Copycat Restaurant Recipes -

Bennigan's Strawberry Cheesecake recipe

• for crust : 2 cups vanilla wafers or chocolate wafers
• ½ cup sifted confectioner's sugar
• 7 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tspn cinnamon
  for filling :
• 5 x 8 oz pkg cream cheese, at room temperature
• ½ tspn vanilla
• grated zest of 1 lemon
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 1¾ cup sugar
• 3 tbsp flour
• ¼ tspn salt
• 5 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• large fresh strawberries

1. For crust: In food processor, crush cookies until very fine. Place rest of ingredients into the processor bowl; mix until well blended. Pat the crumb mixture into and up the sides of a 9" springform pan or a pie shell, set aside.
2. For filling: Preheat oven to 450°F. In a large bowl or food processor, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, lemon zest and juice.
3. In small bowl, mix sugar, flour and salt together; add to cheese mixture. Add eggs and egg yolks, a tbsp at a time, beating after each addition. Gently stir in the cream. Pour batter into crust-line pan. Bake for 12 minutes; reduce heat to 300°F and continue baking for 55 minutes, or until center tests done. Remove from oven.
4. Allow to cool for 30 minutes, then loosen sides of the cake with a spatula. When cake has cooled for about an hour, remove from pan. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.
5. Garnish with fresh strawberry slices. Cut lengthwise into thin slices and spread around the edge of the cake in a fan-like pattern.