a dessert consisting of a creamy filling usually containing cheese baked in a pastry or pressed-crumb shell
Back when I started this blog I used to include the definition of a word at the end of each post. As I blogged more frequently, the practice became mostly extinct. The last time I posted a cheesecake recipe (Caramel-Nut Shortbread Cheesecake) was in 2015, but I assure you I have made my fair share since that time. But back to the definition, when I looked it up I was surprised by two things: 1) the phrase "usually containing cheese" and 2) the second definition, which I have never heard used (they compare it to how we use the term "beefcake"). Since the word has been around since the 15th century and I was intrigued I admit to spending several minutes searching the web for recipes from back then (and yes, every one I found used cheese, so the mysterious definition remains).
Anyway, as is my typical process, when my Mom asked me to create one for Family Lunch I began contemplating the ingredients I had on hand and what recipes I could meld into something new. Yes, much to the chagrin of my youngest brother, I rarely follow a recipe exactly as written down. So many areas of life require strict discipline, but I do not believe that cooking is one of those areas. If you made it this far and would like to simply print the recipe, you can do so here. For the usual food-blog step-by-step with photos and narration, read on friends!
DULCE DE LECHE CHEESECAKE
Crust Ingredients:
1 pkg/sleeve of graham crackers, crushed or 1 ¼ cups graham cracker crumbs
7-8 TBSP (1 stick) of melted butter
pinch of salt
2 TBSP sugar (optional)
1 cup (12oz or 13.4oz can) Dulce de Leche. You can sometimes find Dulce de Leche near the sweetened condensed milk or in the international aisle at the grocery store. Otherwise, try out this recipe for making your own and then let me know how it worked!
Filling Ingredients:
4-8oz white chocolate chips or chopped bar
(4) 8oz pkg of cream cheese (softened to room temp)
1 cup of hastily poured brown sugar (unpacked). White sugar is also fine, but I wanted the contrast between the batter and the white chocolate bits.
4 large eggs
2 TBSP all-purpose flour
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
Ganache/Glaze:
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate (chips or coarsely chopped bar). Feel free to use an entire bag (in which case double the other ingredients), but you honestly do not need more.
¼ cup (4 TBSP) butter, cut into pieces
1 TBSP heavy cream
Caramel sauce/topping (optional, I simply had some on hand and thought it went well with the bottom layer of dulce de leche carmely-ness)
Coarse sea salt (optional, I simply had some on hand)
- Start by preparing your 9" spring-form pan. If using a water bath, wrap the bottom of the pan in foil (and test that you have another pan large enough to house the pan and the water).
- If your white chocolate is in a bar, coarsely chop it and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 375F. Melt your butter (however you prefer) and then stir it together with the graham cracker crumbs. Evenly spread out the crust mixture into the pan and then press firmly into the bottom of the pan (I like to use some plastic wrap or wax paper on my hand, but it isn't necessary). Bake for 6-8min; remove the pan and then lower temperature to 325F.
- Open the can of dulce de leche and spoon out onto the crust (it will be very thick and unwieldy). Try to gently spread it around to make an even layer (the warm pan/crust should help, but it need not be perfect). Set aside to cool, refrigerating is optional.
- If you plan to use the water bath, boil water (a tea kettle is handy for this). If you'd rather not bother, I think it's fine. I've made cheesecakes with and without the water bath and as you can see at the end here, I still had cracks (I think I overcooked it or should have put it on the bottom oven rack). Since we're covering any cracks that appear on the top of our cheesecake with ganache...well, you decide.
- In a large bowl, with a hand mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar together. Add eggs, one at a time, then flour, vanilla, and salt. Attempt to uniformly pour about ½ of the filling onto your crust, then gently encourage the batter to the edges of the pan with a spatula. Mix your white chocolate into the remaining batter in your bowl and then repeat filling up your pan – smoothing the top as much as possible.
- Place your springform pan into your water bath pan and gently pour the hot/boiling water
into the sides of the main pan, being careful the water level doesn’t reach
the foil level. You want a few inches of water up the side of the
spring-form pan, but it's an art, not a science (according to me, anyway). Carefully transfer the cheesecake & waterbath into the oven and
bake about 1 hour and 20min (until the center only slightly jiggles).
- While the cheesecake is baking, wash your dishes. Yep, you’ll appreciate it when they’re done, plus there is plenty of time to wait. Once the cheesecake is finished baking, turn off the oven, prop open the oven door (a wooden spoon is good for this) and leave the cheesecake inside to cool for an hour. Then remove the cheesecake and depending on the temperature, allow it to set for another 30-40minutes while you create the glaze.
Despite the water bath, it still cracked, but I believe
that is because I didn't put it on the bottom rack. - NOTE: If you will be presenting this cheesecake outside of the pan, refrigerate it for several hours (or overnight) and remove from the spring-form pan prior to glazing (allowing the glaze to drip down onto the sides for a classy presentation).
- Heat the chocolate, butter, and cream in a double boiler (or in the
microwave at 30 second intervals), stirring until smooth. Allow the glaze to cool
for about 10 minutes and then pour over the cheesecake evenly (you may need to use a spatula if you want it spread uniformly).
- Refrigerate for 4+ hours, or overnight. Before serving, allow it to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes so that the glaze does not crack when you cut into it. If using the caramel sauce & sea salt, you can drizzle sauce over the ganache before or after you cut the cheesecake, and the salt can be sparingly sprinkled over-top the caramel.
- Devour....or daintily consume, the choice is yours.
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