Double Fudge Chocolate Cheesecake

If there's no problem that can't be solved with a little cheesecake, that must mean there's no international crisis that can't be solved with a double fudge chocolate cheesecake!

This latest recipe from The Golden Girls cookbook is one of Rose's.

For the crust

1 packet Nabisco famous chocolate wafers

1/3 cup sugar

5 tbsp melted butter, 

at room temperature

1/4 tsp salt

Method

1.  First eat a few of the cookies!. You know you will anyway. Then grind the cookies and sugar in a food processor until very fine, stopping once or twice to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Set 2 tbsp of the crumb mixture aside and move the rest of the crumb mixture to a 10-inch nonstick spring form pan. Using a flat bottom glass wrapped in clingfilm, make an even layer of crust across the bottom of the pan, working the crumbs outward toward the sides of the pan. Then, with the sides of a glass, press the crumbs about 1-inch up the sides of the pan. Place the cake pan on a baking sheet large enough to hold it comfortably and refrigerate.

2.  While the crust is chilling, heat oven to 350°F/177°C with an oven rack in the centre position.

Ingredients for cheesecake batter

12 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60%),
broken or chopped into small pieces

1lb cream cheese, at room temperature

1 1/3 cups sugar

2 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 tsp salt

4 eggs, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Put the broken chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Choose a saucepan large enough to hold the bowl steady when the bowl is set on top. Pour about 1 inch of water into the saucepan and place the saucepan, with the bowl over the water, over a medium-low heat. Melt, stirring every few minutes with a heat proof spatula, until completely smooth and shiny. Do not let the water under the bowl come to the boil. Remove the pan from the heat but leave the bowl of chocolate over the hot water to keep warm.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, and the salt until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each, then beat in the vanilla. Scrape the melted chocolate into the mixer bowl and mix on low speed, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl several times, until well blended.

3. Pour the batter into the crust and wiggle the pan to help the batter settle into an even layer. Sprinkle the top of the batter with the reserved crumb mix, making a border around the edges of the batter.

4. Put the cheesecake on a tray in the oven and lower the temperature to 300°F/150°C. Bake for 40 minutes. Gently rotate the baking sheet. Continue baking 30-40 minutes, until the cake is set around the edges, and the centre 3 inches or so jiggles only slightly when you move the cake pan back and forth. Crack the oven door open with a wooden spoon, turn off the oven and let the cake sit for about 1 hour.

5. Remove the cake from the oven and transfer the cake pan to a cooling rack. Cool completely. Refrigerate the cheesecake until firm, at least 3 hours. Bring to room temperature about 45 minutes before serving.

STAY GOLDEN!