Amaretto Chocolate Cheesecake

Title:
Amaretto Chocolate Cheesecake

Yield:
16 Servings

Categories:
Cheesecakes




Ingredients:




-----------------------------------CRUST-----------------------------------


     7 oz Amaretti (see note)


     2 tb Granulated sugar


     5 tb Sweet butter


     1 oz Chocolate, unsweetened


          -(1 square)





----------------------------------FILLING----------------------------------


     6 oz Chocolate, semisweet


     7 oz Amaretti


     4 oz Almond paste


   1/3 c  Amaretto liqueur


   1/4 c  Sugar, granulated


 1 1/2 lb Cream cheese


          -(room temperature)


     4 lg Eggs


   1/2 c  Heavy cream





 MAKE CRUST:  Butter the sides only (not the bottom) of a 9-inch spring-form


 pan (about 2 1/2 to 3 inches deep). Grind the Amaretti very fine in a food


 processor or blender.  Mix with sugar in a mixing bowl.


 


 Melt the chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler, stirring


 occasionally.  Add the melted mixture to the Amaretti crumbs and sugar and


 mix thoroughly. (Don't wash the double boiler; you'll be using it again in


 a minute.)


 


 Turn the mixture into the prepared pan.  With your fingers, distribute it


 evenly over the bottom and press it down into a very firm, compact layer.


 Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.


 


 MAKE FILLING:  Adjust rack 1/3 up from the bottom of the oven and preheat


 to 350 degrees F. Partially melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler,


 then uncover and stir until completely melted. Remove the top of the double


 boiler and set aside to cool.


 


 Break the Amaretti coarsely into a bowl and set aside. Cut the almond paste


 into small pieces, and beat on low speed with an electric mixer, while


 gradually adding the Amaretto liqueur. Beat until thoroughly mixed and set


 aside.


 


 Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar


 and beat until smooth again. Add the almond paste-Amaretto mixture and beat


 until thoroughly mixed. Add the melted chocolate and beat well again. Add


 the eggs one at a time, beating at low speed until they are incorporated


 after each addition. Add the heavy cream and beat until smooth. Add the


 coarsely broken Amaretti and stir gently only to mix.


 


 Turn into the prepared pan, pouring the mixture over the bottom crust.


 Rotate the pan gently to level the batter. (Don't worry if the mixture


 comes almost to the top; it won't run over.)


 


 Bake 45 minutes.  It will seem soft and not done, but don't bake any more;


 it will become firm when chilled. The top of the cake is supposed to look


 bumpy because of the large chunks of Amaretti. Let cool completely at room


 temperature, then carefully remove the sides of the pan and refrigerate the


 cake (still on the bottom of the pan) for 4 to 6 hours, or overnight.


 


 NOTES:


 


 *  This is adapted from Maida Heatter's "Book of Great Chocolate Desserts,"


 (Knopf 1980).  It won me a blue ribbon at the Martha's Vineyard


 Agricultural Exhibition and Fair in 1983. If you ever find yourself in


 front of a firing squad, this makes an unbeatable last request.


 


 *  Amaretti are Italian almond-flavored wafer cookies. They are usually


 sold in metal tins with the wafers wrapped in packages of two inside the


 tin. You can also buy Amarettini, which are the same flavor but much


 smaller and not individually wrapped. Since you're going to grind some of


 the wafers and break the others into chunks, it doesn't matter which size


 you start with. One brand is Amaretti di Saronna, Lazzaroni & Co.


 


 *  This is an expensive cake, both in terms of the cost of the ingredients


 ($15-$20) and the number of calories.


 


 : Difficulty:  moderate to hard.


 : Time:  30 minutes preparation, 45 minutes baking, overnight cooling.


 : Precision:  measure ingredients carefully.


 


 : Jan Wolitzky


 : AT& Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey, USA


 : ihnp4!mhuxd!wolit


 


 : Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust


 


 From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini