Mini Chocolate Basque Cheesecake

 This cheesecake from Joy the Baker is perfect in so many ways:

1. I typically have all the ingredients on hand. (OK, it does help that I have the bakery because I can borrow espresso powder from there, but that's the only specialty ingredient.)
2. It's easy. It's about 30 minutes of hands on time ... if that. (OK, I'm illustrating this in the point above and the next 2 points.)
3. There's no crust to pre-bake, so you mix everything together and pop it into the oven.
4. No water bath, plus a high temperature means it's done baking in less than 30 minutes, with only 15 minutes to cool before refrigerating. I can't tell you the number of times that someone is up way too late in our household to finish baking and cooling cheesecake before it can be refrigerated. 
5. It's mini. Normally this wouldn't be a plus for me, but it's the perfect size for this cheesecake especially if you don't want a ton of leftovers.
6. It's so rich and decadent that a small slice is satisfying. Honestly, cutting this into 8 slices is darn near perfect portions despite the smaller size, which says a lot coming from me. But I still douse it with whipped topping and ideally fresh raspberries.
7. It feels fancy, and cheesecake is impressive. And delicious.

So, I made it for New Year's Eve ... and I made it again tonight. Twice in one week. Maybe I really did want more leftovers of it. ;-)

Mini Chocolate Basque Cheesecake

200 grams dark chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

16 oz. cream cheese softened

100 grams sugar

1 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder

1 tsp. espresso powder

Pinch of sea salt

3 eggs, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup heavy cream

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream

2 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 450°.  Prepare a 6-inch cake pan by lining it with parchment paper, including going up the sides.

Beat cream cheese until smooth, several minutes. Then beat in sugar, beating until smooth. Beat in cocoa powder, espresso and sea salt. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping sides of bowl between eggs. (Do this often to ensure everything is evenly mixed with no clumps.)

Beat in vanilla and then heavy cream, adding 1/2 cup of cream at a time. Scrape into prepared pan, and bake 25 to 28 minutes until the cheesecake is slightly burnt looking on top and jiggles in the center only with the edges set. Turn off the oven, and crack the door slightly. Let it remain in there another 15 to 20 minutes. Pull from the oven, and place immediately in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.

To make the whipped cream, beat the heavy cream with a whisk until peaks start to form. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until stiff peaks form. Use to top the cheesecake, and add any berries, fruit or other desired toppings. Serves 8. 

Chocolate Biscoff Cake

If you need an impressive, delicious cake, Cakes by Courtney is a great resource. It's easy to get lost in all the delicious cakes. It's no secret I love biscoff (who doesn't?!?!), and she has some tremendous biscoff cake recipes.

This one is easy with only a single layer. It's rich, delicious and definitely one I should make again.

Chocolate Biscoff Cake

18 biscoff cookies
2 cups flour
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
1 3/4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
Filling
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup biscoff spread
1 cup powdered sugar
Buttercream
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly cold
4 oz. dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup biscoff cookie butter
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla
Pinch of salt
Garnish
Biscoff cookie crumbles

Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease a 9 x 13 pan, and set aside. Pulse biscoff cookies to a crumble in a blender. In a medium bowl, combine the biscoff crumbs, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue to beat the mixture for a few more minutes, until smooth, not curdled. 

With the mixer on low speed, add 1/2 the dry ingredients, and mix until combined. Slowly add half the buttermilk, and mix until smooth. Continue alternating flour and buttermilk until all incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and slowly mix another 20 to 30 seconds. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack before inverting onto a cooling rack to cool completely. 

For the filling, beat the butter and biscoff spread on medium until light and flufffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and beat for 2 to 3 minutes. 

For the buttercream, heat the cream and chocolate chips together in the microwave for 45 to 60 seconds. Stir the mixture until the chips are melted. If not fully melted, continue in short intervals. Cool ganache to room temperature before adding the butter. Once at room temperature, beat butter and biscoff cookie butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add in ganache, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat until smooth, and gradually add powdered sugar. Beat until smooth.

To assemble the cake, evenly spread biscoff filling on top of the cake. Using a Wilton 1M tip and piping bag, pipe on buttercream. Alternatively, you can spread the buttercream over the filling with a spatula, but piping looks prettier. Top with crumbled cookies. 

Makes 1 delicious cake.