This recipe was prepared by Chef John Maxwell on Real Virginia, Virginia Farm Bureau’s weekly television program.

Maxwell, a certified executive chef, culinary educator and member of the American Academy of Chefs, shares delicious seasonal recipes in a Real Virginia segment sponsored by Virginia Grown, a program of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Crab and Roasted Pepper Cheesecake

2 pounds cream cheese
¼ cup heavy cream
3 eggs
2 tablespoons minced chives
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
¼ cup flour
4 ounces grated Fontina cheese
4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese, divided
8 ounces roasted, seeded and chopped red peppers
1 pound flaked Virginia crabmeat
¼ cup butter (for springform pan)


Preheat oven to 240°.

Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add heavy cream, eggs and chives, and continue blending. Add mustard, and mix well. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl, and clear the beater bar as needed.

Add flour, and blend well. Add the Fontina and Parmesan cheeses, except 1 ounce of the Parmesan, and blend. Add peppers, but don’t blend too much, to keep the pepper pieces whole. Add the crab meat last, and mix in long enough to just distribute through the mixture.

Butter a 10" springform pan, and sprinkle in the remaining Parmesan, making sure to distribute the cheese across the pan’s bottom and partway up the sides. Fill the pan with the cream cheese mixture, and bake in a water-bath for 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Remove cheesecake from the oven, but do not remove pan from the water bath until it reaches room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.