Savory Crawfish Cheesecake

This is a recipe we wanted to try since seeing it in New Orleans. It was out of this world and about 100 times better than I could have imagined! It turned out huge too. The picture here is before it was sliced and topped with the corn.

1/3 cup bread crumbs
1 cup Parmesan cheese
4 oz butter, melted
2lbs cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
2/3 cup cream
1 cup smoked Gouda cheese, grated
1 cup onion, medium diced
½ cup green pepper, medium diced
½ cup yellow bell pepper, diced
½ cup red bell pepper, diced
1 lb alligator sausage, diced
¼ cup green chili pepper, diced
1 lb crawfish tail meat
2 tspn salt
1 tspn chipotle powder
½ tspn black pepper
½ tspn white pepper
1 lemon

• Mix bread crumbs and cheese; add butter and press into a 10" springform pan.
• Bake 10 minutes in a 350°F oven to set crust.
• Whisk the cream cheese until smooth; add eggs and whisk; then add cream and the Gouda cheese.
• Sauté veggies with spices until soft. Add crawfish and cook until just done.
• Add sausage and chili pepper, and fold into cream cheese mixture. Zest lemon and use juice too.
• Wrap foil around pan to prevent leakage and fill pan with mix. Cover top and bottom of pan in case of leakage - add vent holes
• Bake in water bath in a 450°F oven for 1½ to 2 hours. 
• Remove when an inserted knife comes out clean and the filling is set. 
• Cool before cutting. Remove from spring mold, cut into 12 pieces  

You can find more great recipes from our friends at the Village Bakery.