Challenge Accepted: Durian Fruit (Cheesecake!)

It was a moment of "what in the hell have I gotten myself into" when my first challenge was presented, and it was the one food my better half has ever described as vomit inducing. And he has knowingly eaten cat food. The durian fruit is extremely pungent: it cannot be sold fresh and can land you with a stiff fine for bringing it into a hotel. The texture is rich and creamy, while the flavor resembles a couple of other fruits and onion. It smells like garbage and farts. Based on all of the descriptions I heard and read, I decided to treat it like a spice: use sparingly and dilute with lots of dairy. Too bad it was only sold in one-pound packages.

There are numerous recipes for durian ice cream out there, but as it is the second coldest February on record in frost-bitten Vermont, I opted for cheesecake instead. If you don't want your whole house to stink, I would suggest altering this recipe by substituting banana or mango for the durian.

For the Crust
4 cups vanilla wafers
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 tsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients in a blender and pulse until it all comes together. Press into the bottom of a springform pan and bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

For the Cheesecake
1 can coconut milk (full fat), divided
2 TBS honey or agave nectar
12 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup pureed durian (or some other fruit - save yourself!)
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp banana extract
2 TBS sugar
Coconut flakes
Coarse sugar
1 TBS fresh ground ginger (look for it in a jar near produce)
2 TBS brown sugar
1 banana, sliced (optional)

Combine all of the coconut milk and honey/agave in a saucepan and simmer 10 minutes until reduced and thick. Allow to cool until you're tired of waiting and it's not burning you when you stick your finger in it.

Beat cream cheese to incorporate air. Add just under a cup of the cooled coconut milk and continue to beat until the cream cheese loses all of its lumps. Put a clothes pin on your nose and add durian/other fruit, eggs, sour cream/yogurt, extracts, sugar, and blend together.

Pour into crust and bake at 325 for 1:15 or until the edges are brown and cracks appear throughout. After 30 minutes, sprinkle the top with coconut flakes and coarse sugar.

While it bakes, combine the remaining coconut milk with fresh ground ginger and brown sugar. Heat on low for 5 minutes and stir until incorporated. Pan-fry the banana over medium-high heat until brown and caramelized on each side.

When the cheesecake is done, cool until you can safely remove the sides of the springform pan without burning yourself, then top the cheesecake with bananas and coconut ginger sauce. Eat as quickly as possible, pawn it off on your friends, or just throw it in the face of someone you don't like.

I will not be making this again unless with other fruit or as a weapon. However given the nature of durian, I think it was as successful as it could have been.

Props to Skittlez for being enough of a troll to give me durian, but enough of a friend to help see this madness through in the safest manner possible. Now excuse me while I go buy a giant Glade candle or twelve.