Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake

Well it’s obvious I need to work on my swirling-technique. My chocolate swirl cheesecake looks more like a chocolate-studded cheesecake. I call it “the Dalmatian cheesecake”. Looks aside, it’s such a great cheesecake! My biggest issue with store-bought cheesecakes is that often times they’re way too dry, but this home-made pan of goodiness was sooo incredibly moist. Yum! And the dark chocolate really added to the flavor. Rating: 4.5 out of 5.






Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake: The Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook - Allysa Torey & Jennifer Appel

Crust:
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs (forgot to buy it, used regular Graham crackers)

Filling:
- 2 pounds (4 eight-ounce packages) cream cheese, softened
- 1 ¼ cups sugar
- 5 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Topping:
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- To make the crust: In a small bowl, combine the butter with the chocolate wafer crumbs. Press into the bottom of a buttered 10-inch springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on rack.
- To make the filling: In a large bowl, on the low speed of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until very smooth. Gradually add the sugar. Add the eggs one at a time. To ensure that the batter has no lumps and that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom of the bowl, stop the mixer several times, and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Stir in the heavy cream and the vanilla.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and set on a baking sheet.
- To prepare the topping: In a small saucepan over high heat, bring the heavy cream to a simmer. Add the chocolate, turning heat down to low and stirring constantly until chocolate is completely melted. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Drop this mixture by the teaspoonful onto top of batter. Using the tip of a sharp knife, swirl chocolate mixture into batter, forming a decorative pattern.
- Bake until edges are set and center moves only slightly when pan is shaken, about 1 hour. At the end of the baking time, turn off heat, and using a wooden spoon to keep over door slightly ajar, cool cake in oven for 1 hour before removing. Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.
- Remove cake from the refrigerator at least 15-30 minutes before cutting and serving.


This will pull me through the weekend ;-)!