Cheesecake may just be the perfect food.  It is certainly one of the oldest on record.  It is believed that cheesecake was served to the Olympic athletes during the first Olympic games in 776 B.C.  Any food with that kind of staying power just has to have something to it.

Perhaps it’s the ability of cheesecake to be modified in so many ways. Cheesecake is adaptable.  It can be made in any number of different flavors and textures, from light and fluffy with a hint of vanilla to incredibly dense and savory, the cheesecake has been with us since the beginning of Western history and I’m pretty sure it’s not going to be leaving us very soon, especially with flavors like the ones in the cake pictured above.

My guests for Christmas requested only three things.  Turkey, ham and a chocolate cheesecake.  That’s a simple request if I’ve ever heard one and I was happy to oblige.  Initially I was going to make a simple chocolate cheesecake, but the gift of 8 oz. of German milk chocolate and the thought of my favorite coffee drink made me decide to go in a different direction.  It turned out to be a fated decision, as this is by far the best tsting chocolate cheesecake I’ve had to date.

I had picked up Coffee Liqueur and Creme De Cacao with the intention of posting the recipe for my cafe mocha (coming soon) and the smell of the cheesecake batter reminded me of that drink, so a few quick additions to the custard were all it took to turn what I’m sure is a phenomenal recipe into something extraordinary.

Chocolate Cafe Mocha Cheesecake

Ingredients:

For Cheesecake:

• 1 1/2 cups crushed Oreo Cookies (about 20 cookies)
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 24-oz cream cheese (3 packages), softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 8 oz. milk chocolate, melted, slightly cooled
• 3 eggs
• 1 tbsp. Creme De Cacao
• 1 tbsp. Coffee Liqueur

For Ganache Topping:

• 8 oz. dark chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp. Creme De Cacao
• 1 tbsp. Coffee Liqueur

Method:

Cheesecake:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees if using a silver 9″ springform pan or to 300 degrees if using a dark nonstick 9″ springform pan.  Mix crushed cookies and butter; press firmly onto bottom and sides of pan.  Bake 10 minutes, remove and allow to cool.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, Creme De Cacao and Coffee Liqueur with electric or stand mixer on medium speed until well blended.  Add chocolate and mix well.  Add eggs, one-at-a-time, mixing on low speed until just blended.  Pour over crust.

Bake 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set.  Run a sharp knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake. Cool to room temperature before removing rim of pan.  Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight before topping.

Ganache icing:

Place chocolate chips in a small heat proof bowl. heat cream in a small saucepan over low heat until just boiling.  Immediately pour cream over chocolate.  Allow to stand for 5 minutes.

Mix well with a wire whisk or silicone spatula.  Add Creme De Cacao and Coffee Liqueur, stir to combine well.  Refrigerate at least 45 minutes or until ganache is stiff but not set.

Assembly:

Remove ganache from refrigerator and allow to stand at room temperature for at least 15 minutes.  Stir to loosen slightly. Remove cheesecake from refrigerator and level the top with a very sharp knife if necessary.

Gently spread ganache icing from center of cheesecake to edges. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.

Share and Enjoy!

What I would have done differently had I thought of it at the time:

I think I managed to overcook this cake a little.  The sides puffed up a good inch higher than the center, which made the icing a necessity once the cake was leveled.  It was a happy accident though.  The ganache icing adds an entirely new dimension to the already rich flavor of this cheesecake that we all enjoyed very much.

You’ll want to be sure to serve this one just slightly chilled or at room temperature.  Straight from the refrigerator the coffee liqueur is a bit overpowering, but it mellows and plays nice with everything else at room temp.

Be warned, this is a very dense cheesecake and it doesn’t slice “pretty”  Just overlook that and go for it anyway.  It’s more than worth it!

Links to other recipes like this:

• Chocolate Cheesecake, from Closet Cooking
• Plum Crazy Chocolate Cheesecake, from InnCuisine
• Chocolate Almond Cheesecake, from Kelly at Sass & Veracity

Popularity: 4% [?]

When we invited our friends over for Christmas this year, I only asked for one thing.  I asked for the apple pie pictured above and the recipe that went with it.  The fact that the pie dish pictured was also given to us was a bonus (and a very nice one, thanks guys!) but the real gift is a pie that I will gladly make and share with friends and family for the rest of my life.

I know I say this all the time, but the simple things in life are usually the best.  This hods true with food as well.  Overcomplicating a recipe usually does little to enhance the flavors of the food, it just adds extra steps that are not necessary. (There are, of course, times when this rule does not hold true, but this is not one of those cases.)

This has to be just about the simplest recipe for a German apple pie I have ever seen.  There’s no fuss, nothing picky or finicky, just a good-solid recipe that tastes far better than you would expect for the ingredients used.  In my opinion this is true perfection.

I know that statement may ruffle a few feathers.  Everyone has their own favorite apple pie recipe.  Of those, I’m sure that 99% would be a pie that I would enjoy as well.  But for me, Brie’s German Apple Pie is quite simply the pie I will crave whenever I think of apple pie in the future.  I’ve been spoiled, but I’m not complaining.

The recipe as given to m is only for the pie filling.  I’m not sure if she made her own crust or if she used a prepared crust, so I’ll leave that decision up to you.  If you’re bent on making your own pie crust, the best recipe I’ve ever seen for one is here. I am not a baker by nature, so if my wife wants to make a crust from scratch, great!  If not, I’ll use what I can get.  With this filling adorning it, it could be shoe leather, I really wouldn’t care.

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Popularity: 26% [?]

Is there really an more perfectly simple topping or dipping sauce than caramel?  In its purest incarnation caramel is nothing more than sugar that has been heated until deeply browned, but the transformation is enough to bring out deep flavors and subtle overtones that simply can’t be found in any other form of sugar. With the addition of a few simple flavorings this humble mix of melted sugar and water can take on sweet, savory or succulent flavors and it plays with each very well.

In this instance we were looking for a sweet caramel sauce for a few desserts.  My wife found this recipe at Martha Stewart’s website and we both thought it would be a perfect fit to some of the other flavors we were going into the mix, so we gave it a shot.

It’s fabulous.  Really.  I can’t say how fabulous. I’ll admit that I upped the butter content over the version at Martha’s site, but I prefer a very rich caramel. (I may have added a bit more bourbon than listed as well.  OK, A tablespoon more… But this has a tendancy to cause the sauce to thicken a bit overmuch, so I don’t reccomend it.)

If you’re going to take the leap and try just once in your life and attempt to make your own caramel sauce, this is the one you should try!  No really, go make this right now.  I’ll wait….

Good, isn’t it?

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Popularity: 3% [?]

Who doesn’t love cheesecake? If made properly it is decadent, creamy, fluffy and just sweet enough to satisfy the cravings of any sweet tooth. It can be made in a variety of flavors, and toppings are always welcome. It plays well with others and finds its place easily as the star dessert at back yard barbecues and five star restaurants.  It’s just that good. The only problem with it is that I have a tendency to eat way too much of one kind and don’t have room to sample others. This little recipe solves all that.

These mini cheesecakes are tiny.  They are perfect for appetizers or if served in all of their possible variations, as a perfect dessert sampling menu. Go crazy with toppings and you could serve a seven course dessert without breaking a sweat. Trust me, the Oooh’s and Ahhhs you’ll get will be worth the effort.

The inspiration for them came from a recipe by Giada DeLaurentis, but as usual, I found Giada’s original version somewhat uninspired.  Oh, they were good, but they weren’t jaw dropping, and they were more labor intensive than this variation. The original called for orange zest, but for my tastes it just didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, so i swapped out for vanilla.  The results were superb.

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Popularity: 4% [?]

Just in case you weren’t aware, the pecan is the state tree of Texas, and around here pecan pies are what people think of first when the word pie is used. I may not be a native Texan, but I’ve had a love of these pies all my life. My Grandma Rosemary made a wicked mean pecan pie. (And a to-die-for German chocolate cake…)

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a pretty big apple pie fan as well. But to be honest, I prefer an apple crumble or a Dutch apple pie to the more common varieties. Pears I detest no matter what, and berry pies, though good, simply don’t make me go “Oooooh!” when I see them. Not true the pecan pie.

I will avoid eating the last bit of a good dinner to save room for these. Please, don’t top it with anything, add sugar, ice cream or anything whipped. This pie asks nothing of you other than to consume and enjoy, something I am most happy to oblige.

I hope you try these little gems and enjoy!

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Popularity: 2% [?]