By Popular Demand



They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and it must be true. You never know what kind of response a photo will evoke when you post it on the Internet. I posted a picture of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cheesecake that I made for a shower last week, and I've had more email requests for the recipe than I've had time to answer. So, today, I decided to try and remember what I did and "write it down" for those of you who asked for it. Actually, I modified the "My Favorite Cheesecake" recipe (P. 103) in "A Pinch of This... A Smidgen of That" cookbook, so that's where we'll begin... It's basically a "New York" style cheesecake with some optional topping ingredients thrown in, but when I decided to make something "chocolate and peanut butter," I had to figure out a way to work with the recipe. I hope you can make sense out of my "notes" and "optional additions." If you can't, you can always email or call me.

This won't be a "normal" blog with tutorial photos, because I didn't take photos of the process when I was making the cheesecake. I only photographed the finished product at the shower. So, I apologize for not having step-by-step instructions for you. As I said, holler at me, if you have further questions. And, I hope it turns out as YUMMY for you as it did for us. We enJOYed eating the leftovers! I had enough batter to not only fill my sprinform pan and bake the very thick cheesecake, but also to fill 24 cupcake holders! I used Oreo Cookies (whole ones) for the bottom crusts and drizzled melted semi-sweet chocolate over the top of the "mini-cheesecakes." They were just as yummy as the full-sized version.

Ok, here's the recipe... and I warn you, I'm a "detail" person, so it's going to look long and scary at first, but it's really EASY, I promise. I just like to go into lengthy details so you understand what to do! :-)

MY FAVORITE CHEESECAKE

Crust Ingredients: (see options below, if you're making Reese's Peanut Butter Version)

Graham Cracker Crumbs (or a large prepared graham cracker crumb pie crust dumped and pressed into your greased springform pan).

2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. butter, melted

In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with sugar and melted butter. Press onto bottom and part of the way up the sides of a springform pan.

Cheesecake Ingredients: (see additional ingredients below if making Reese's PB Version, or if you want to make a different topping for the plain cheesecake.)

1 lb. carton small curd cottage cheese, well drained, then blended until smooth
2 - 8 oz. Pkgs. Cream cheese, softened
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 T. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla
½ cup salted butter, melted
1 – 16 oz. carton sour cream

OPTIONAL: Sour Cream Topping:

1 - 16 oz. carton sour cream
¾ to 1 Cup sugar
1 tsp. clear vanilla

OPTIONAL: Orange Topping:

1/2 cup ground tangerines or oranges
1 cup sugar

OPTIONAL for a REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CHEESECAKE:

• 2 OREO Cookie Crumb Crusts, dumped into the springform pan and pressed until firm in the bottom and up the side of the pan.
• 1 Cup Creamy Peanut Butter
• 8 oz. Dark Baking Chocolate (8 Squares melted), to coat the inside of the crust
• Sufficient Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (I quartered the small ones... 10-15 before I quartered them) to cover the bottom of the crust and chocolate coating.
• Mini-Reese's or quartered pieces/chunks of Reese's candies to place randomly over the top after the cheesecake is finished baking.
• 1/2 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted (to drizzle on top for decoration)
• Icing for garnish around the bottom (optional)
• 24 whole OREO COOKIES to make Mini-cheesecakes with leftover filling (optional)

BAKING DIRECTIONS (FOR ALL VERSIONS!):

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place a shallow pan of water in the lower rack or bottom of your oven. This will add moisture while baking and keep your cheesecake from cracking on top. Be sure to add enough water to keep it from going dry during baking. I usually use a jellyroll pan (like a large deep cookie sheet) and add it as full as I can with water. PREPARE a graham cracker CRUST in the bottom of a LARGE springform pan. (See back of Nabisco Graham Cracker Crumbs box for recipe. OR, do as I do--- purchase a large pre-made graham cracker crust, or a couple of small crusts, and dump them into the springform pan after you spray the bottom and side really well with nonstick coating. Use your fingers and palm of your hand to press the crust firmly until smooth and well packed in the bottom of the pan. Set aside until you mix the filling. It is NOT necessary to bake this before pouring in the filling.)

NOTE: IF YOU ARE MAKING THE REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER VERSION, YOU WILL NEED TO USE THE OREO COOKIE CRUMB CRUST HERE INSTEAD OF GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS. I USE TWO OF THE PREMADE CRUSTS, WHICH ARE SMALL. THEY WILL FILL THE BOTTOM AND PART OF THE WAY UP THE SIDES. DON'T WORRY IF THEY DON'T GO ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP. ONCE LINED, MELT 8 OZ. --or 8 squares-- BAKING CHOCOLATE AND SPREAD OVER THE BOTTOM OF THE CRUST, THEN, REFRIGERATE UNTIL READY FOR FILLING. THIS ALLOWS THE CHOCOLATE TO HARDEN BEFORE YOU ADD THE FILLING.

PREPARE FILLING (for ALL VERSIONS): Blend the drained cottage cheese (don’t worry if it doesn’t all drain out.) in a food processor (blender) until very creamy (looks like sour cream when ready). Beat cream cheese at high speed of mixer until creamy. Add the blended cottage cheese and mix well. (NOTE: IF MAKING REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER VERSION, ADD PEANUT BUTTER WITH THIS CREAM CHEESE MIXTURE AND BLEND WELL.)  Add sugar and beat well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Reduce speed to low. Add cornstarch, lemon juice, and vanilla. Blend well. Add melted butter and sour cream. Mix until all is well blended. Pour into prepared pan. (NOTE: IF MAKING REESE'S PB VERSION, YOU ONLY NEED TO FILL YOUR PAN ABOUT 3/4 FULL. YOU WILL HAVE ENOUGH LEFTOVER FILLING TO MAKE SOME MINI-CHEESECAKES. I USED MEDIUM SIZED CUPCAKE TINS LINED WITH CUPCAKE PAPERS. I HAD JUST ENOUGH TO FILL 24 CUPCAKES. I FILLED THEM ABOUT 2/3 FULL. I BAKED THE CUPCAKES AT 325 DEGREES FOR ABOUT 25-30 MINUTES. AFTER THESE BAKED, I DRIZZLED THE TOPS OF SOME WITH WITH MELTED CHOCOLATE AND GARNISHED OTHERS WITH A SOLID LAYER OF MELTED CHOCOLATE AND A "STAR" OF PIPED ICING.) Bake cheesecake for 70 minutes at 325. Turn off oven and leave cheesecake inside with oven door closed for at least 2 hours (overnight is best). Remove and cool completely before removing sides of pan. (I like to let mine sit on a cookie sheet for a while --until it comes to room temperature---before I remove the side of the pan.)

NOTE: If you choose to top the cheesecake with a sour cream topping instead of the orange topping below, you will need to add the topping as soon as it finishes baking (or within the first 30 minutes if you need time for it to settle a little to give space at the top) and leave it in the 325 degree oven for about 10 minutes before turning the oven off.

FOR SOUR CREAM TOPPING:

Mix well:

1 - 16 oz. carton sour cream blended with ¾ to 1 Cup sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla. Spread evenly from the outside rim (touching rim) to the inside middle. Smooth flat on the surface. Return the cheesecake to the oven for a final 15 minutes to “set” the topping. Turn the oven off and DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR. Allow it to sit for about 2 hours (or overnight) to cool before removing to cool at room temperature. Once cool, slice a sharp knife around the rim of the springform pan and open the spring latch to remove (lift straight up for smoother sides).

FOR ORANGE TOPPING:

(NOTE: I’ve never used this. I always use the sour cream topping. However, a friend--Barbara--makes this, and it is delicious. It’s just too much trouble for me.) Combine ground fruit with sugar and stir over moderate heat until sugar melts. Cook, stirring frequently, until it thickens. Cool and spoon over cheesecake. Don’t overcook or it will be hard. (You might also use orange marmalade for this step.)

FOR REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS TOPPING:

As soon as the cheesecake is done (about 70 minutes), open the oven briefly and randomly place mini-Reese's cups (or chopped Reese's cups) around over the top of the cheesecake, DO NOT REMOVE THE CHEESECAKE FROM THE OVEN. Do this as quickly as possible and close the door. Turn off the oven and allow the cheesecake to sit in the oven for 1 - 2 hours before removing it to a cookie sheet or countertop to cool to room temperature.  Once cool, slide a sharp knife around the rim of the springform pan and open the spring latch to remove (lift straight up for smoother sides). Melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in your microwave and drizzle one direction then the opposite direction over the top and down the sides. Refrigerate and enJOY! :-)

Thank you to all who commented on the photo and requested the recipe. Hope you enJOY making sharing your creation with your family.

Blessings!

Pat