Wednesday, October 28, 2009

White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

The Kitchen Sage offers his advice

Yesterday I got a call from our Life Group leader asking if I could bring the dessert for the week. I had been signed up to bring it the week before but we were all sick with colds so I was unable to bring the pumpkin cheesecake that I was planning to make. I was super excited to try this recipe and although I had never done a cheesecake quite like this one, it turned out really well.

My only issue was the water bath that I had to do in order to cook it properly. I didn't wrap my spring-form well enough I guess, and the water got into the crust a bit. I took to the internet and found some advice for soaked crusts and all was well after I let it cool on a wire rack for a while and let the crust air out.

But, being me, I couldn't leave well enough alone and I got a brilliant idea. I was going to do chocolate feathering on top! Why oh WHY did I think that this was a good idea? Let's first say, that this would have been a great idea if I had done it when the cheesecake was still a bit warm. I tried to do it when the cake was cold and it looks like my Ben was responsible for the cake decor, not his grown-up mommy. So, lesson learned. Never try to do chocolate feathering on a cold cake. At least it will taste good. Next time, I'll listen to the Kitchen Sage.

Here is the recipe and some embarrassing pictures:

White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients:

1-1/4 cups cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (Oreos)
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/4 cups vanilla or white chips, melted and cooled
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 teaspoon each ground ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg
White chocolate curls, optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325°
Press cookie crumbs onto the bottom of a greased 9-in. springform pan; set aside. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Stir in melted chips. In a small bowl, combine pumpkin and spices; gently fold into cream cheese mixture. Pour into prepared pan. Place on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 16 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan. Place in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan. Bake at 325° for 60-65 minutes or until center is just set. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with white chocolate curls if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

Yield: 10-12 servings.

Before

After. What have I done?!

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