Almond Amaretto Cheesecake is a rich, decadent dessert with a graham cracker crust and a creamy, almond-flavored filling. Top this homemade cheesecake with a layer of toasted almonds, and you’ve got the perfect ending to dinner tonight!
An Easy Cheesecake Recipe Perfect for the Holidays
Making a cheesecake may seem a little scary, but I promise you it’s not that difficult! This Almond Amaretto Cheesecake is totally within your baking abilities, and the finished product is just gorgeous.
This cheesecake is a crowd favorite and looks — and tastes — like you purchased it from a bakery! It’s perfectly dense, as a true cheesecake should be, with a great flavor from the almond extract and amaretto. To top it all off, we drizzle the top with a sweet almond amaretto sauce! This cheesecake tastes even better than it looks!
With the holidays getting closer, it’s always good to have a couple of easy yet decadent dessert recipes on hand. An amaretto and almond cheesecake with almond-caramel sauce definitely qualifies! Bonus points: you can make this cheesecake ahead and have it ready in the fridge!
Serve it at the end of your Thanksgiving feast or Christmas dinner—or both! Nobody at the table will be able to resist digging into a slice of this epic creamy cheesecake, topped with a decadent sauce and some whipped cream!
What is Amaretto?
Amaretto is a sweet, almond-flavored Italian liqueur made from bitter almonds. Usually you can find it in mixed drinks, or even coffee, but today it’s going to help build up the almond flavor in this cheesecake!
The alcohol will be cooked out when you bake the cheesecake, so don’t worry about serving a slice to your kids if you want.
Cheesecake Ingredients
What will you need to make this incredible cheesecake? Gather up the following ingredients:
- Graham Cracker Crumbs: you could also use crushed vanilla wafers.
- Granulated Sugar
- Unsalted Butter
- Salt
- Cream Cheese: let the cream cheese come to room temperature so that it will be easier to mix.
- Eggs
- Amaretto Liqueur
- Vanilla Extract
- Almond Extract: if you want a heavier almond flavor, use a couple more drops of extract.
- Cornstarch
- Sliced Almonds
- Packed Brown Sugar
- Heavy Cream
Optional toppings include whipped cream, maraschino cherries, and additional sliced almonds.
How to Make Amaretto Cheesecake
For the Crust: Place oven racks in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 350° Line a 9-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper (cut to fit), set aside.
Mix: In a medium-sized bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and salt until well combined. Using the bottom of a measuring cup, press crust into the bottom and halfway up the sides of prepared springform pan. Bake for 7 minutes and remove from the oven and set aside.
Adjust: Reduce oven heat to 325°F.
For the Filling: In a large bowl using a hand mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), beat cream cheese with granulated sugar until no lumps remain.
Add: Add eggs, one at a time, beating mixture between each egg, then beat in the amaretto, vanilla extract and almond extract. Add cornstarch and salt and beat until smooth.
Remove Bubbles: Tap the cheesecake batter bowl on the counter for 30-45 seconds to remove as many air bubbles as possible. You should see them popping on the surface as you tap the bowl. Pour filling into the center of the graham cracker crust and gently smooth the top.
Bake: Bake for 30 minutes at 325° Reduce temperature to 250°F and continue baking for another 35 minutes. Once this time has elapsed, turn the oven off and keep cheesecake inside for another 30 minutes, but DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR. After the 30 minutes has passed, crack the oven door open to let cheesecake cool slowly for one hour before removing.
Cool: Allow cheesecake to cool to room temperature on the counter (approximately 3-4 hours) before covering with plastic wrap and transferring to the fridge to chill.
Chill: Refrigerate cheesecake until completely chilled (about 6-8 hours, or overnight). Open springform pan and remove the metal collar.
For the Topping: Preheat the oven to 325°F and spread the almonds on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake them for 7 to 8 minutes or until just fragrant. Remove from oven and set aside.
Heat: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter and brown sugar, stirring often, until smooth. Add the heavy cream and amaretto and bring to a low boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then remove from heat. Stir in toasted almonds. Allow sauce to cool to room temperature before pouring over the cooled cheesecake.
Tips for the Best Cheesecake
Before you get started, read through these tips on the best cheesecake for some extra help:
- Mixing the Filling: if you beat the cream cheese at too high a speed with the mixer, the cake may crack because of the additional air in the batter. To avoid that, often the cream cheese before using it.
- Don’t Over-Bake the Cheesecake: it’s okay if the cheesecake looks a little undercooked in the very center. Crack the oven door anyway, and let the cheesecake begin to cool.
- How to Decorate: Add little swirls of whipped cream to the edges of the cheesecake and sprinkle the top of the whipped cream lightly with a few sliced almonds. Then, add a maraschino cherry on top of each whipped cream peak and pour some of the almond caramel style sauce mixture into the center of the cheesecake.
How to Store Cheesecake
Store this Almond Amaretto Cheesecake by covering it with some plastic wrap, and placing it in the fridge. It will keep for about 5 days in there.
If preparing this cheesecake ahead for an event, I like to store the cheesecake without the sauce or toppings on top. And add those on fresh before I serve the cheesecake to guests.
You can prepare the sauce for on top ahead of time and store it in an airtight container. Reheat it in the microwave, stirring often, and pour it on top of your cheesecake before serving!
How to Freeze a Cheesecake
After the cheesecake has cooled, take the outer rim off of the springform pan and wrap the cheesecake in a few layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. It will not freeze well with toppings, so make sure to hold off on decorating it with whipped cream and cherries. The cheesecake will keep for about 3 months in the freezer.
If you would rather not freeze the cake on the springform pan, line a plate or another flat surface with parchment paper. Place the cheesecake on top of the parchment paper, and cover it with a couple of layers of plastic wrap.
This cheesecake is a show stopper and crowd favorite every time I have made it. It’s perfectly dense, as a true cheesecake should be, with a great flavor. Then the sweet almond amaretto topping poured on top really takes it to a whole next level!
When you try this recipe, please take a picture and share it in the comments below! I would love to see what you whip up!
If you love this Almond Amaretto Cheesecake, make sure to check out the pound cake version too: Almond Amaretto Pound Cake.
Almond Amaretto Cheesecake
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust:
- 1 ¾ cups graham cracker crumbs
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons melted butter
- pinch of salt
Cheesecake:
- 4 (8 oz) blocks cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup amaretto liqueur
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- pinch of salt
Filling:
- 1 cup sliced almonds
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons amaretto
Optional Toppings:
- whipped cream
- maraschino cherries
- additional sliced almonds
Instructions
Crust
- Place oven racks in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper (cut to fit), set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and salt until well combined. Using the bottom of a measuring cup, press crust into the bottom and halfway up the sides of prepared springform pan. Bake for 7 minutes and remove from the oven and set aside.
- Reduce oven heat to 325°F.
Cheesecake
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), beat cream cheese with granulated sugar until no lumps remain.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating mixture between each egg, then beat in the amaretto, vanilla extract and almond extract. Add cornstarch and salt and beat until smooth.
- Tap the cheesecake batter bowl on the counter for 30-45 seconds to remove as many air bubbles as possible. You should see them popping on the surface as you tap the bowl. Pour filling into the center of the graham cracker crust and gently smooth the top.
- Bake for 30 minutes at 325°F. Reduce temperature to 250°F and continue baking for another 35 minutes. Once this time has elapsed, turn the oven off and keep cheesecake inside for another 30 minutes, but DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR. After the 30 minutes has passed, crack the oven door open to let cheesecake cool slowly for one hour before removing.
- Allow cheesecake to cool to room temperature on the counter (approximately 3-4 hours) before covering with plastic wrap and transferring to the fridge to chill.
- Refrigerate cheesecake until completely chilled (about 6-8 hours, or overnight). Open springform pan and remove the metal collar.
Topping
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and spread the almonds on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake them for 7 to 8 minutes or until just fragrant. Remove from oven and setaside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter and brown sugar, stirring often, until smooth. Add the heavy cream and amaretto and bring to a low boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then remove from heat. Stir in toasted almonds. Allow sauce to cool to room temperature before pouring over the cooled cheesecake.
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