Recipe Amaretto Hazelnut Macaroon Cheesecake

Hazelnut Crust:

• 1 c Hazelnuts, roast 10 min at 350
• 3 Egg whites
• 2 ts Vanilla
• 2 c Powdered sugar
• 1/2 c Sugar
• 1/8 ts Salt

Filling:

• 1/2 c Amaretto
• 3 ts Gelatin, unflavored
• 2 ts Vanilla
• 1 1/2 lb Cream cheese
• 3/4 c Sugar
• 2 tb Lemon juice
• 1 ts Lemon zest
• 2 c Cream

Hazelnut macaroon: 

1. heat oven to 350. grease 10 inch springform pan. line with parchment. Grease
2. parchment. Line a cookie sheet with greased parchment.
3. Whisk together eggs and vanilla. Remove as much skin from the hazelnuts as is convenient. Chop
4. the nuts in a food processor with one cup of the powdered sugar for 30 sec. Add both powdered
5. and regular sugar. Pulse a few times to combine. With processer running, pour in egg mixture.
6. process for 15 sec until smooth
7. Reserve 1/2 - 1/3 cup batter. Pour remaining into springform, smooth with spatula. Pour reserved
8. batter onto cookie sheet, spread in a 7-8 inch disk
9. Bake crust 25-30 min., disk 20-25 min. cool on wire rack
10. Chop up the disk into 1/8 inch pieces and soak in 1/4 amaretto.
11. Carefully remove crust. Replace bottom of springform with foil wrapped cardboard circle. Replace
12. crust

Amaretto cheesecake filling: 

1. sprinkle gelatin over 1/4 cp amaretto, let stand 5 min. Heat in sauce
2. pan with hot (not boiling) water stirring for 4 min., leave in hot water to stay warm
3. Beat cream cheese in mixer for 1 min. Add lemon juice and zest, mix. Beat cream to soft peaks.
4. Fold 1/3 cream into cream cheese. Fold in remaining whipped cream. Fold in soaked macaroon disk
5. bits
6. Scrape into prepared pan, cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 3 hrs. (preferably overnight)