BLUE CHEESECAKE RECIPES

Steps:

• Make cheesecake filling: In a large bowl using a hand mixer or in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat cream cheese until fluffy and no clumps remain. Add sugar and beat until combined. Add heavy cream and vanilla and beat until medium-stiff peaks form. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together pudding mix and milk. Let pudding stand for 3 minutes in the fridge until thickened. Fold into cheesecake mixture until combined. Pour half the filling into graham cracker crust. Add a single layer of sliced bananas and Nilla Wafers (20 total), then pour over remaining cheesecake mixture and smooth top.  Refrigerate until cheesecake is firm, at least 6 hours and up to overnight. (If the cheesecake stills feels too soft to slice, transfer to the freezer for up to 1 hour.) Before serving, top with dollops of whipped topping around the border of the cheesecake. Top each dollop with a banana slice and Nilla wafer, then garnish the whole cheesecake with crushed Nilla Wafers.

Steps:

• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter bottom and side of a 9-inch springform pan.
• Stir together cookie crumbs and butter in a bowl. Reserve 1/4 cup crumb mixture for sprinkling over cheesecake, then pat remainder onto bottom and 1 1/2 inches up side of springform pan (about 1 inch thick). Put pan in a shallow baking pan and bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Cool completely on a rack, about 25 minutes. Leave oven on.
• Beat cream cheese, mascarpone, and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium high speed until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and salt and mix at low speed until combined. Pour into cooled crust and bake until cake is set and puffed around edge but still trembles slightly when pan is shaken gently, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool slightly in springform pan on rack, about 20 minutes. (Cheesecake will continue to set as it cools.) Leave oven on.
• Stir together sour cream, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, and salt in a small bowl and spoon over cheesecake, spreading gently and evenly, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edge.
• Bake cheesecake until topping is set, about 10 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge to help prevent cracking. Sprinkle top with reserved crumbs and cool completely in pan on rack, then chill, loosely covered, at least 8 hours.