Maple Cheesecake

1. Preheat oven to 350?F.Wrap the bottom and sides of a 9 inch spring form cheesecake pan with a double layer of foil. Do this carefully because it will provide the barrier between your cake and the water bath for baking.

for the crust

1. Put the crumbs, nuts, sugar, and melted butter into a food processor and pulse/process until everything is evenly combined and there are no lumps of nuts left.
2. Press the crust evenly into your pan, using the flat bottom of a measuring cup to help firmly press it into the bottom and an inch or so up the sides. Bake for 8 minutes.

for the filling

1. Process the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, salt, and flour in a large food processor until perfectly creamy. Scrape down sides of bowl as necessary.
2. While the machine is running drop in the eggs, one at a time, allowing each to get incorporated before adding the next. Add the maple syrup and process everything until well combined, scraping down the bowl as necessary for a completely creamy consistency.
3. I like to pour the filling through a strainer at this point to remove air bubbles. You can strain it right into the crust (you'll need a helper for this) or you can strain it into a bowl and then pour into your crust. Rap the pan sharply on the counter to release any remaining air bubbles.
4. Put the pan into a larger pan and fill with a couple of inches of boiling water to form a water bath. This will help the cake cook evenly. Carefully move the pan to the oven and bake for 70-75 minutes. The cake should look done around the edges and will be jiggly in the center.
5. Turn the oven off and leave the cake inside for another hour, with the oven door ajar. The cake will finish cooking during this time.
6. Remove cake from oven and water bath. Set on a cooling rack to cool completely.
7. When the cake is completely cooled, cover with a clean dish cloth and refrigerate until chilled or overnight. I leave mine overnight.
8. When ready to serve, slice the cake. I like to dip my knife into very hot or boiling water and wipe dry between each cut for the sharpest slices.
9. Serve the cake with a drizzle of maple caramel sauce, or simply a dollop of whipped cream topped with a dusting of fresh grated nutmeg. Yum.