Yeah......this cheesecake was out of control. Just as B is a crab cake snob, I am a cheesecake snob. I have been grading cheesecakes on a 1-10 scale since I was a young teenager. My favorite cheesecake is a simple New York Style - I don't like fruit toppings or chunks of something else in the cheesecake. In my opinion, simplicity is best. A cheesecake has to have a nice firm crust, not soggy, and a fluffy yet firm filling, not too short, and not so tall that a single bite can't fit on a fork.
In recent years, I have ventured away from my strict plain cheesecake standards, trying flavors such as Pumpkin Ginger cheesecake with gingersnap crusts (a favorite for Thanksgiving), Peppermint cheesecake for the holidays, etc. B suggested a New York cheesecake to finish off our East Coast inspired super bowl menu, so I starting poking around looking for an interesting cheesecake to try.
As soon as I saw this one, I knew it was the one - it is just out of control! B absolutely loves peanut butter cups, so he flipped when he saw the recipe, and I knew I had to make it.
I found the recipe through a cheesecake contest on a different blog (www.culinaryconcoctionsbypeabody.com), and can you believe this recipe didn't even win? I would like to apply to be a judge in next years contest please!
So without further ado:
The original recipe can be found here: http://www.mmmmbrains.com/archives/2007_03.html#001218
Brownie Crust:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter chips
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1-1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 9-inch springform pan with butter.
2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with spoon or wire whisk. Add eggs; stir until well blended. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; blend well. Spread in prepared pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until brownie begins to pull away from side of pan.
4. Immediately after removing brownie from oven, sprinkle milk chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and peanut butter cups over brownie surface.
Cheesecake Filling:
2 lbs cream cheese, softened
5 eggs, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup smooth peanut butter (not natural-style)
1/2 cups whipping cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
6 peanut butter cups, cut into quarters
5. Beat cream cheese in bowl of electric mixer until smooth.
6. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
7. Add sugar, peanut butter and cream; mix until smooth.
8. Stir in vanilla.
9. Pour filling into prepared crust.
10. Double-wrap springform pan with aluminum foil to prevent water seeping in.
11. Place springform pan into a larger baking pan.
12. Pour hot water into the larger pan so that the water comes 1 inch up the sides of the springform pan.
13. Bake at 325 degrees 1-1/2 hours, or until firm and lightly browned.
14. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for one hour.
15. Run a knife along the edge of the cake to loosen it from the pan somewhat.
16. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before decorating. I tend to make cheesecakes a day ahead to let things set.
Decoration:
6 peanut butter cups, cut carefully in half
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter cups
17. Remove cake from pan and put on a pretty plate.
18. Bring whipping cream to boil in a small saucepan.
19. Remove from heat and add semi-sweet and peanut butter chips. Stir, stir, stir until melted and smooth.
20. Drizzle over cake and then add peanut butter cup halves around the edge of the cake.
The recipe noted that there was a lot of extra filling, so I made a 10 inch cheesecake and a 4 inch mini cheesecake, and divided the batter among both. I also made half of the decoration, as the recipe noted this was more than needed for decoration. I also skipped the water bath step, and just baked in the oven.
I'm not sure if it was because I omitted the water bath, or if it's because my cheesecake was bigger, but I had to bake a little longer than the directions because it was still liquid in the center. We found the cheesecake to be on the dry side, perhaps this is due to my cooking it too long. However, it's definately a show stopper, and I will make this again (and try a water bath next time!).
The mini cheesecake came out perfectly, and will be shipped to Georgia as a surprise for my parents.
1 comment:
goodness!!
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