Chocolate-Irish Cream Cheesecake

Chocolate-Irish Cream Cheesecake
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cooking Time: 50 minutes

If you prefer less liqueur, substitute whipping cream or milk for the liqueur to make up the difference. (This recipe first appeared in Better Homes and Gardens magazine).

1 cup chocolate wafer crumbs (about 18 cookies)*
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 (8 oz) carton dairy sour cream
1 cup sugar
1 (8 oz) package semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
3 eggs
1/3 to 1/2 cup Irish cream liqueur
2 tbsp whipping cream or milk
2 tsp vanilla
Fresh raspberries (optional)
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate pieces, melted (optional)

For crust, in a medium mixing bowl combine crumbs, butter, and cinnamon; toss gently to mix. Spread mixture evenly in the bottom of a 9" or 10" *springform pan; press onto bottom for a firm, even crust. Set pan aside.

For filling, in a large mixing bowl combine cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and the 8 ounces melted chocolate; beat with an electric mixer on medium to high speed till combined. Add eggs all at once. Beat on low speed just till combined. Do not overbeat. Stir in liqueur, whipping cream or milk, and vanilla.

Place pan on a baking sheet. Pour filling into crust. Bake in a 325º F oven for 50 to 60 minutes or till center appears nearly set when gently shaken.

Cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove sides; cool completely. Cover and chill cheesecake for 4 hours or overnight.

Before serving, transfer the cheesecake to a platter. Top with fresh raspberries and drizzle with 1/3 cup melted chocolate, if desired.

*Note: If using the 10" springform pan, add another 1/4 cup chocolate wafer crumbs to the crust.

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Chocolate-Marbled Almond Cheesecake

Chocolate-Marbled Almond Cheesecake

This was a big hit today:

2 cups sugar (I used more like 1-3/4)
4 (8 oz. each) pkg. cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tbsp cocoa
2 tsp. vanilla
1 t.sp almond extract
12 oz. pkg. semisweet chocolate chips, melted
2 oz. blanched almonds, finely chopped

Heat oven to 325ºF. Beat sugar and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Continue beating, adding eggs one at a time, until creamy. Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT chocolate chips and almonds.

Mix well. By hand, fold in melted chocolate, swirling for marbled effect.

Lightly butter 9" springform pan; press almonds firmly on bottom of pan. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 65-75 minutes, until set. Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate 8 hr. or overnight.

Stephanie Klose
(10/31/03)

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Sylvia's Cheesecake Recipes (raspberry goo optional)

Sylvia's Cheesecake Recipes (raspberry goo optional)

Two good recipes, one a standard cheesecake, especially nice with a bit of raspberry goo swirled in the middle before baking (raspberries reduced with a bit of sugar), one a heavier, layered cheese pie that's got to be illegal it's so rich.

Cheesecake

Crust:
1-3/4 cups (1-1/2 pkg) graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts or almonds
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup + butter, melted

9" springform pan

Filling:
3 eggs, beaten
16 oz. cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups sour cream

Pat crust into pan and bake 5 minutes. Mix filling in order given, bake at 350ºF.

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Silver Pie

Crust:
glass pie plate
16 squares graham crackers, crushed
1/4 cup butter, melted

Bake 5 min at 350ºF.

Filling:
3 pkgs. cream cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Pour into crust and bake 20 minutes at 300ºF, then cool 5 minutes.

1 cup sour cream
2 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Stir lightly and spread gently over cream cheese layer. Bake 5 minutes at 300ºF.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill. Best served after 24 hours in the refrigerator.

Sylvia - beadlizard
(3/15/03)

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Denise's Cheesecake Recipe

Denise's Cheesecake Recipe

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup + 3 tbsp. sugar, divided
3 tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
2-1/2 lbs. cream cheese, softened
3 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream

Mix crumbs, 3 tbsp. sugar and butter; make crust, bake at 350ºF for 10 min.

Beat cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, flour and vanilla. Add eggs 1 at a time, mix well. Stir in sour cream, pour over crust. Bake at 350°F for 1 hour, etc.

Denise
(3/15/03)

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3-step Cheesecake (with Neufchatel)

3-step Cheesecake (with Neufchatel)

The 3 step cheesecake from a Philadelphia cheese package sounds a lot like your New York cheesecake and is very simple. It calls for Neufchatel, rather than cream cheese:

1. Mix 1 lb. soft Neufchatel cheese with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 tsp. vanilla, beating with an electric mixer until light. Add 2 eggs and mix until blended.
2. Pour into 1 (6oz). Graham cracker pie crust (store bought).
3. Bake at 350°F for 40 min. or until almost set in the center. Cool and refrigerate for at least 2 hrs.

You can improvise any topping you want.

Maryanne
(5/16/02)

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Not Exactly Junior's Cheesecake

Not Exactly Junior's Cheesecake

It's not exactly Junior's, but it's GREAT.

Make a graham cracker crust and put it in a 9" pie pan.

Beat:
12 oz. cream cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Pour into crust and bake at 350°F degrees for about 30 min. until firm.

Take it out of the oven, and let it cool just a bit while you are beating a small container of sour cream.

Spread the sour cream on top of the cheese cake, return to the oven for 5-10 minutes. Cool, then chill.

Inhale with cherry pie topping.

Step on scale and wince.

Barbara
(5/12/02)

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Lindy's New York Cheesecake

Lindy's New York Cheesecake

Very apropos, since this is cheese cake week for the Jews (Shavuoth). Haven't made this in many years - our aging bodies can probably no longer handle it, but I have fond memories...

I have a note in my cookbook that we usually do a 1/2 recipe, and there are also the calculations for a 1/4 recipe in a "tiny" pan, but what the hell, go for the whole thing:

5 (8oz each) pkgs cream cheese softened

1-3/4 cups sugar

3 tbsp flour

1/2 tsp lemon peel

1/2 tsp orange peel

1/4 tsp vanilla

5 eggs

2 egg yolks

1/4 cup heavy cream

• Combine cheese, sugar, flour, lemon and orange peel, vanilla and beat just to blend.
• Beat in eggs and yolks one at a time.
• Stir in cream.
• Bake at 500º for 10 minutes, reduce to 200º, bake for about an hour until done.

Helps to gradually open the oven door and let the cake cool very gradually, though it will still settle, so it doesn't fall all of a sudden. It will usually have a crack in the top after it cools. This is not a problem.

I think the 10 minutes at 500° degrees was to cook a cookie dough crust originally with the recipe - this was blech, so we usually just use a graham cracker crust. You can top it with cherry pie filling, or glazed strawberries.

This makes a HUGE cheesecake. I don't have a note what.

Joan
(5/12/02)

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Gail's NY-Style Cheesecake

Gail's NY-Style Cheesecake

Crust:
1-3/4 cups mashed graham crackers
1/4 cup chopped nuts (I like hazelnuts)
1/2 cup melted butter

Mix and press into pan.

The Cheesecake is like this:
3 eggs well beaten
2 (8 oz.) cream cheeses
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups sour cream

Mix everything but the sour cream together beat well, slowly fold in the sour cream (alright beat it in like hell), pour into crust and bake at 375°F for 35 minutes. It might feel loose when you take it out of the oven, but it will firm up when you chill it.

gail who is making fudge, Swedish torte, pumpkin pie, and German apple cake who need turkey
(11/19/01)

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Uncle Larry's Cheesecake and Carolyn's Ricotta Pie (cheesecake) Recipes

Two Cheesecake Recipes
Here are two cheesecake recipes, the first from my uncle (which is very good), the second, an Italian cheesecake that I prefer, from my Irish mother-in-law, who cooks like an Italian having been married to one for nearly 60 years.

My Uncle Laurie's Cheesecake, as given to me shortly before his death.  . its really more an outline.  When you see the ingredients, you understand why the man had heart trouble:

Uncle Larry's Cheesecake

Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 stick of butter, melted

Press into a buttered spring form pan (he doesn't specify what size, but I'd go with a 9").

Cheesecake:
6 eggs
a 16 oz container of sour cream
1 cup sugar*
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 (8 oz each) packages cream cheese

Mix above ingredients well with mixer or food processor.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake cheesecake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn oven off and open door one inch from top of oven. Allow cake to set for one hour. Remove from oven, cover with foil and put in refrigerator overnight. Uncle Larry suggested two days in the refrigerator before serving.

He claimed to have gotten this recipe from a famous NYC chef (can't remember who, he did tell me).

*The sugar was left out when the recipe was resubmitted. We do not know if it was a mistake.

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Ricotta Pie


Here is my favorite cheesecake recipe, quite a bit different from the standard, but it is lighter and much easier to make. This is not the revolting Italian cheesecake with candied fruit (blech), this one is very simple, yet extremely delicious and creamy. I it is much more a nice simple vanilla custard pie, and the quality of your ricotta is paramount.  I like a very smoothly blended variety, and have been known to whiz a curdier ricotta around in the food processor before starting.  Do NOT try to make this pie low fat, with skim ricotta, etc.  It will be quite ordinary. Great for vanilla purists, if you use some really good vanilla extract.


Pie pastry for 1 pie crust (homemade is best, but store bought is okay in a pinch). I like to prebake the pie pastry in a 375°F oven for about 10 minutes first. Line the inside with foil, and use pie weights or dried beans to hold it down.


3/4 to 1 cup sugar*

1/2 tsp salt**


2 cups (1 lb) ricotta, preferably the whole milk variety, though you can use part skim if fat conscious, but the pie will not be quite as creamy

1 tbsp lemon juice***
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, beaten (you can get away with 1 egg, and it will be very gooey, but also good)

1 cup milk or use half cream and half milk or Half & Half

a small amount, a shake, of nutmeg


Mix all of the above in mixer or processor, pour into pie shell. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 30 minutes. Lower heat to 350°F, shake on a small amount of nutmeg (don't use a lot), and bake an additional 15 to 25 minutes, until done.  Will be a bit loose in the center, firmer on the outside.


Chill thoroughly before serving. This pie is delicious with a fruit compote on the side.


*The sugar amount was lower in the recipe when sent in again.

**The salt was changed down to a pinch when the recipe was sent in again.

*** or juice of 1/2 a lemon


Carolyn D.
(12/24/00)

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Bailey's Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

Bailey's Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
Yield: 12 Servings
Category: Desserts, Cheesecake
http://www.thedailyrecipe.com

Crust:
2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
6 tbsp butter, melted

Filling:
2-1/4 lb cream cheese, room temp.
1-3/4 cup sugar
5 eggs, room temperature
1 cup Bailey's Irish Cream
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Coffee Cream:
1 cup chilled whipping cream
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp instant coffee powder

Chocolate curls as garnish

For Crust: Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat a 9" springform pan with vegetable cooking spray. Combine crumbs and sugar in pan. Stir in butter. Press mixture into bottom and 1" up the sides of the pan. Bake until light brown, usually about 7 minutes. Maintain oven temperature at 325°F.

For Filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth with and electric mixer. Gradually add sugar, then eggs one at a time, then Bailey's and finally the vanilla. Sprinkle half of the chocolate chips over crust. Spoon in filling. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips. Bake until cake is puffed, springy in the center and golden brown, about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Cool cake completely in refrigerator.

For Cream: Beat cream, sugar and coffee powder until peaks form.

Spread mixture over cooled cake. Garnish with chocolate curls.

Amy
(10/23/00)

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Debbi's New York-style Cheesecake

Debbi's New York-style Cheesecake

1-1/2 cups graham cracker or vanilla wafer crumbs (I prefer graham)
6 tbsp butter, melted
(opt) 1/4 cup ground toasted almonds (pecans are better, but you can any favorite nut)

3 lbs cream cheese, softened
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 tbsp vanilla extract
3 whole eggs
2 egg Yolks
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lemon, minced

Mix in a small bowl the graham or vanilla crumbs, butter and almonds. Pat into a 10 inch springform pan. Bake at 350ºF for 10 minutes, or until golden. Remove from oven and cool. Reduce oven temperature to 300ºF.

Beat until smooth the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Whisk together until fluffy the eggs and egg yolks. Add the cheese mixture, lemon juice and zest. Beat until smooth.

Wrap the bottom of the springform pan in foil. Foil should reach 2/3 of the way up the pan. This is in case the springform pan leaks. Trust me here. Pour the filling into the pan. Tap the pan on the counter top several times to break up the air bubbles. Place the filled springform pan in a roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan up with enough water to reach half-way up the sides of the springform pan.

Place in the 300ºF oven and bake for 1 hour. After 1 hour, rotate the roasting pan so the cakes browns evenly. Be care to not slosh hot water into the cheesecake or burn yourself. Add more water if needed. Bake for an additional 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until a cake tester comes out clean. I check it every half of an hour, since I have a teeny oven.

Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Carefully remove the springform pan from the water and set it on a rack to cool for 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Then, move the cake, still on the rack, into the refrigerator.

Chill overnight, or for at least 8 hours.

PotWench (Debbi)
(2/11/00)

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