Chocolate -Irish Cream Cheescake
Somethings are just to good to keep for yourself. And so I’m finding myself needing to share this amazing Better Homes and Garden’s Chocolate-Irish Cream Cheesecake recipe (slightly modified) that I made the other day for a friends get together for St. Patricks Day. A Chocolate and Cheesecake lovers must try!!! 🙂
CRUST:
1 1/2 cups Oreo Baking crumbs (you may use finely crushed chocolate wafers approx. 18 cookies)
6 Tablespoons butter melted
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine ingredients toss gently with a fork press into the bottom of a Springform Pan slightly up the sides. Set aside.
FILLING:
3 8 ounce packages cream cheese softened
1 8 ounce carton sur cream
1 cup sugar
1 8 ounce package semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
3 eggs
1/2 cup Baileys Irish cream liqueur
2 tablespoons milk (You may use cream)
2 teaspoons vanilla
In a large bowl, combine sour cream, cream cheese, sugar and slightly cooled chocolate with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy. Use a wooden spoon to stir in and combine eggs. Stir in liqueur, milk and vanilla.
Pour filling into the crust lined pan. Bake for 50-60 min. or until centre appears nearly set when shaken.
Cool for 15 min. Use a sharp knife to loosen sides from pan. cool for 1 hour and chill for a min. 6 hours.
TOPPING: (Modified cause my cheesecakes always seem to crack and I needed it to look amazing :-))
1 cup almonds slightly baked in oven.
1/2 cup cream heated on stove.
1 Cup Chocolate chips.
Pour heated cream over chips in a bowl and let stand until melted. Stir. Add chips till desired consistency. Drizzle over cheesecake top with a tablespoon using a grid type pattern.
Add almonds to the top of the chocolate.
Enjoy!!
Sometimes you just need chocolate…
Come on -you know the feeling. You know that inexplicable urge that starts in some part of the brain and just ends up causing gurgling noises somewhere in the midsection of one’s anatomy known as the stomach. I found myself like a million other viewer’s yesterday evening parked on the couch watching the anticipated Oscars. Somewhere inbetween Red carpet highlights and the first acceptance speeches, I found myself lost to the urge. Yep, it just started as a thought, perhaps by some commercial, in hindsight, but it soon became a full blown Chocolate craving. Yes, I admit I am a Chocoholic.
I could blame the commercial, “It made me do it” but I fear this urge has been brewing for a few weeks now. If you live in Winnipeg you’ll know why. It’s called-35C ! It’s too cold to go outdoors and even at times, too cold indoors! I was craving warmth, and there is just about nothing as good as a warm kitchen, a warm stove, warm cookies with warm chocolate chips melting in your fingers and of course warm hugs of thanks afterwards to satisfy that need. I headed for the Kitchen to whip up a batch of my favorite Chocolate Chocolate chip cookies. (Don’t get me wrong I still was peeking in on the awards to see what Anne Hathaway was going to wearing next!)
All I have to say is it was wonderful! A wonderful smell wafting through the house and wonderful, delicious, gooey, tasty, ummm 2 or 3 cookies making it into my stomach(LOL! That’s estimated-I may have lost actual count-or at least I’m not telling!) And of course the best part of hugs from the kids and husband in appreciation! How can I keep such a good thing to myself?! So I just have to share-here it is the recipe for the most delicious double chocolate chip cookies!
My secret ingredient-Vanilla from Mexico!
1 Cup Butter 2 cups flour
1 1/2 Cups sugar 2/3 cup cocoa
2 Eggs 3/4 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp Vanilla 2 cups Chocolate chips
Cream butter and sugar together. Beat in Eggs and Vanilla. Add Flour, Cocoa, baking soda and salt. Mix well. Stir in Chocolate chips. Bake at 350 Degrees for 10 min. They might look soft but just let them cool to harden.
ENJOY and stay WARM- only a few more weeks of winter to go! (Hopefully!)
Ebonie K Photography 