White Chocolate Cheesecake

I love making cheesecakes and among my friends, I'm sort of known for making them. Over the years, I've developed several cheesecake recipes of my own that friends request whenever there's a special occasion. It's a little bit laughable to say that anyone develops a cheesecake recipe. The basic recipe is always the same. All that changes are a few "add-in" ingredients.

Some of my biggest hits have been my Chocolate Chip Cheesecake (covered with chocolate ganache and chopped Hershey's Hugs), Creme Brule' Cheesecake (complete with the crunchy, torched sugar top), Cheesecake Popsicles (thick squares of cheesecake on a stick, dunked in rich milk chocolate), and among the younger generation, PB&J Cheesecake (with a Rice Krispies Treat crust).

A friend and co-worker recently asked me to make a dessert for her Bonko night. She's a great cook, but doesn't enjoy baking. When I asked what she would like, she said, "Surprise me." I chose to make the one cheesecake that always gets raves:

White Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce

Crust:
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small mixing bowl, mix ingredients together and press into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes and then remove from oven. Decrease oven heat to 250 degrees.

Filling:
2 pounds cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 eggs
8 ounces of white chocolate, melted

**Do not use higher speeds on your mixer. Use only low speed to avoid air bubbles that cause cracks in the cheesecake.

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and combine until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each and then add vanilla. Turn off mixer and use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure there are no chunks of cream cheese that are not mixed in. Return mixer to low speed and slowly spoon in melted white chocolate. Pour filling over baked crust and thunk the pan on the countertop a few times to make any air bubbles come to the surface.

Bake at 250 degrees for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cheesecake cook to room temperature - 2-3 hours. Place cheesecake in refrigerator and cool until completely chilled - 3 or more hours.

Garnishing Ideas:

Cocoa-Dusted Shapes: For the cheesecake pictured, I printed a fleur de lis onto vellum paper and then carefully cut it out. I use velum because it sticks less than regular paper. Lay the cut-out on top of the chilled cheesecake and press slightly. Dust lightly with cocoa powder, blow off excess (this can be really messy, so be sure you blow toward the sink!). Carefully peel away the cutout and discard.

White Chocolate Ganache: Mix 6 ounces of white chocolate and 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream and microwave one minute at a time until melted - usually only takes a couple of minutes. Spoon ganache around the edges of the cheesecake and allow to drip down the sides.

Raspberry Sauce: Place 1 pint of thawed raspberries and 1 cup of sugar in a blender and puree. Pour into a bowl through a small-holed strainer to remove seeds, stirring and pressing slightly with a spoon or rubber spatula. Discard seeds. Use a small kitchen funnel to pour sauce into a squeeze bottle. I found great little squeeze bottles at my grocery store that were made for take condiments to picnics, etc. The squeeze opening is very small which gives you lots of control in making designs. I make a zig-zag design with the sauce in the bottom of a dessert plate and then place a slice of cheesecake on top. Sauce can be made several days in advance.