Easter Lunch Dessert

It was my brother and sister-in-law who hosted our family Easter Celebration. We had a wonderful meal of perogies, cabbage rolls, barbecued lamb, turkey, roast pork, roasted potatoes, salads, asparagus, beans and peas. I was in charge of a dessert. I made chocolate cheesecake. A favorite of my little niece Ally. It was really good, except for the fact the surface cracked on me. This is a common problem with cheesecake. It has to do with cooling too quickly. The best thing is to actually turn off the oven and leave the cake in there for about 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, open the oven door a crack and let the warm air out. After 15 minutes, you can take the cake out. This usually prevents cracking, but not always. I didn't do that because I needed the oven to cook my roast for our supper.

Another trick, when baking cheesecake, is to always put a dish of water in the oven during baking. The atmosphere inside a hot oven is very dry. Lack of moisture can prevent a cheesecake from rising enough. The dish of water helps create a spa-like environment and the cake rises more. Some recipes call for this technique, some don't. I do it all the time. It makes the cake fluffier.

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

Crust
1 350 gram bag of Oreo cookies
3 tablespoons of melted butter

Layer One
3 - 8 ounce packages of cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup sour cream
3 eggs
1 - 8 ounce box of semi-sweet chocolate squares, melted

Layer Two
2 cups sour cream
2 heaping tablespoons of cocoa
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper. Grease the sides.

Place cookies in food processor and process until fine crumbs. Add melted butter. Process until well mixed. Press crumbs into prepared pan. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat softened cream cheese and sour cream with sugar and vanilla until well blended. Beat in eggs one at a time at medium speed, until smooth and fluffy. Add chocolate, beating until blended. Pour into prepared pan. Bake on the center rack of the oven for 30 - 35 minutes, until center is set. Place a deep dish of water in the oven on the lower rack, be sure to have enough water in your pan so it doesn't all evaporate during baking.

Prepare second layer by mixing, in a clean bowl, sour cream, sugar, vanilla and cocoa until completely combined. When first layer is done, remove from the oven and increase oven temperature to 425F. Spread sour cream mixture evenly over cake. Bake 12 -15 minutes, until set. Cool completely. Chill for 4 -6 hours before serving, overnight is best.

Makes 10 - 12 servings