Peanut Butter Cheesecake with Chocolate Chips

A few weeks ago, I shared a recipe for Chocolate Chip Cheesecake we made while in NC.  There were a bunch of friends coming over that night, so one cheesecake wouldn't do - we needed two.  What a great excuse to make a Peanut Butter Cheesecake!

Travis' mom, Jenny, loves peanut butter more than anything (except dogwood trees...and, you know, us), so this was her favorite by far.  It's smooth, full of PB taste and has a sweetened sour cream topping...and chocolate chips to finish it off.  You really can't get much better than that!  This recipe was adapted from Southern Living too, so you know it's a goodie.



Ingredients
1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, softened
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 + 3/4 cup sour cream
1 1/3 cups creamy peanut butter (we used Jiff)
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
Chocolate curls (or chocolate chips)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.  Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and cocoa.  Press into bottom and up the sides of a 9" springform pan.  Set crust aside.

Beat cream cheese and 1 cup brown sugar at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until blended.  Add 3 eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until yellow disappears after each addition.  Beat in 1/2 cup sour cream just until blended.  Beat in peanut butter until blended.

Pour filling into prepared crust.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until center is almost set.

Remove from oven.  Spread Sour Cream Topping over center of cheesecake, leaving a 2" boarder around the edge.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 more minute.  Remove from oven; gently run a knife around the edge of cheesecake to loosen.  Cool completely on a wire rack.

Cover and chill 8 to 12 hours.  Remove sides of pan.  Top with chocolate curls (or mini chocolate chips).

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

Last week, while we were back in NC visiting family (before my new job started), Travis' mom made two cheesecakes.  "Two???" you may ask?  Yep.  Because one just isn't enough.  :)  The first I'll share with you is a chocolate chip cheesecake.

Travis picked chocolate chip months ago, when he won a spur of the moment trivia game his mom sent him and his sister.  We were sitting on the couch when he got the email with instructions.  The first one to email her back with the correct answers to her questions would get to pick the cheesecake of their choice the next time they were home.  Travis just happened to be sitting at his computer when she sent the email, so poor Sarah didn't have a chance.

This cheesecake is quick to whip up and delicious.  Fluffy cheesecake loaded with mini chocolate chips...it's pretty perfect!  This is adapted from a recipe Jenny found online somewhere, but I'm not sure who to credit.
Remember...when in doubt...add more chocolate chips.

Ingredients

1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup butter, melted

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1.25 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 teaspoon all-purpose flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and cocoa.  Press into bottom and sides of a 9" springform pan.  Set crust aside.

Beat cream cheese until smooth.  Gradually add sweetened condensed milk; beat well.  Add vanilla and eggs, and beat on medium speed until smooth.  Toss 2/3 cup miniature chocolate chips with 2 teaspoons flour to coat (this keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the cake).  Mix into cheese mixture.  Pour into prepared crust.  Sprinkle top with remaining chocolate chips.

Bake at 300 degrees F for 1 hour.  Turn off oven (do not open the oven door) and leave the cake in the oven to cool for another hour.  Remove from oven and cool completely.  Refrigerate before removing sides of pan.  Keep cake refrigerated until time to serve.

Enjoy!

Goat Cheese Cheesecake Bites

This weekend we helped our friend Ben celebrate finishing his Master's degree from Brandeis.  I'm ALL about celebrating someone finishing their degree - I know how much work goes into it!  They were having a cookout, so I decided to make some cheesecake bites to bring for dessert...only with a twist.  After having Goat Cheese Cheesecake at several restaurants lately (at Audubon and 80 Thoreau), I've been wanting to give them a shot myself.

I decided to go with a chocolate graham cracker crust and blackberry topping, and they were a hit.  This recipe makes about 3 dozen mini cheesecakes, so it's perfect for a party!

Ingredients
Crust
1 sleeve (9) Chocolate Graham Crackers
1 stick unsalted butter

Cheesecake filling
16 ounces Cream Cheese
4 ounces Goat Cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar (+1/8 cup more if you'd like them sweeter)

Topping
Seedless blackberry preserves
Blackberries

Directions

Put graham crackers in food processor and pulse until fine crumbs.  Melt 1 stick of butter in the microwave, then pour into gram cracker crumbs and stir until coated.

Cream together cheesecake filling ingredients - cream cheese, goat cheese, vanilla, eggs, and sugar.  I used 1/4 cup of sugar, but if you'd like them sweeter you could add an additional 1/8 cup of sugar (but you really don't need it).

Spray 2 mini muffin tins with cooking spray.  Spoon 1/2 tablespoon of crust into each muffin hole.  Using the bottom of your measuring spoon, lightly press the crumbs into the bottom of the hole.

Then spoon 1 Tablespoon of the cheesecake filling on top of the crust.

Bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes.  The tops will puff and crack as they're cooking.  Let cool 15 minutes, then transfer to the refrigerator until completely cooled.

Once cool, remove from pan and top with a small dollop of blackberry preserves and a blackberry!  (I used a sharp knife and cut around the edge of each cheesecake to remove.)

Refrigerate until you're ready to serve...and enjoy!