Over Christmas last year, my daughter-in-law gifted me with some homemade Dutch Apple Butter.
Her family is from Michigan and every year they all get together in the fall and pick apples and make cinnamon spiced apple butter. YUM!
She asked me if liked apple butter and if I’d enjoy having some.

Umm..what do you think I said?

Of course!

Do you not know me? Ashley and apples are one in the same! Everything apple!!!

As I got to thinking, I decided that a natural combination with “apple” would be super extra aged gouda (Dutch) cheese. It’s hard, it’s sharp, it’s sweet, it’s nutty – let’s face it, it’s basically butterscotch.

Thus, I share with you Cinnamon Apple Butter Aged Gouda Cheesecake Bars: a cinnamon graham crust filled and topped with a spiced apple butter and extra aged butterscotch-y cheesecake filling. It could very well be “pretty much the best things, ever!”

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Cinnamon Apple Butter Aged Gouda Cheesecake Bars

Crust:
1 pkg. cinnamon graham crackers
8 Tbs. butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
In the bowl of a food processor, process the crackers into a semi-fine crumb. Add the melted butter and pulse a few times.
Transfer to a parchment lined cheesecake or quick release baking pan.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Filling:
16 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
8 oz. extra aged reserve gouda cheese, finely chopped
1 cup white sugar
1 cup cinnamon spiced apple butter
3 large eggs
3 Tbs. flour

Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.
After wiping clean the food processor bowl, purée the cream cheese, gouda, sugar, and apple butter until smooth.
Add the eggs and process again until creamy.
Add the flour and pulse again until somewhat thick.

Pour the filling over the cooled crust and bake for 45 minutes.
DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN.
Turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in the closed oven for 2 hours.
DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN.
After two hours, very gently and gingerly open the oven door, not disturbing the delicate cheesecake, and transfer to the fridge to fully set for several hours.

Topping:
1 small apple, very thinly sliced
fresh ground cinnamon

Once set, release the cake from the pan and garnish with fresh apples and cinnamon before slicing and serving.