Apricot Cheesecake

Total Time: 6 hrs 20 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 6 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 16
• 2 cups finely crushed butter cookies or 2 cups you could use graham crackers
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1 (15 1/4 ounce) can unpeeled apricot halves
• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 1 (10 ounce) jar apricot jam
• 1/4 cup apricot nectar

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 325.
• 2 combine cookie crumbs and melted butter and press evenly on the bottom and 2" up the sides of a 9" springform pan.
• 3 bake 8-10 minutes or'til golden brown and set aside.
• 4 drain apricot halves reserving 3 tablespoons of the syrup.
• 5 coarsely chop the apricots and set aside.
• 6 in a large bowl beat the cream cheese, sugar, reserved apricot syrup and vanilla with a mixer'til combined.
• 7 add eggs all at once beating on low speed just'til combined.
• 8 stir in chopped apricots.
• 9 pour filling into prepared crust and place on a shallow baking pan in the oven.
• 10 bake about 50 minutes or'til center appears nearly set when cheesecake is gently shaken.
• 11 cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then loosen crust from sides of pan and cool cheesecake 30 minutes more.
• 12 remove the sides of the pan and cool completely.
• 13 for the glaze melt apricot spread in a small saucepan over low heat.
• 14 remove from heat, stir in the apricot nectar and spread over the cheesecake.
• 15 cover and chill in refrigerator at least 4 hours before serving.