Sinful Rich and Chocolaty Marbled Cheesecake and Cupcakes

This was a new birthday tradition our DD#1 adopted last year. She wanted my incredibly rich, chocolaty without being heavy or truffle-like, not too sweet, and creamy marbled cheesecake all to herself! So the night before her birthday, I was busy baking another wondrous treat just for my princess!

I filled the pan with large, haphazard dollops of batter and swirled them together with a knife. The cheesecake was baked in a water bath; it is not required for simplicity sake.

Cheesecake cracks when it is exposed to a sudden temperature change. I've had success in preventing cracking by leaving it in the oven (with it off and the door ajar) for about 1 hour after it's done to allow the custard to set. Make sure to chill it overnight in the refrigerator; creamy cheesecake tastes its best when cool. When you are going to serve the cheesecake, keep a moist dishtowel at hand and wipe down the knife after each slice. This will keep your slices clean and even.

The thick crust is a perfect balance to the richness of the cheesecake.

INGREDIENTS (serve 12)
2 C Graham Crackers, crushed into crumbs
¼ C Sugar
½ C Unsalted Butter, melted
2-8 oz. Packages of Cream Cheese, softened
1-14 oz. Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 Eggs, room temperature
4 oz Bittersweet/Semisweet Chocolate

DIRECTION
Preheat oven to 350°.
Mix together graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter until mixture is wet and crumbs clump together. Spread mixture evenly in a 9 inch spring form pan and press down firmly. Bake for 10 minutes. Set aside.
Reduce oven temperature to 300°.
Melt chocolate into a medium-sized bowl.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add condensed milk and beat until smooth. Add eggs, one by one, beating each until fully mixed. Pour ½ of the batter into the bowl with melted chocolate and stir well. Pour chocolate and plain batters into prepared pan, evenly distributing and alternating batters. Swirl with a clean knife.
Bake cheesecake for 50-55 minutes. It will not look totally firm when done; it will jiggle. The whole cake should jiggle evenly, though the center might be a bit looser.
Cool cheesecake as mentioned above for at least 1 hour before refrigerating. Refrigerate overnight or at least 4 hours. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Here is a rich and gooey cupcake version. Serve these little gems with a tall glass of ice cold milk and I guarantee you will have a bunch of very HAPPY kids and parents!

The filling is the most crucial part of making this fantastic treat and can be very tricky to master. You need to soften cream cheese prior to mixing, set on the counter for an hour or two, DO NOT MICROWAVE. Mix cream cheese, sugar and egg just until there are no more lumps. Here's where most mess this up; DO NOT OVER MIX. If filling gets runny then it carmalizes on top and never sinks into cake. If under mixed, filling only tastes like cream cheese and cake batter taste is off. Within the first hour after baking, batter is gooey but delicious. Next day, filling firms up for a different texture(still good), but warm them up for 30-45 seconds can re-gooey it if you prefer.

ones with cream cheese frosting

INGREDIENTS (serve 24-30)
1-8 oz. Package of Cream Cheese, softened
1 Egg
1/3 C Sugar Cane Sugar
1/8 t Salt
1 C Miniature Semisweet Chocolate Chips
1½ C All-Purpose Flour
1 C Sugar Cane Sugar
¼ C Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 t Baking Soda
½ t Salt
1 C water
1/3 C Vegetable Oil
1 T Cider Vinegar
2 t Vanilla Extract

DIRECTION
Preheat oven to 350 °. Line muffin tins with paper cups or lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, egg, &frac13 cup of sugar and &frac18 teaspoon of salt until light and fluffy. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, 1 Cup of sugar, cocoa, baking soda and ½ teaspoon of salt. Make a well in the center and add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Stir together until well blended. Fill muffin tins 1/3 full with the batter, add a few chocolate chips, and 1/3 full with a dollop of the cream cheese mixture.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.

Let me know how yours turns out if you give these desserts a try.

1 encouragements:

Tina said...

Those goodies look so yummy!!!!

True learning-learning that is permanent and useful,that leads to intelligent action and further learning, can arise only out of the experience, interest, and concerns of the learner.
John Holt
Real heroes are men who fall, fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they stayed true to their ideals, beliefs and commitments.
Actor Kevin Costner
 

© Copyright Live In Freedom . All Rights Reserved.

Designed by TemplateWorld and sponsored by SmashingMagazine

Blogger Template created by Deluxe Templates