Amaretto Chocolate Cheesecake

* Exported from MasterCook *

AMARETTO CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 16 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Cheesecakes

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
-----CRUST-----
7 oz Amaretti (see note)
2 tb Granulated sugar
5 tb Sweet butter
1 oz Chocolate, unsweetened
-(1 square)
-----FILLING-----
6 oz Chocolate, semisweet
7 oz Amaretti
4 oz Almond paste
1/3 c Amaretto liqueur
1/4 c Sugar, granulated
1 1/2 lb Cream cheese
-(room temperature)
4 lg Eggs
1/2 c Heavy cream

MAKE CRUST: Butter the sides only (not the bottom) of
a 9-inch spring-form pan (about 2 1/2 to 3 inches
deep). Grind the Amaretti very fine in a food
processor or blender. Mix with sugar in a mixing bowl.

Melt the chocolate and butter in the top of a double
boiler, stirring occasionally. Add the melted mixture
to the Amaretti crumbs and sugar and mix thoroughly.
(Don't wash the double boiler; you'll be using it
again in a minute.)

Turn the mixture into the prepared pan. With your
fingers, distribute it evenly over the bottom and
press it down into a very firm, compact layer.
Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

MAKE FILLING: Adjust rack 1/3 up from the bottom of
the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Partially melt
chocolate in the top of a double boiler, then uncover
and stir until completely melted. Remove the top of
the double boiler and set aside to cool.

Break the Amaretti coarsely into a bowl and set aside.
Cut the almond paste into small pieces, and beat on
low speed with an electric mixer, while gradually
adding the Amaretto liqueur. Beat until thoroughly
mixed and set aside.

Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until
smooth. Add the sugar and beat until smooth again.
Add the almond paste-Amaretto mixture and beat until
thoroughly mixed. Add the melted chocolate and beat
well again. Add the eggs one at a time, beating at low
speed until they are incorporated after each addition.
Add the heavy cream and beat until smooth. Add the
coarsely broken Amaretti and stir gently only to mix.

Turn into the prepared pan, pouring the mixture over
the bottom crust. Rotate the pan gently to level the
batter. (Don't worry if the mixture comes almost to
the top; it won't run over.)

Bake 45 minutes. It will seem soft and not done, but
don't bake any more; it will become firm when chilled.
The top of the cake is supposed to look bumpy because
of the large chunks of Amaretti. Let cool completely
at room temperature, then carefully remove the sides
of the pan and refrigerate the cake (still on the
bottom of the pan) for 4 to 6 hours, or overnight.

NOTES:

* This is adapted from Maida Heatter's "Book of Great
Chocolate Desserts," (Knopf 1980). It won me a blue
ribbon at the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural
Exhibition and Fair in 1983. If you ever find yourself
in front of a firing squad, this makes an unbeatable
last request.

* Amaretti are Italian almond-flavored wafer cookies.
They are usually sold in metal tins with the wafers
wrapped in packages of two inside the tin. You can
also buy Amarettini, which are the same flavor but
much smaller and not individually wrapped. Since
you're going to grind some of the wafers and break the
others into chunks, it doesn't matter which size you
start with. One brand is Amaretti di Saronna,
Lazzaroni & Co.

* This is an expensive cake, both in terms of the
cost of the ingredients ($15-$20) and the number of
calories.

: Difficulty: moderate to hard.
: Time: 30 minutes preparation, 45 minutes baking,
overnight cooling. : Precision: measure ingredients
carefully.

: Jan Wolitzky
: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey, USA
: ihnp4!mhuxd!wolit

: Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust



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