Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

This is an outstanding cheesecake. Not overly rich, but very good. And the sauce over the top is so indulgent. I pretty much followed the recipe on Taste and Tell. But I cooked it in a water bath, as per my usual cheesecake procedure, then let it stand in the oven, turned off, with a wooden spoon handle in the door to keep it open and let it finish setting up for an hour before removing to cool. I tried to make the Dulce de Leche using the procedure I saw on Slashfood. It seemed simple enough, simmer 3 cans sweetened condensed milk for 3 hours. It didn't work as well as I would have liked. Maybe I didn't have the water hot enough, but it simmered for at least 3 hours and didn't look much different than sweetened condensed milk. So I did the microwave method below. It worked pretty well. But I think next time I'll try Alton's method that we just saw on Good Eats.


Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

Crust:
1 1/2 c crushed vanilla wafers
4 T melted butter

Filling:
24 oz cream cheese
1 c sugar
2 T all purpose flour
2 t vanilla
3 eggs
1/3 c milk
1/2 c Dulce de Leche (see recipe below)

For Serving:
Extra Dulce de Leche

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Mix crust ingredients together, and press into the bottom of a lightly buttered 9-inch springform pan. Place pan on a baking sheet and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, until it is lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.
3. Reset oven temperature to 325°F.
4. With an electric mixer beat cream cheese, sugar and flour together until well mixed and smooth. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat until smooth. Add milk and mix until well blended.
5. Measure 1/2 cup of the cheesecake batter and pour into a small bowl. Add Dulce de Leche sauce and stir until well combined.
6. Pour plain batter over crust. Top with Dulce de leche batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter and gently swirl into plain batter with the tip of knife or spatula.
7. Bake in preheated 325°F (160°C) oven for 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. Remove from oven and gently run metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cheesecake (this helps prevent cracking). Let cool 20-25 minutes before covering and placing in the refrigerator. Refrigerate 4 to 6 hours or overnight before serving. If desired, serve each slice drizzled with a little bit of dulce de leche sauce, or pass around a bowl of dulce de leche sauce for guest's to help themselves. Makes 16 servings.

Dulce de Leche

1 can sweetened condensed milk

There are several ways you can do this. I removed the label, poked a couple of holes in the top of the can and put the can in boiling water for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Next time, I would open the can and cook in a double boiler. Mine cooked more at the bottom and not enough at the top, so I ended up microwaving it to get it to the right consistency. With the double boiler, you would be able to stir it, and I think the consistency would be much better. You could also just microwave it from the beginning, cooking on 50% power and stirring every minute or so. You can tell it is ready when it thickens and becomes a tan or light brown color.

Lisa's Decadent and Ohhh So Evil Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Caramel Ripple Cheesecake

Oh my goodness gracious. I made Lisa's Decadent and Ohhh So Evil Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Caramel Ripple Cheesecake from La Mia Cucina. This was oh so over the top wonderful. It's rich, moist, yummy... The words just escape me. Thank you Lisa. If you enjoy an over the top, fabulous cheesecake, this is one to try. Please check out Lisa's post for her comments and pictures.


Lisa's Decadent and Ohhh So Evil Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Caramel Ripple Cheesecake - or LDOSEPBDCCRC.

For the crust:
2-3 c. chocolate wafer cookies, crushed finely (I used chocolate graham crackers, 2 pks.)
1/2 c. salted butter, melted + butter for greasing pan

For the cheesecake:
2 lbs. cream cheese, softened
1 1/3 c. white granulated sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
1 c. sour cream
1/3 c. whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. peanut butter
10 mini Butterfingers, crushed in food processor
1/2 jar of store bought butterscotch-caramel ice cream topping
1/3 semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

For the peanut butter sauce:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/3 c. peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)

Crush the wafer cookies in a food processor. Set aside. Repeat process with the mini Butterfinger bars, crushing them as finely as you'd like.

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Place a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease 11" springform pan with butter. Double layer foil wrap the bottom of the pan.

Mix the crushed wafer cookies with the melted butter and press into the bottom and up the sides of your springform pan. Set aside.

Blend the cream cheese until it's creamy. Gradually add the sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, and only blend until each egg is incorporated. Add the sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla. Remove 1 1/2 c. of the cream cheese mixture and set aside in a bowl. Add the peanut butter to the original mixture and blend until incorporated. Add the crushed Butterfinger bites.

Blend the melted chocolate into the reserved 1 1/2 c. batter and then spread evenly over the cookie crust. Pour the peanut butter batter over the chocolate layer and spread evenly. Dollop the butterscotch-caramel sauce over the top and then using a toothpick or the tip of a thin knife, swirl the sauce into the batter.

Place the springform pan into roasting pan then fill the roasting pan with 1 1/2 - 2 inches of hot water. Carefully place roasting pan onto middle rack and bake for 1 hour, 5 minutes or until the cake is set. Be careful to not over bake. Cool the cake at room temperature for about an hour, then using a very thin knife, run along the edges of cake to loosen it from the springform pan. Remove the ring of the springform and place cake on dish or serving platter and chill over night.

To make the sauce:
Cook the milk and peanut butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring often until thickened (less than 3 minutes). Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and cinnamon. Drizzle over slices of cheesecake. Leftover sauce can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 weeks in an airtight container.