Cheesecake FAIL, and SUCCESS!!

I made two cheesecakes over the past week.  I really messed one up (it tasted OK, though!), and the other turned out very nicely!!

Cheesecake FAIL....
I made a White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake.  The recipe told me to bake it in a spring form pan lined with parchment paper in a water bath.  I skipped the parchment paper, because I was out.  How important could it be anyways??  Well, apparently pretty important!  Even though I wrapped the bottom of the pan with foil before I baked it, it still got all soggy.  On top of that, I removed the spring form too soon, and it started to sink.  Oh, and the raspberry swirl sunk to the bottom.  I'm not quite sure that I will try this one again!

Cheesecake SUCCESS...
Here is the recipe for the Tiramisu Cheesecake.  I think next time, I will make whipped cream rather than using the cool whip!

1 pkg. Nilla Wafers
7 tsp. instant cofee
5 Tbsp. hot water
4 pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 c. sugar
1 c. sour cream
4 eggs
1 c. thawed Cool Whip
2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

Heat oven to 325F.

Line a 13x9 inch pan with parchment paper, with ends of foil extending over the sides (or just spray the pan with cooking spray).  Spread half the wafers onto the bottom of the pan.  Dissolve 2 tsp. instant coffee to 2 Tbsp. hot water, stir until dissolved.  Brush onto wafers in pan.

Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with mixer until well blended.  Add sour cream, mix well.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each, just until blended.  Remove 3 1/2 cups batter, place in medium bowl.  Dissolve 3 tsp. instant coffee in 1 Tbsp. hot water, stir into removed batter, spread over wafers in pan.  Top with another layer of wafers, dissolve remaining instant coffee in remaining water, and brush over wafers.  Cover with remaining batter.

Bake 45 minutes, or until the center is almost set.  Cool.  Refrigerate 3 hours.  Spread with Cool Whip and sprinkle with cocoa powder just before serving.

(Note - the above picture is NOT the Tiramisu Cheesecake that I made.  Recipe from www.kraftfoods.com)

Tiramisu

I love tiramisu.  It definitely makes my list of favorite desserts (yes, I said list, how can anyone have ONE favorite dessert???)

This year, we are celebrating Christmas with my family a week early, as we are celebrating with my husband's family on Christmas, and if you know us, you know that it's definitely impossible to celebrate with both families in the same weekend.  So, I made tiramisu for one of the desserts (my other one is white chocolate raspberry truffle cheesecake, which I think I totally messed up, I'll write about that next time and let you know how it turned out).

Anyways, I thought I'd be generous (it IS Christmas and all), and share my tiramisu recipe, so you can love it as much as I do!

Ingredients:
4 egg yolks
2 tbsp. milk
2/3 c. granulated sugar
2 c. mascarpone cheese (side note - buy this at Trader Joe's if you have one near you, it's so much cheaper than the regular grocery store!!)
1.4 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. heavy cream
20-24 ladyfingers (you can usually find these in the bakery dept.)
1/2 c. cold espresso
1/4 c. Kahlua coffee liqueur
2 tsp. cocoa powder

(Another side note, I used 3/4 c. strongly brewed coffee instead of the Kahlua and espresso)

Directions:
1.  Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water and bring it to a boil over medium/high heat, then reduce the heat so that the water is simmering.  Whisk the egg yolks, milk, and sugar together in a medium metal bowl, then place the bowl on top of the saucepan.  Stir the mixture often for 8-10 minutes or until the mixture thickens.  Remove the bowl from the heat, and to it add the 2 cups mascarpone cheese and the vanilla.  Whisk it like crazy until the cheese smooths out.

2.  In a separate bowl, whip the cream with an electric mixer until thick.

3.  Slowly fold the whipped cream into the cheese mixture until it's completely incorporated, but don't over mix or it will deflate!

4.  Combine the espresso and Kahlua in a large shallow bowl.  One-by-one, quickly dip each ladyfinger in the espresso.  The ladyfinger will soak up the liquid like a sponge, so do it very quickly.  Arrange half the dipped ladyfingers side-by-side in the bottom of an 8x8 baking pan.

5.  Spoon about half the cheese mixture over the ladyfingers, then add another layer of dipped ladyfingers, and spoon the remaining cheese over top.

6.  Dust the top of the tiramisu with the cocoa powder, and cover and chill for several hours.