Southern Chocolate Raspberry Cheese Cake

~Southern Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake~

Here is a great recipe for all you Chocolate lovers out there! I made it for our Church lunch last week and it was a delightful success! It is hard to beat a delicious Cheesecake, even harder to beat one accented by chocolate and topped with Raspberries, but add to all of that an easy and economical recipe and you are on top of the world!

Serves 16 people

Prep time 40 minutes. Bake 325 degrees for 65 minutes plus chill time

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (i.e. Oreo Cookies)
  
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 4 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
• 1-1/4 cups sugar
• 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 9 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 cup seedless raspberry preserves
• Personal Note: I like thicker crust so I added extra cookies and butter.
  
• 
  
• TOPPING:
• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
• Fresh raspberries and whipped cream, optional
• Personal Note: I also increased the amount of chocolate topping.
  

Directions

• Place a greased 9-in. springform pan on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan. Combine cookie crumbs and butter; press onto the bottom of prepared pan. (Or use Wiltons cool pan wraps like I did.)
  
• In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in sour cream and vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Set aside 1-1/2 cups; pour remaining batter over crust.
• In a microwave, melt chocolate; stir in preserves until blended. Stir in reserved batter just until blended. Drop by tablespoonfuls over the plain batter (do not swirl). Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan.
• Bake at 325° for 65-75 minutes or until center is just set and top appears dull. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.
• For topping, place chocolate in a small bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream just to a boil. Pour over chocolate; whisk until smooth. Cool slightly. Spread over top of cheesecake. Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with raspberries and whipped cream if desired. Yield: 16 servings.
• Personal Note: After you add the chocolate topping, put it in the fridge for about 5 minutes, take it out while it is still slightly soft, arrange the raspberries on top and allow it to finish chilling. This way your raspberries will be lightly embedded in the chocolate topping making the presentation just that much better.

Happy Valentine's Day from The Daughters of Texas!

By: Jennifer