Do you ever have one of those days, where nothing goes right in the kitchen? No? Well, Saturday was that day for me. As I sat in my smoke-filled house, wishing the day’s baking had turned out differently, I decided to go forward and share this post. (And when I said smoke-filled house, I meant the WHOLE house. We have a very open floor plan…no room was safe here.)
I don’t believe the fault was in the recipe, rather the preparer of it. I guess I was just having an “off” day. I hate those days. Those days make you feel like a failure, even though you know it’s not you. It probably didn’t help matters that my dear, sweet hubby made the comment that the cheesecake would probably have a funny taste since it was in the smoke-filled oven. Really? Did you not think that thought had not already entered my mind?!!? His next comment was he thought he needed to go back down to the shop to finish working on the mower. (I really think it might have been the look I gave him. No words were necessary, just the look.) Funny how men sense when they’ve said the wrong thing at the wrong time. 😉
Needless to say, after I moved the cheesecake to the other oven to finish baking, in hopes of preventing the smoke smell from penetrating what I had hoped to be a delicious dessert, I set my oven to clean and again, dealt with the plume of smoke billowing out for the second time in one evening. I also lit some candles to try and cover the smell. And opened 9 windows. Yes, I said 9 windows. You can never have too many windows open when your house is filled with smoke. 🙁
Anyway, the cheesecake finished baking and the oven kept cleaning, and I took a shower, anxious to wash away the smoke smell. And yesterday, I removed the cheesecake from the fridge to find it had set up just fine. Ah, a new day.
So, for this week’s Monday’s Mystery Recipe, I’m sharing Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake, from Diane Mott Davidson’s, The Last Suppers. I had a little trouble with the crust, but that was my own doing, not the author’s. And, I saw the perfect opportunity to use some of the Amaretto soaked cherries I canned back in September to make a simple Amaretto cherry glaze. (The recipe for the soaked cherries is from Jen at My Kitchen Addiction.)
- For the Crust:
- 12 oz. chocolate cookie crumbs
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
- For the Filling:
- 8 oz. unsweetened chocolate
- 24 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup Amaretto liqueur
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- For the Amaretto Cherry Glaze:
- 1 pint jar Amaretto Soaked Cherries
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- Place your chocolate cookies in a food processor and mix until fine crumbs form. Add the melted butter and press into a greased 10-inch springform pan.
- Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes or until you are ready to use.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Melt the chocolate over low heat, either in the microwave or using a double-boiler. Allow to cool.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the cream cheese until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add in the sugar and mix well.
- Slowly add in a small amount of the cream cheese mixture to the melted chocolate to help prepare it for mixing. Then add that chocolate mixture into the mixing bowl with the remaining cream cheese mixture and mix until combined.
- Add in the Amaretto, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream. Mix well.
- Remove crust from the refrigerator and pour batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until the cheesecake is puffed in the middle and no longer jiggles.
- Cool completely, then refrigerate until chilled, preferably overnight.
- Remove cheesecake from the refrigerator about 30 minutes prior to serving.
- Remove the springform pan and cut into slices. Serve with Amaretto Soaked Cherry Glaze.
- Directions for the Glaze:
- Pour 1 pint jar of Amaretto Soaked Cherries into a 2-3 quart sauce pan. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and stir to dissolve.
- Heat until cherries begin to thicken. (Think store-bought canned pie filling.) Once thickened, remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Serve over Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake or refrigerate until ready to use.
What a gorgeous cheesecake! LOVE it!
Thank you! I just loved the way the red cherries stood out against the dark chocolate.
Looks absolutely delicious! Worth smoking the house out for it! 🙂
Indeed it was! 😉 Thank goodness it turned out!
OOOOOOO, Looks FANTASTIC !!! I would volunteer to taste test that for ya
This looks so amazing!! Love the chocolate + cherry combo 🙂
Thanks!!!
Heck yes! Sunday, this past weekend, was that day for me when everything on the kitchen front just collapsed.
Thank God for pizza and iced-coffee. That’s what I recuperated with, but I see you have a much better way! That cheesecake is stunning!
I made this for my husbands birthday and it was crazy!! I was so worried I would mess it up but following your directions was so easy and it turned out wonderful!! Super rich though so little pieces were a good idea…thank you soo much!
You are very welcome! 🙂
Soooo glad you noted how the chocolate siezed up when the batter is added. I would have panicked. It did sieze and it did smooth out. I baked in a water bath for 45 min and it was perfect! Loved the super chocolate flavor and the mousse-like texture.
Yummy
I would love to make this for Thanksgiving this year…is there an easy way to make the soaked cherries without making the canned batch (especially since it is hard to find fresh cherries right now?)
Hi Angie!
You could definitely cut the original batch size down from 4 pints to 1 and just refrigerate your cherries until ready to use, versus canning them. The canning process is only for preservation, so that’s what I would do. I would follow the instructions, but instead of processing, add the cornstarch to help thicken into the glaze. Be sure the liquid is cool before adding the cornstarch to prevent lumps. Let me know if you have other questions! Thanks!
This looks amazing! I would love to try this but honestly, I’m a bit intimidated by the amaretto cherries canning process. Do you get these ready at the store? Would you suggest any alternate toppings/glazes that taste just as good and pair just as well with a dense chocolate cheesecake like this one, but would be easier to make or buy? Thanks!
Oh, please don’t be intimidated by the Amaretto cherries! They are really quite simple, but if you prefer not to go through that process, you could just make a simple cherry glaze with sweet cherries from the store. Adjusting the original recipe, you could try 2 cups sweet cherries, 1/2 cup sugar, 2/3 cup water, 1 Tbsp cornstarch, and 1 Tbsp of Amaretto. I would add everything except the Amaretto to a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil. I would boil for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken. Once the consistency is how you like it, I would add the Amaretto. A tablespoon isn’t enough to really change the final consistency and hopefully, you’ll still get a bit of the Amaretto flavor. Sorry it took so long to reply…hope that helps!
I love chocolate and I love cherries. This is a great dessert. I featured it on my Friday Five – Cheesecake addition over @Feed Your Soul Too – http://www.feedyoursoul2.com/2014/08/friday-five-cheesecake-addition.html