Honey Nectarine Cheesecake with Ginger Sour Cream

The perfect balance of late-summer sweetness with a little zing, you are sure to love a slice of this tasty treat! This honey nectarine cheesecake sits atop a graham cracker crust, and is smothered with a tangy ginger sour cream and fresh nectarine pieces.

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If I learned anything from the Golden Girls, it’s that a cheesecake can solve any problem, it’s the perfect choice for any celebration, and you always want to have one on hand. Instead of a basic cheesecake, I decided to amp things up with this version, featuring one of my favorite stone fruits: nectarines.

But this nectarine cheesecake is special for a couple reasons. First, it’s sweetened only with honey throughout. Also, it’s topped with a tangy sour cream spread packed with fresh ginger. That ginger and nectarine combination is really the star in every bite here.

What You Need to Get Started

You can easily find all of the ingredients for this honey nectarine cheesecake at your grocery store:

• Pantry: Graham crackers, Honey
• Fridge: Butter, Cream cheese, Eggs, Sour cream
• Produce: Nectarines, Ginger
• Equipment: Springform pan, Food processor, Stand mixer or hand mixer, Flexible spatula, Microplane zester

Let’s Make a Honey Nectarine Cheesecake

If you are making a cheesecake like this one, which is baked, it can take up a good chunk of time. Luckily, for most of that time, you don’t have to do anything but wait. However, be sure you are starting this recipe the day before you need to serve your cheesecake, and leaving yourself enough time to bake it.

Before getting started, be sure to preheat your oven and check there is a rack in the center. You can also add a parchment round to your springform pan, but that’s optional. It may help with serving later.

Honey Graham Cracker Crust

A good cheesecake starts with a good base, and a graham cracker crust is the traditional way to go. It’s simple and fast, especially if you let the food processor do the hard work of crushing up those graham crackers.

I won’t get into too much detail about making the crust here, since I have a whole guide all about graham cracker crusts. But one difference in this version is that instead of using brown sugar, it’s sweetened with honey. The food processor can also help with the extra stickiness that comes with that swap.

Bake this crust for right around fifteen minutes, until it’s golden brown and dried out. Then you’ll want to set that aside for at least ten minutes while you prepare the filling.

Honey Nectarine Cheesecake Filling

This part is the bulk of your cheesecake, and it’s also pretty easy. Plus, there are only four ingredients total in this cheesecake filling. To get started, you’ll begin mixing the cream cheese and honey together in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. You can also use a hand mixer with beaters, if you prefer.

Cream cheese is the main ingredient in cheesecake, and you’ll be using plenty here. Allowing it to mix up on its own with just the honey gives it a chance to soften up before you add in the rest of the flavors.

I always suggest using full fat, plain cream cheese to make cheesecake. I have not tried this recipe with a flavored version or low-fat version.

When it comes to honey, it not only acts as a sweetener here, but it also adds some flavor. Honey is richer than sugar, and it tends to be a little bit floral or earthy, depending on where it came from. If you can, get some local honey from a nearby farm.

Now let’s move onto the nectarines. You’ll want some that are nice and ripe, with a little give when you hold them in the palm of your hand, but no major soft or bruised spots. Under-ripe nectarines will work here, but they may not add as much sweet flavor or puree quite as smoothly.

You can also swap them out for peaches. However, keep in mind that peaches have a fuzzy skin, whereas the skin of nectarines is smooth and thinner. You may want to peel your peaches first if using them.

Use your food processor or blender on high speed to get a smooth nectarine puree. You don’t want any chunks, since the idea is to mix this into the velvety and uniform cheesecake filling. Be sure to clean out your food processor bowl first if you just used it to make the crust!

Once it’s all processed and smooth, add the puree into the mixer bowl with the cream cheese and honey. Continue mixing on a low speed, incorporating this fruit into the filling. Finally, add in the eggs, and do the same.

Eggs here will help provide structure. Since this cheesecake doesn’t contain any flour, there’s really nothing else to hold it together besides these eggs. They will also help with leavening, providing a little bit of fluffiness.

Bake and Chill the Cheesecake

Transfer the nectarine cheesecake filling into your springform pan on top of the cooled crust. Use a flexible spatula to scrape the mixer bowl and ensure you get all that creamy and fruity goodness. Then spread it into an even layer.

Now, get yourself a nice cup of coffee, a cocktail, or a snack, and settle in, because we are baking this cheesecake for over an hour. Put it into the oven, and take a well-deserved break.

The cheesecake is ready when it’s golden brown on top, and even more so toward the edges. If you give it a light shake, the cheesecake should have only a uniform jiggle in the middle, with the browned edges remaining still. If it jiggles a lot, give it another few minutes to bake.

When you remove the cheesecake from the oven, allow it to cool in the springform pan on a trivet until it’s room temperature. This can be a few hours, so keep enjoying that cocktail. Then, once it’s cooled, you can loosely cover it with foil and chill your nectarine cheesecake in the fridge overnight, or for at least eight hours.

Ginger Sour Cream Topping

I suggest preparing this sour cream topping just before serving your cheesecake, so get started on this after the cheesecake has fully chilled in the fridge. First, use a spoon to peel the ginger, then use a microplane zester to grate it.

Many people like to freeze their ginger before grating it, but I actually like it just fridge-cold here, since the excess liquid helps it mix into the sour cream. Also, if you are not a fan of raw ginger, you can use a little bit of dried, grated ginger instead, or leave it out completely.

Mix the grated ginger, along with just a little bit more honey, into the sour cream. Then spread it on top of your chilled cheesecake, leaving a little bit of a margin around the edges. If it had any cracks in the top after baking, no worries at all, since you are covering those up!

As a finishing touch, add a pretty pattern of fresh nectarine slices. I decided to use a mix of slices and diced pieces for mine, arranging them into a pretty leaf shape. However, you can decorate your cheesecake any way you want, before slicing and serving it.

If you are planning ahead, the completed cheesecake can be stored with or without the sour cream and nectarine toppings, but it will last longer without, about three or four days wrapped tightly in the fridge. With the toppings, eat it within two days.

You can also freeze the cheesecake before topping it for a couple months. Simply let the your cheesecake thaw in the fridge overnight, then prepare the ginger sour cream and fresh nectarines just before serving.

How to Serve Honey Nectarine Cheesecake

Traditionally, cheesecake is a dessert, so you can definitely go in that direction. Serve slices at the end of an al fresco late-summer dinner. If you started the meal with Spiced Apricot Ricotta Toast, that’s even better to keep that stone fruit theme. You could even use a cocktail to tie it all together, like a Bourbon Peach Smash with Brown Sugar.

However, I always like to have some cheesecake for breakfast or brunch too! Serve this sweet version alongside some slices of fresh Brown Butter Peach Avocado Toast with Feta. You could even use either peaches or nectarines in both.

For something with a bit more contrast to the stone fruit, try serving this cheesecake following a basket of Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins and a Tomato and Avocado Omelet with Cheddar. Don’t forget the Caramel Vanilla Iced Latte to wash it all down.

More Tasty Cheesecakes to Try

• No-Bake Butterscotch Cheesecake with Brûlée Topping
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake
• Raspberry Cheesecake Blintzes with Raspberry Sauce
• Butternut Squash Cheesecake with Toffee Sauce
• Easy No-Bake Molasses Cheesecake with Butter Rum Sauce
• Sour Cherry Cheesecake Napoleons (Mille Feuille)
• Savory Cheesecake with Caramelized Onions and Balsamic
• Caramel Apple Cheesecake (No-Bake!)

Special Equipment

• Springform pan
• Food processor
• Stand mixer or hand mixer
• Flexible spatula
• Microplane zester

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• Large orange plate
• Orange striped towel
• Small yellow plate
• Parchment paper
• Kitchen scale
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