Thursday, September 1, 2011

White Chocolate Cheesecake

Decadence, thy will be had.


I'm going to show you how I made a beautifully smooth and creamy white chocolate cheesecake. This will eventually become the middle layer of a birthday cake (which I'll post pics of tomorrow). However, if you so fancy, this would be fantastical drizzled with raspberry syrup.  I got this recipe from Williams-Sonoma but I changed it up a little by adding white chocolate because - well, why not? :) 

Continue? 10..9..8..7

Anitra's White Chocolate Cheesecakey Goodness
Ingredients

Wait, before that, I must mention something. I'm going to notate on a few things that they should be room temperature, not straight from the fridge. It helps mix better, I promise.
... also, please preheat your oven to 350°

Ahem, ingredients:
1 cup white chocolate chips
2 pkgs cream cheese (8oz each) - *room temp*
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp flour
2 eggs  - *room temp*
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream

You'll need a very nice springform pan in which to bake this. I was lucky enough to find this at wallyworld in a set of 3 for $9 bucks. Score! 

Spray with non-stick stuff and line with wax paper, like this....

 
Next, melt the chocolate. It should be done first, because if you add *hot white chocolate* to a mix with eggs, you'll end up with scrambled eggs and while those are delicious, they're not meant to be in cheesecake - but, I digress...

To do this, I used two pots, one smaller than the other since I don't have an actual double boiler *ahem - gift idea* Just put some water in the bottom pot and the chips in the top one, crank up the heat and stir :)



Like I said, let that cool and move on to the creaming of the cream cheese. I know it sounds silly, but this is the basis for your cheesecake. It must be beaten severely-which is another reason it's best at room temperature. It is much easier to beat to Smithereens this way :)

Next, add the sugar a little at a time.

Please note: After each step and addition, mix super good to incorporate everything completely. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The idea here is to cream everything together, in order to get the whole shebang completely smooth and creamy. Creamy, creamy, creamy...

Please pardon the frankenthumb.

Alright, cool. At this point add the flour. Just sprinkle it over and mix super good. Then scrape the sides and the beaters again.


Oh eggs, I haven't forgotten about you. Probably ready to hatch by now, eh? Add the eggs, one at a time, ok? Make sure each egg is incorporated completely. Uno y dos.



Alright, it should be pretty loose by now, very smooth and creamy. For a little flavor, at this point add the vanilla and the heavy whipping cream. Don't worry about stiff peaks or anything that usually occurs when you beat whipping cream... the ingredients thus far are too heavy for peaks to be able to form. Boo-yah.

Ok, remember that luscious white chocolate we melted earlier? It's time to add that now. Go ahead and dump it in! You can mix this part with the rubber spatula. Fold it.

Yay! All mixed!
Now put it in the pan and shake it a bit so it spreads out evenly.


Bake for about 30 minutes at 350°. It should be slightly caramel colored around the edges and when given a shake, shouldn't jiggle too much...

Done!


 Let it sit out for a little and then refrigerate. Make sure you cover it pretty good with saran wrap or whatever.  Enjoy :)