Add the port wine (you can substitute in ½ cup water if you want), sugar, cinnamon stick, vanilla bean, and zest to a small pot.

Bring to a boil over medium heat.

While waiting for the mixture to come to a boil (you won’t have to wait long, it’s quite quick), slice your plums. I kept the skin on but if you have the patience, I think peeling the plums would be a good idea.

When the mixture is boiling, add the sliced plums and reduce heat to low.

Cook for 30 minutes, uncovered, or until the plums begin to break down. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look like a lot of liquid at first. The plums will give off a lot! Stir occasionally.

After 30 minutes, remove from heat. Remove the cinnamon stick and the vanilla bean and pour into a heat safe dish. Refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight to allow to thicken.

To make the cheesecake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, blend the graham crackers, 1 tablespoon sugar, the vanilla powder, and ¼ teaspoon salt until crumbs form.

Add the crumbs to a medium bowl and stir in the melted butter, mixing to combine evenly. Add the crumbs to a 9 by 13 inch baking pan, pressing down with a flat bottomed surface. (I used the bottom of a mason jar).

Bake for 15 minutes or until the crust is firm. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Wipe the food processor bowl clean.  When the compote is set, add to the food processor with 1 tablespoon water and blend until smooth. If you didn’t peel the plums, there will still be some skin in the mixture; that’s fine.

Add the cream cheese and sour cream to a large bowl. Beat on medium until smooth.

Add ¾ cup sugar and beat to combine. Add the vanilla paste or extract and a pinch of salt. Beat to combine.

Add the eggs and beat until smooth. Pour the mixture into the cooled crust and smooth the top.

Drop small teaspoonfuls of the plum compote randomly on the cream cheese mixture. (You will probably only use about half of the compote. Reserve the rest to spoon over ice cream or enjoy on toast!)

Using a skewer or a butter knife, gently swirl the compote throughout the top of the cream cheese mixture.

Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes. Let look slightly on a wire rack, then refrigerate until chilled and firm, 2 hours or overnight. Cut into squares and serve.

Depending on how big you cut the bars, you can get 15-20 out of this recipe. They are pretty rich, so cutting them smaller might be best.

I was afraid there might be too much crust to the bars but the crunch of the graham cracker crust was just right with the creamy cheesecake. The plum compote on top added a burst of flavor without being clawingly sweet or over the top. I was planning on sharing these, but they are so darn good I might keep them for myself over the coming week. Shh.

You can store them in the fridge in an airtight container to keep them fresh.

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Plum-Swirled Cheesecake Bars

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Yield: 16 servings

Ingredients

Plum Compote:
• ½ cup port wine
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise
• The zest of one orange
• 6 plums, stones removed and sliced
Cheesecake:
• 18 graham crackers (I used cinnamon graham crackers)
• ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, room temperature
• ½ cup sour cream, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Coarse salt, to taste
• 2 large eggs, room temperature

Instructions

1. Begin by making the plum compote. You can make this ahead of time. Just keep refrigerated until ready to use. Add the port wine (you can substitute in ½ cup water if you want), sugar, cinnamon stick, vanilla bean, and zest to a small pot.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
3. While waiting for the mixture to come to a boil (you won’t have to wait long, it’s quite quick), slice your plums. I kept the skin on but if you have the patience, I think peeling the plums would be a good idea.
4. When the mixture is boiling, add the sliced plums and reduce heat to low.
5. Cook for 30 minutes, uncovered, or until the plums begin to break down. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look like a lot of liquid at first. The plums will give off a lot! Stir occasionally.
6. After 30 minutes, remove from heat. Remove the cinnamon stick and the vanilla bean and pour into a heat safe dish. Refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight to allow to thicken.
7. To make the cheesecake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, blend the graham crackers, 1 tablespoon sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt until crumbs form.
8. Add the crumbs to a medium bowl and stir in the melted butter, mixing to combine evenly. Add the crumbs to a 9 by 13 inch baking pan, pressing down with a flat bottomed surface.
9. Bake for 15 minutes or until the crust is firm. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
10. Wipe the food processor bowl clean. When the compote is set, add to the food processor with 1 tablespoon water and blend until smooth. If you didn’t peel the plums, there will still be some skin in the mixture; that’s fine.
11. Add the cream cheese and sour cream to a large bowl. Beat on medium until smooth.
12. Add ¾ cup sugar and beat to combine. Add the vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Beat to combine.
13. Add the eggs and beat until smooth. Pour the mixture into the cooled crust and smooth the top.
14. Drop small teaspoonfuls of the plum compote randomly on the cream cheese mixture. (You will probably only use about half of the compote. Reserve the rest to spoon over ice cream or enjoy on toast!)
15. Using a skewer or a butter knife, gently swirl the compote throughout the top of the cream cheese mixture.
16. Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes. Let look slightly on a wire rack, then refrigerate until chilled and firm, 2 hours or overnight. Cut into squares and serve.

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