Brian @ Wongside

So I had so much cream cheese left over from the wakeboarding trip (about 2 lbs was brought back home, and that was after giving 1/2 a pound to Derick and Bethany to keep at the cabin.) I decided that the best use of it was to make a cheese cake. I was delighted to discover that the recipe I have for cheese cake requires 2.5 lbs of cream cheese and 1/3 C of sour cream (so I could also reduce the 2 lbs of sour cream I have in the fridge.)

The recipe is taken from the America’s Test Kitchen cookbook I got from Mom at Christmas. You really should buy the cookbook if you’re interested in trying it out, but here’s the process:

1. For the crust: Put the oven rack in the middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Mix the graham crumbs, melted butter, and sugar together, then pour into a 9-inch springform pan. Press the crumbs firmly into an even layer. Bake the crust until fragrant and beginning to brown, 10-15 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes.
2. For the filling: Once the crust is out of the oven, increase the temperature to 500 degrees. Beat the cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-low until softened, 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl.
3. Beat in the salt and half of the sugar until incorporated. Beat in the remaining sugar until incorporated. Beat in the sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla until incorporated. Beat in the eggs 2 at a time until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl or beaters as needed.
4. Brush the sides of the springform pan with melted butter. Set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the batter/filling over the crust.
5. For a nice, chocolate marbling melt the semisweet chocolate with the canola oil. Drop spoonfuls of the chocolate mixture into the filling and swirl with a thin utensil such as a knife or chopstick.
6. Bake for 10 minutes.
7. Without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees and cook about 90 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 150 degrees. Rotate the cake halfway through baking.
8. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and run a paring knife around the edge of the cake. Let cool until barely warm, 2.5-3 hours, running a paring knife around the edge every hour or so. Wrap the pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours.

And there you have it: