Oaxaca chocolate is spicy and incredible. In addition to chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla and ground almonds, it can contain a hint of hot peppers. I bought some recently at the Benito Juarez Market in the city from two little ladies who make it out of their Tlacolula de Matamoros kitchen. My intention was to bring it home and use it in my morning beverage we call “choco-cafe,” a mix of good strong coffee and Oaxaca chocolate that my husband Stephen and I love.
Today, I picked up my adult son at the airport for Thanksgiving. (He came in from L.A.) Mom, he said, will you bake a chocolate cheesecake for Thanksgiving? I had bought ingredients for a NY cheesecake, but with a swift adaptation of a trusted recipe that I used to make and sell from my gourmet cookware shop, cooking school, and catering business (some years ago), and that Oaxaca chocolate, I produced what he asked for. Something familiar from childhood that he adored. It’s in the oven now. You still have time to make your Thanksgiving Oaxaca Chocolate Cheesecake! Go for it.
Supplies: What you will need
10″ springform pan
small bowl for melting chocolate in microwave oven
small bowl for softening cream cheese in microwave oven
rubber spatula
mixer
Ingredients for crust:
3 packages (in the box of 4) of graham crackers, finely ground in food processor
6 T. butter, melted
1/4 c. sugar
Ingredients for filling:
4 packages of cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
1/2 t. vanilla
1-1/4 c. sugar
2 c. sour cream
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate
8 oz. Oaxaca chocolate, broken into chunks
In food processor, process graham crackers until they are a fine crumb. Add sugar and combine. Add melted butter. Combine. Pour into buttered springform pan. With fingers, press firmly on base and up sides to form a crust. Set aside.
With mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar together until soft. With mixer going, add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla. Mix. Add sour cream and briefly mix until blended in. Pour half the plain vanilla mixture into a second bowl.
Melt all the chocolates. I do this in a microwave oven on 30% power for about 3-5 minutes, checking to make sure that the chocolate doesn’t overheat. Pour the melted chocolate into the remaining white cheesecake mixture and blend with mixer until the cheesecake is completely chocolate.
Pour the white mixture into the springform pan first. Gently pour the chocolate mixture on top of the white mixture. Use a spoon to create swirls.
In a preheated 350 degree oven, bake for one hour or until the center is dry and firm. Turn the oven off. Leave the cheesecake in the oven to settle and avoid cracking. Cover and refrigerate. You can make this up to three days in advance.
As soon as I remove this from the pan tomorrow, I’ll take a photo and post it before we eat it!
Buen provecho!
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