cakes

cakes

Rich Ice Cream and Coffee Cheesecake

I don’t love coffee. If I wanted something scalding, bitter, and hard to swallow, I’d google the Carolina Panthers’ season record. Ha ha.

Yeah, that’s one of those jokes that’s kind of more sad than funny. Oh well.

My mother (yes, of cross stitching birthday party fame) used to feel certain that I would acquire an affinity for coffee as I got older. Periodically she would test this hypothesis, urging me to take a sip from her cup or buying me something frothy and caramely at Starbucks, only to find that things weren’t unfolding as she anticipated.

What can I say? Coffee is gross.

I could load it up with sugar and cream (and donuts — can you do that?) and probably choke it down, but if I’m going to ingest that many calories, I’d rather just have some dessert.

Paradoxically, despite my antipathy towards coffee in its beverage form, I’ve always loved coffee-flavored confections. Coffee ice cream was my absolute favorite treat as a little girl, for instance. Coffee also plays an Oscar-worthy supporting role in Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake, one of my current faves. I adore the coffee-brownie combination in my Ice Cream Cupcakes. You get the idea.

And besides all those things, I’m in love with this cheesecake. IN LOVE. Like, buy it a ring, get down on one knee, drag it to the altar kind of love. It might be one of the best cheesecakes I’ve ever made. Basically: swoon.

For one thing, it has the perfect ratio of rich coffee cheesecake to cold ice cream (oh, and did I mention the layer of fudgy ganache in there as well?). For another thing, the ice cream flavor I chose rocked the Casbah.

I considered coffee or chocolate ice cream, but decided that might be too rich. I also knew I wanted brownie chunks. Ben & Jerry’s makes a Cheesecake Brownie ice cream that fit the bill (how perfect is that, seriously?)

Apart from inspiring a matrimonial sort of adoration in me, this cheesecake is one of the easiest I’ve ever put together. It’s as simple as baking and cooling your cheesecake, softening up your favorite ice cream, and spreading it on top. Freeze the whole thing until it’s firm, cut it with a hot knife, and then call up the preacher. That’s about how it goes.

What ice cream flavor would you like to spread all over your coffee cheesecake?

Rich Ice Cream and Coffee Cheesecake


Recipe by: Willow Bird Baking
Yields: 15 servings

Crust Ingredients:
37 chocolate sandwich cookies, finely processed into crumbs
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt

Ganache Ingredients:
3/4 cups heavy cream
10 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I combined both)

Filling Ingredients:
3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoons instant coffee granules
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons mild-flavored (light) molasses
3 large eggs

Topping:
Ice cream of your choice (I used Ben & Jerry’s Cheesecake Brownie ice cream)
dark chocolate candies of your choice for decorating (I used Ferrero Rondnoir)

Directions:
To make the crust, butter a 9-inch springform pan. Combine the chocolate cookie crumbs, melted butter and salt in a small bowl. Toss with a fork to moisten all of the crumbs. Press into a thin layer covering the bottom and sides of the springform pan (at least 3 inches up the sides). I did this using a smooth glass to press crumbs into place.

Bring the cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Place the chocolate in a medium bowl. Once the cream reaches a simmer, pour the cream over the chocolate and let stand 1-2 minutes. Whisk in small circles until a smooth ganache has formed. Pour 1.5-2 cups of the ganache over the bottom of the crust (if you have leftover, save it for eating or decorating with later). Freeze until the ganache layer is firm, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F and position a rack in the middle of the oven. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Beat in the flour. In a small bowl, combine the coffee granules, vanilla and molasses, stirring until the coffee dissolves. Add to the cream cheese mixture and beat until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between each addition.

Pour the filling over the cold ganache in the crust. Enclose the bottom of the springform pan in tightly wrapped foil and place it in a baking dish. Fill the baking dish with hot water about halfway up the cheesecake pan, careful not to let the moisture touch the cheesecake. Bake until the top is lightly browned, puffed and cracked at the edges, and the center moves only very slightly when the pan is lightly shaken, about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire cooling rack. Let cool at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator and let cool at least 3 hours, until completely chilled and set.

Soften ice cream of your choice (I used Ben & Jerry’s Cheesecake Brownie ice cream) for 10-15 minutes or until soft enough to spread. Scoop out a few big scoops onto the top of your cheesecake and spread with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Add more ice cream until it’s flush with the top of your crust. Freeze cake until solid (overnight is best). Decorate with dark chocolate candies of your choice (I used Ferrero Rondnoir). Slice with a knife held under hot water to serve. Keep in freezer when not serving — it melts quickly.

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Birthday Cake Cheesecake

At 26-going-on-27, I’ve grown to love birthdays that feel like deep crow-footed, cheek-hurting smiles, that sound like clanging dishes and brassy laughter.

On birthdays, I need my family. We need a table to sit around to hold our leaning elbows. We need food, we need each other, but that’s all.

For children, though, birthdays have to involve some sort of event. Kids want to scarf down plasticky pizza, be mildly terrorized by an oversized animatronic mouse playing a banjo, and wallow in a germy ball pit. Or they want to light tiki torches, drink pineapple punch, and marco polo around a swimming pool until their fingers are wrinkly.

When I was little, my mom convinced me that I wanted to throw a cross-stitching birthday party.

Naturally, the most direct avenue to popularity among your elementary school friends is to invite them to something called a “party” and proceed to introduce them to the pastime of 70-year-old ladies everywhere.

When my birthday rolled around, my unsuspecting friends gathered around the coffee table and listened intently to the plan. Our goal was to pick a pattern and each cross-stitch a bookmark before cake and gifts. We dutifully chose the our favorite design, fussed with threading our needles, and got to work.

Well, turns out cross-stitching requires quite a bit of time. And, like, patience and stuff. Things that are in short supply for kids at birthday parties.

My friends faded fast. Soon we were stuffing our faces with cake, our half-finished bookmarks languishing in the needle-and-thread strewn living room.

Oh well. As long as there’s cake, right?

In that spirit, boy do I have a cake for you. This particular cake is an explosion of birthdayness. A “Funfetti” cheesecake on a vanilla wafer crust is topped with a layer of Funfetti cake, a layer of cake batter cookie dough, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and a cherry. Every layer contributes a little bit of birthday joy. The final product is scrumptious and outrageously festive.

I have more ridiculous birthday stories from when I was a child, because apparently it was impossible for me to have a normal, uneventful birthday party. But I’ll spread the love and save those for later. In the meantime, have some cake.

Describe one of your favorite (or least favorite) childhood birthday memories.

Birthday Cake Cheesecake


Recipe by: Willow Bird Baking, with chocolate sauce adapted from Bakers Royale
Yield: 24 mini cheesecakes or 1 full-sized cheesecake

Crust Ingredients:
45 vanilla wafers, finely processed into crumbs
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt

Cheesecake Ingredients:
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cake mix
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon sprinkles
1 Funfetti cake mix (or homemade yellow cake with sprinkles mixed in), prepared and baked in thin layers
melted chocolate (for topping)
whipped cream (for topping)
maraschino cherries (for topping)

Cake Batter Cookie Dough Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup yellow cake mix
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons sprinkles
4-8 tablespoons water

Chocolate Pouring Sauce:
2/3 cups dark chocolate
2 tablespoons heavy cream
4 tablespoons powdered sugar, sifted
4-5 tablespoons water, warm

Directions:
Note on Scheduling: This is a great recipe to make over the course of a few days. You can make the Funfetti cake one day and freeze it, make the cookie dough disc another day and freeze it, make the cheesecake one day and refrigerate it, and then make your chocolate pouring sauce and assemble on the day you’ll serve the dessert.

Prepare your Funfetti cake: Mix and bake in 9-inch round cake pans according to box instructions and set aside to cool. Make one of these a pretty thin layer of cake — this will be the one you use on your cheesecake (be careful; a thinner layer will bake for less time). The other layer is extra; I tore mine up and froze it for future cake balls. After cooling, freeze your cake layer — it’s easier to work with when frozen.

Prepare your cheesecake: To make the cheesecake crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two mini or one full-sized cheesecake pan. Combine the cookie crumbs, melted butter and salt in a small bowl. Toss with a fork to moisten all of the crumbs. Press into a thin layer covering the bottom of your cheesecake pan(s).

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Beat in the flour and cake mix. Add in the vanilla and beat until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between each addition. Pour the filling into your cheesecake pan(s), leaving room for a cake and cookie dough layer on top of your cheesecake.

Bake until the top is lightly browned, puffed and cracked at the edges, and the center moves only very slightly when the pan is lightly shaken (about 40 minutes for a full-sized cheesecake or 12-15 minutes for mini cheesecakes). Transfer to a wire cooling rack. Cool at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator and let cool at least 1 hour, until completely chilled and set.

Make the cookie dough: In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes until light, fluffy, and pale yellow. Mix in salt, flour, cake mix, sprinkles, and vanilla. Add water one tablespoon at a time, mixing after each, until you reach cookie dough consistency. If making a full-sized cheesecake, line a 9-inch cake pan with plastic wrap and spread cookie dough in a disc in the pan. Freeze it until firm, about 15 minutes. If making mini cheesecakes, just chill the cookie dough until you’re ready to assemble your cakes.

Make the chocolate pouring sauce: Heat chocolate and cream together in a bowl set over simmering water. Let them sit for a few minutes before whisking them together to combine. Whisk in powdered sugar and then add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, mixing after each until you reach pouring consistency. Set the sauce aside and let it cool to warm.

Assemble the cheesecakes: If you’re making mini cheesecakes, use a round cookie cutter or a serrated knife to cut circles of Funfetti cake to fit on each mini cheesecake. Spread a little chocolate sauce on the top of each mini cheesecake before placing a cake round on each and gently pressing them down snugly. If you’re making a full-sized cheesecake, spread chocolate sauce over your cheesecake and just place full frozen cake layer on top and gently press down.

If making mini cheesecakes, spread cookie dough into the top of each well with the back of a spoon. If making a full-sized cheesecake, spread another thin layer of chocolate sauce on top of the cake layer to act as glue, and then take your frozen cookie dough disc and place it on top. Chill cheesecake(s) for about 30 minutes before gently unmolding them. Drizzle with melted chocolate and top with a dollop of whipped cream, sprinkles, and a maraschino cherry.

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cakes, challenges

Your Flippin’ Awesome Cheesecakes!

OH MY GOODNESS, am I one proud blogger! One month ago, I issued a Cheesecake Challenge in which I encouraged you to choose a WBB cheesecake recipe and tackle it in the kitchen. Was I ever impressed at the splendid results! Y’all are courageous, inspiring, and sweeter than fresh-picked strawberries. I kinda like ya.

Know what else I like? Even though you were all making some of the same recipes, your kitchen experiences were diverse: Some of you baked at the last minute. Some of you baked your cheesecake before the challenge even officially began. Some of you are experienced bakers. Some of you baked your first cheesecake ever for this challenge.

My students even jumped in to participate. Alexander in the 7th grade made two different cheesecakes, and Ava in 6th grade chose to make a red velvet cheesecake. Speaking of young’uns, there may have even been a toddler involved in the production of one of these cheesecakes.

Despite your very different circumstances and skill levels, you all succeeded. There were obstacles and “creative” presentations (Nathan’s brownies didn’t set up in the circular pan, so they ate them as pudding). There were hours of work. But you made it — and accomplished something lovely for your family and friends. Congratulations on gorgeous work, and thank you for making this such a rewarding experience for me.

Priscilla the Powerful

Priscilla Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake
Comments:“This is only the second homemade cheesecake that I have ever done! It was fun and exciting to be doing something like this with so many different layers of yummy goodness!”


Mollie the Magnificent

Mollie Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake (go see her blog post)
Comments: “Oh man. Seriously. Best thing ever. There are a lot of components, but it really doesn’t seem like too much when you’re eating it. The cheesecake itself is the best cheesecake I’ve made (I think thanks to the water-bath cooking process). And the ganache and cookie dough. I mean, yes.”


Janet the Jumpstarter

Janet Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake (without cookie dough layer)
Comments: “This cake was the most delicious dessert I ever made! It was so yummy, and pretty too. I made it for a dinner and everyone thought I had bought the cake somewhere.”


Gio the Genius

Gio Made: A cross between Chocolate Cheesecake-Stuffed Cupcakes and Red Velvet Cheesecake! (go see his blog post)
Comments: “The cake was soft, moist and the hint of chocolate was there. The slightly tart cream cheese topping really set well and complemented the cake. The streusel was just as I imagined it to be – sweet, slightly crunchy and not overpowering at all. It was, all in all, the perfect topping. I was glad I joined the Cheesecake Challenge since I think I really kicked —“ (I’ll leave that to your imagination – ha!)



Allyson the Awesome

Allyson Made: Chocolate Cheesecake-Stuffed Cupcakes (go see her blog post)
Comments: Allyson added coconut oil to her batch of Chocolate Cheesecake Stuffed Cupcakes, and a layer of strawberry jam for good measure!


Lauren the Laudable

Lauren Made: Lemon Blackberry Cheesecake Squares (go see her blog post)
Comments: “I made your lemon blueberry cheesecake bars and they turned out delicious! […] My husband is a happy man:-)”


Ava the Adventurous

Ava Made: Red Velvet Cheesecake
Comments: “Dear Miss Ruble, The cheesecake was amazing! I’m really glad I tried your recipe.”


Alexander the Able

Alexander Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake and Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Cheesecake
Comments: “Imagine! A 7th grade boy, with little to no help, executing a gorgeous cheesecake. No one ever informed him that this was a daunting task, and after watching your video, he was confident that he could pull it off–and wanted to!” — Alexander’s Mom



Muppy the Magical

Muppy Made: Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread Pudding (go see her blog post)
Comments: “It was amazing, I cannot believe how good it tasted, I thought the spices and the pumpkin went so well with the cream cheese. The brioche perfectly matched the cheesecake custard. I thought it tasted its best straight out of the fridge the day after making it.” Muppy made her own homemade brioche for this recipe!


Dee the Delightful

Dee Made: Red Velvet Cheesecake (go see her website)
Comments: “It was so much fun being part of your cheesecake challenge. The red velvet tasted divine and my husband and all our friends just loved it. The fresh smell out of the oven was so incredible. Our puppy, Monty, kept whiffing the air; it was hilarious. I used plain graham cracker crust instead of oreo just so that the chocolate ganache layer could be seen underneath. […] Thank you from the heart for a wonderful time and opportunity.” Dee chose to have a “Cheesecake Sunday” party and made several more cheesecakes to serve alongside this one!


Cassie the Conqueror

Cassie Made: Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Cheesecake (go see her blog)
Comments: “First off, let me just say what a delicious recipe this was. I’m a cheesecake freak, and I’m always in search of great cheesecake recipes with rich thickness. This was exactly it. It took me a couple of days to prepare because of my hectic schedule, but i’m glad I did it. My friends and family are too!”


Jade the Joyful

Jade Made: Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Cheesecake (go see her blog post)
Comments: “In my daughter’s words: ‘Mmm, tasty!'” Jade made this dessert vegetarian and provides a list of tasks her toddler was able to perform!


Nathan the Nimble

Nathan Made: Marbled Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies
Comments: “We celebrated a friend’s birthday yesterday, and he really liked them. Since they did not set up properly, and given my online nickname (GooeyChewie – actually a double reference to Star Wars and Star Trek), we called them ‘gooey chewie brownies.’ Later we played a few rounds of that Tribbles game in the background, and I think part of the reason I won was because two of my opponents had eaten gobs of the brownies and could probably have fallen to a sugar-induced coma at any moment.”


Pam the Perfect

Pam Made: Red Velvet Cheesecake
Comments: Pam overcame lots of obstacles to make her cheesecake — I love her story: “I decided to make this for my dad’s birthday this year, because it looked delicious and challenging. It wasn’t until I put all the ingredients out in front of me and realized: Crap. I’ve never made a cake from scratch. I’ve never made a cheesecake. I’ve never made ganache. I ended up grabbing the wrong measuring cup for the flour for the cake, and had to use my amateur baking instincts to add the right amount of buttermilk to make it work. Oh, and I didn’t have nearly enough red food dye to make it red, so I guess it was more of a mauve velvet cake! I also realized I misread the ingredient list when I picked up cream cheese, because I was short an entire 8 oz. Once again, I fixed some things with the cheesecake, and it came out a little dark, but still wonderful. The ganache was easy, and I had a hard time not eating spoonfuls of it as I was decorating. My final hurdle was the frosting, which came out terribly, so I ended up throwing it out and covering the cake in ganache and white chocolate. I did not hear anyone complaining about that little detail 😉

I got a call from my Dad and his girlfriend after they had taken it home to tell me it was one of the best cakes they’d had in their life! They said it was rich and sweet, and could only handle a little bit at a time, but found themselves coming back for more even when they didn’t think they could handle it.

I’m sure you hear these stories all the time, but this challenge has inspired me to take more risks in the kitchen, which is something I’ve never done. I’ve never made cheesecake before because I was always overwhelmed by the idea of it, and now I can’t wait to start experimenting with all kinds of cheesecake. Thank you so much for your blog and your creations, I look forward to taking on more of your challenges, testing more of your recipes, and being inspired to make my own. I already have a plan for a cake like this one…but cookies and cream.”


Becca the Bold

Becca Made: Red Velvet Cheesecake (go see her blog post)
Comments: “Even though I was slightly overwhelmed and maybe a little frustrated with the process (since I had NO IDEA), I am really glad I did this! I actually got a little surge of triumph thinking about it reminiscent to my days in AP classes when I aced a test. Thanks Julie for the challenge! I may actually try to challenge myself a little more in the kitchen. (Just a little)”


Maranda the Masterful

Maranda Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake (go see her blog post)
Comments: “I chose to make her most famous cheesecake of all. Coffee Cookie Dough Cheesecake. Doesn’t that sound utterly delicious?? Well I’m here to tell you…it is! […] Now, I’m not a cheesecake person. The only other cheesecake I’ve ever loved and continued to fantasize about is this goat cheese cheesecake with pineapple vanilla compote. Believe me when I tell you that this cheesecake is well worth the effort and time to make!” Maranda also weighed this cheesecake and found it weighed a whopping 7 pounds!


Katie the Courageous

Katie Made: Chocolate Cheesecake-Stuffed Cupcakes
Comments: “I […] wanted to tell you how much you’ve inspired me in the kitchen. I really enjoy baking, but until reading your blog I was pretty nervous about making things ‘from scratch’ out of fear of ruining someone’s birthday/wedding shower/happy occasion (…or my midnight craving for chocolate), especially without my Mom on hand to help me fix my mistakes. Your writing and encouragement makes me think ‘YES! I CAN make cupcakes myself that are from scratch, taste delicious, and don’t look like they were made by a three year old with poor motor skills!’ Ok I’m still working on the ‘not-embarrassing-looking’ part, but…there’s progress :)” I don’t think they’re embarrassing looking at all, Katie!


Andrea the Amazing

Andrea Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake (go see her blog post)
Comments:“It was an awesome challenge to make this cake today, as I have never made a cheesecake using the water bath to keep the cake from cracking. Never had to create a ganache to for a cake and decorate with it before. (Just used ganache for truffles.) And never have made an egg-less cookie dough crust before! YUM! So, if you have an event that calls for a high end cake or you just want to indulge, like me, I encourage you to try it!”


Erin the Energetic

Erin Made: Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake (go see her blog)
Comments: “It’s amazing! A VERY big hit! Thanks so much for the recipe!”


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cakes

Celebrating Cheesecake — and a challenge for you!

Taylor from Taylor Takes a Taste tweeted me yesterday with a very, very important message: Today is National Cheesecake Day! Well, okay, it’s actually National White Chocolate Cheesecake Day, but I’ve never made a white chocolate cheesecake, so just ignore that part. I’ll add it to my to-do list.

In order to celebrate, I thought I’d compile Willow Bird Baking’s many cheesecake recipes and issue a challenge for you!

My goal is to inspire kitchen confidence in home cooks by encouraging them to tackle fun, challenging new recipes. So I’m challenging you this month! Here’s what you do:

– Choose one of the cheesecake recipes below that feels like a challenge to you and make it for friends, family, or coworkers.

– Take a photo and email it to me at juruble ‘at’ gmail ‘dot’ com with a few comments about how it went and a link to your blog (if you have one — if you don’t, that’s okay too!).

– Do this before April 5, 2011. In exactly a month, I’ll post all of your cheesecake masterpieces here on Willow Bird Baking!

– You can also grab the badge at the bottom of this post if you’d like to let your readers know that you’re participating in the Cheesecake Challenge, but it’s optional.

If you’d like to participate, leave me a comment below and let me know! If you’ve already made one of the recipes below, that counts too! Just send me a photo!

Willow Bird Baking’s Cheesecake Recipes:

1. Coffee Cookie Dough Fudge Cheesecake



2. Red Velvet Cheesecake



3. Caramel Fudge Brownie Cheesecake



4. Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Cheesecake



5. Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake Cupcakes



6. Chocolate Cheesecake-Stuffed Cupcakes with Ganache



7. Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Squares with Shortbread Crust



8. Marbled Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies



9. Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread Pudding

And don’t forget to watch my (slightly embarrassing) cheesecake tutorial for great cheesecake pointers!

Finally, here’s the Cheesecake Challenge badge if you want to grab it:

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Red Velvet Cheesecake

Every year around this time, I get the urge to build a mailbox.

Don’t look at me like that. I blame my elementary school teachers. At the beginning of almost every February, my teachers would pull out construction paper, glue, stickers, markers, and paint, and we’d all set to work constructing mailboxes. Sure it wasn’t the most glamorous construction job I’ve ever been a part of, but I was very serious about it nonetheless, because this wasn’t just any mailbox — this was a Valentine’s Day mailbox.

On February 14, we’d all bring in our packets of valentines and circulate about the classroom uncomfortably, dropping one in each of the waiting mailboxes. We tried not to pause too long at anyone’s desk or — heaven forbid — make any accidental eye contact, lest it be misinterpreted during this socially charged process.

Secretly, though, I’d probably spent the night before carefully selecting the perfect Strawberry Shortcake Valentine for the boy I liked. One that could be interpreted as being totally casual — plausible deniability in case he had no interest in me whatsoever — but was also slightly on the mushy side, in case he was just waiting for a sign of my interest. If I was appending candy to my valentines that year, I probably spent another eternity choosing the candy heart or chocolate that I thought he’d like the very best.

(Yes, I now realize that the boy I liked, in contrast, had probably spent the night before Valentine’s Day being hounded by his mother to at least write his classmates’ names somewhere on the valentines she’d bought for him, eating most of his valentine candy before it got attached to anyone’s card, and playing a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video game until bed.)

Anyway, when every valentine was passed out and the time had finally come to sit down and empty our mailboxes, I was always breathless with suspense. Imagine the possibilities! Forget bills and junk mail — these mailboxes were carefully crafted to hold L-O-V-E. Every year I fully expected to receive a long letter handwritten by the boy I liked (actually, any boy would’ve done. Or a secret admirer? Yes, please!) detailing the many, MANY reasons he was smitten with me. He might even include a phone number. Maybe a special conversation heart. Maybe an engagement ring! You never know.

Reality was a little disappointing. I’d dump out all the valentines and quickly shuffle through the boring ones — Scooby Doo holding a bunch of flowers and saying, “Rees are for Roo, Valentine!” or Power Rangers crying, “It’s Morphin’ Time, Valentine!” My eagle eyes were looking for two things: candy and handwritten messages. Candy because it would sustain me on my arduous journey toward discovering the love of my life, and handwritten messages from said love.

Was his heartfelt letter to me in this envelope? Nope, a smurf card. How about this one? Nope, an I Love Lucy valentine — you can tell Mom picked those out. How about the envelope with a heart drawn on the front? Nope, that was from my BFF. Thanks a lot for getting my hopes up, girl. Slowly but surely, my stack dwindled. One after another, the valentines were slapped down onto my “read” pile with barely more than a glance. Finally, the fateful moment came when I’d read and dismissed the very last card.

No proposal. No secret admirer. Not even a lousy paragraph about my eyes being like the sun or something. Nothin’. At this point I’d probably look at my crush across the classroom and sigh, appreciating the suave way in which he used his lollipop as a sword to launch attacks against his friend’s ear.

Childhood is rough. Adulthood is a lot better. Yes, there are bills and junk mail in my mailbox now. And unfortunately, I didn’t get to MAKE my mailbox. And, okay, I’m not going to get a pile of colorful valentines, some of which are boasting candy.

But here’s why adulthood rocks. This year, when Christof Van Snufterplucken (names changed to protect the innocent — or lame) doesn’t turn off his video game long enough to write me a love letter about how awesome I am, I can remedy my disappointment in a mature, adult way: by making and eating a ridiculous amount of cheesecake. Red Velvet Cheesecake, to be exact.

Reader Victoria first gave me the idea for a Red Velvet Cheesecake back in November and I thought it sounded fantastic! She made a beautiful layer-cake-like version, and I went the cheesecake-like route. This ultimate Valentine’s dessert includes an oreo crust filled with layers of ganache, creamy cheesecake, and moist red velvet cake decorated with ganache and cream cheese frosting. Perhaps this is obvious, but apart from being pretty (especially when served with chocolate-covered strawberries and white chocolate hearts), this thing is delicious, indulgent, and yes, romantic. So even if your crush loves radioactive reptilian ninjas more than you, you can have your own little slice o’ love.

Tell me about one of your elementary school crushes. Did you ever receive a fantastic valentine in school?

5 from 1 reviews
Red Velvet Cheesecake
 
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A delicious dessert that combines two of your favorites into one! Note on cheesecake making: Cheesecakes are simple and super customizable. New to cheesecake making? Watch my 6-minute Cheesecake Video Tutorial for visual assistance! Note on scheduling: This cake is easily separated into two days of preparation, and can be prepared ahead of time. On day one, prepare the red velvet cake, cool it, and freeze it. On day two, prepare the cheesecake. You can then assemble and decorate right away, or leave this for day three.
Author:
Serves: 14-16
Ingredients
Crust Ingredients:
  • 32 chocolate sandwich cookies, finely processed into crumbs (cream and all – it’ll disappear when you crush them up!)
  • 5 1/3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • pinch of salt
Ganache Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cups heavy cream
  • 10 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used half semisweet and half bittersweet chocolate chips)
Cake Ingredients:
  • 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon cocoa
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1 1/4 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 ounce red food coloring
Filling Ingredients:
  • 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 large eggs
Decorative Toppings (optional):
  • 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
  • white chocolate for drizzling
  • strawberries
Instructions
  1. Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom and the sides of an 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides to make it easier to lift the cake out of the pan when it’s done. Cream shortening, sugar, and eggs. Make a paste of the cocoa and coloring and add to the shortening mixture. Add salt and vanilla. Add buttermilk alternately with the flour, beginning and ending with flour. Mix vinegar and soda right before using and add to mixture by folding in. Pour batter into the cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely, cover in wax paper, and freeze for 30 minutes or until firm.
  2. Make the cheesecake: To make the crust, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and place it on a baking sheet. Combine the chocolate cookie crumbs, melted butter and salt in a small bowl. Toss with a fork to moisten all of the crumbs. Press into a thin layer covering the bottom and sides of the springform pan (at least 3 inches up the sides).
  3. Bring the cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Place the chocolate in a medium bowl. Once the cream reaches a simmer, pour the cream over the chocolate and let stand 1-2 minutes. Whisk in small circles until a smooth ganache has formed. Pour 1 – 1.5 cups of the ganache over the bottom of the crust. Freeze until the ganache layer is firm, about 30 minutes. Reserve the remaining ganache; cover and let stand at room temperature for later decorating.
  4. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F and position a rack in the middle of the oven. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Beat in the flour. Add in the vanilla and beat until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between each addition.
  5. Pour the filling over the cold ganache in the crust. Place the springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the top is lightly browned, puffed and cracked at the edges, and the center moves only very slightly when the pan is lightly shaken, about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire cooling rack. Cool at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator and let cool at least 3 hours, until completely chilled and set (it’ll sink as it cools).
  6. Assemble topping: Whip room temperature ganache to create a fluffy texture perfect for piping. In a separate bowl, mix together cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar to make a small amount of cream cheese frosting for decorating.
  7. Assemble the cheesecake: Wrap a warm towel around the outside of the springform pan to help loosen the crust from the sides. Carefully remove the springform. Transfer the cake to a serving platter. Here, you can schmear some ganache on the cheesecake to help the red velvet cake adhere. I didn’t, but it’s a good idea. Then place your red velvet cake layer on top of cheesecake (right side up). If for some reason you seem that your cake layer will stick up beyond your crust, you can use a long serrated knife to reduce its width (freezing it first makes it easier to cut). Decorate top of cake with drizzled white chocolate, piped cream cheese frosting, whipped ganache, and strawberries.

P.S. Who could this photographer be shooting my cheesecake? Find out this coming Wednesday!

 

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