Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 132.
Maida has a lot of cheesecake recipes and I'm surprised I'm just now getting around to making one. This one immediately caught my eye because it is so unique. As Maida says in her introduction, it is not difficult at all and your friends will be amazed. It is also very creamy and delicious!
First of all, it is recommended that you use a round cheesecake pan measuring 8 x 3 inches. I only have a 9" springform pan so I used that. I think the polka-dot effect would be more noticeable if I had used the smaller pan (and the cake would have been taller).
Also a note about the crust. The recipe calls for you to make the cake without the crust and apply the graham cracker crumbs with your hand after the cake has finished baking. This sounds like a huge kitchen mess waiting to happen so I made the traditional cheesecake crust that I normally do (see below). Aside from the crust, I followed the recipe exactly.
Ingredients:
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
2 lbs. cream cheese, softened (use Philadelphia brand)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
Adjust oven rack to lowest position in the oven and preheat to 350. Butter an 8x3 cheesecake pan (or springform pan) all the way up the rim. A larger pan will be also be needed for the water bath as the cake is baking. Set aside.
Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot water on low heat. Set aside. |
Remove the bowl from the mixer and place 2 cups of the mixture in a separate bowl. Add the melted chocolate and mix well (you can use a hand mixer for this). |
Spray the buttered cake pan with nonstick spray and pour in the light-colored mixture (not the chocolate mixture). |
The top of the cake will not be smooth and level but it will level during baking.
If using a springform pan, wrap it in foil. Set the pan inside the larger pan and add hot water about 1 - 1 1/2 inches high. Bake for 1 1/2 hours (90 minutes). |