How about a little somethin' to go with that
raspberry sauce?
How about Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with a Chocolate Cookie Crust? Oh, yeah.
One really nice part about finally living in the same city as my sister is that when it's her birthday, I get part of the cake. {I mean, that's not the
only reason I like having her here.}
She wanted birthday cheesecake and I couldn't have been happier.
Let's start with the crust.
Chocolate Cookie Crust1 & 3/4 c. crushed chocolate wafers
4 TBSP melted butter
4 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. coarse salt
Combine all ingredients. Press into the bottom of a 9" springform pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Let cool completely.
{I used (chocolate) Oreos...just the cookie part...for the wafers because, well, they're cheaper than chocolate wafers and I knew there would be extras. What you do with the creamy centers is your business.}
Vanilla Bean Cheesecake{modified version of Classic Cheesecake from The King Arthur Flour Baking Companion}
3 (8 oz) pkgs. cream cheese, room temp.
1 & 1/2 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. coarse salt
4 eggs
3 TBSP freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 TBSP
vanilla bean paste1 c. sour cream, full fat
1/2 c. heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 325.
On low speed, beat the cream cheese until no lumps remain; scraping down the sides as needed. Add the sugar and salt and beat until combined. Add the eggs one at a time until the mixture is smooth before adding the next egg. Scrape the bottom of the bowl after each addition.
Stir in the lemon juice, vanilla bean paste, sour cream and heavy cream until smooth.
Pour onto the cooled crust and bake 50 minutes or so until the edges are set and the cheesecake is a light golden brown. The middle will still jiggle when the pan is shaken.
Turn off the oven, crack the door and let the cheesecake cool in the oven for 1 hour. (This helps prevent cracking.) The center will finish setting in the oven.
After 1 hour, remove the cheesecake from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the pan.
{Doing this allows the cheesecake to contract as it cools without pulling off the side and cracking.}
Refrigerate overnight and serve with
raspberry sauce (or plain, or with chocolate sauce).
You might start spooning the
raspberry sauce onto the cheesecake,
but I say....go for the pour!
Happy birthday to my beautiful sister, Molly! Thanks for sharing your cake with us! :)
Related posts:
{Oh...and
Flavor-of-the-Month *Chocolate Edition* linky will be up on Sunday!}
WooHoo!! Happy Friday!! It's time for a new Wags 'n Whiskers challenge, and this week the talented Inge said it's Freestyle week!! I have been just waiting to use this beautiful image of Ansley in prayer. Oh my goodness, she's so pretty! I just think she's amazing for so many things. A first Communion card, a "your in my thoughts and prayers" card, a Sympathy card, a Baptism card, and the list goes on and on. She's colored with Copic markers, cut out, and then popped up with dimensional tape.
Please be sure and visit the Wags 'n Whiskers challenge blog to see the gorgeous creations the rest of the WnW Design Divas came up with! What a talented bunch of ladies! And then we'd love it if you'd join us in the challenge as well. Remember in order to win, you must use a Wags 'n Whiskers image! And if you don't have any yet, then what the heck are you waiting for! Thanks for stopping by to see me today and hope to see you back again soon! Hugs!!
We just can't get enough of the feminine treasures from this one-of-a-kind Etsy shop. We came across Cire' Rosenbaum and her shop, Miss C. Alexandria a few months ago. It is the perfect place for accessory-aholics and basically anyone who loves oh so pretty things. 
