Recipes : Devil's Food Cheesecake : Food Network

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Devil's Food Cheesecake
Recipe courtesy Junior’s Cheesecake Cookbook, 50 To-Die-For Recipes for New York–Style Cheesecake, by Alan Rosen and Beth Allen

Ingredients
For the cheesecake layer:
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese (use only full fat), at room temperature
1 1/3 cups sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs
2/3 cup heavy or whipping cream

For the devil's food cake (3 layers):
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 extra-large eggs, separated
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the Chocolate Curls:
12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, shaved into Large Chocolate Curls
(see below)

For the dark fudge frosting:
6 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy or whipping cream

Directions
Early in the day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
and generously butter the bottom and sides of one 9-inch springform pan
(preferably a nonstick one). Wrap the outside with aluminum foil, covering the

bottom and extending all the way up the sides.

To make the cheesecake layer, put one package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the
sugar, and the cornstarch in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low
until creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl a couple of times. Blend in
the remaining cream cheese, one package at a time, scraping down the bowl after
each. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat in the remaining 1 cup sugar,
then the vanilla. Blend in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after adding
each. Beat in the cream just until it's completely blended. Be careful not to
overmix!

Gently spoon the batter into the foil-wrapped springform and place it in a large
shallow pan containing hot water that comes about 1 inch up the sides of the
springform. Bake the cake at 350 degrees F until the edges are light golden brown

and the top is slightly golden tan, about 1 1/4 hours. Remove the cake from the
water bath, transfer to a wire rack, and cool in the pan for 2 hours, cover with
plastic wrap, and refrigerate (while still in the pan) until it's completely cold,
about 4 hours. Place in the freezer until ready to assemble the cake.

Meanwhile, prepare the devil's food cake layers. Check that the oven is preheated
to 350 degrees F and that the water bath has been removed. Generously butter the
bottom and sides of three 9-inch round layer cake pans. Very important: Line the
bottom of all three pans with parchment or waxed paper (don't let the paper come
up the sides).

Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Cream the butter
and both sugars together in a large bowl with the mixer on medium until light

yellow and creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each. Beat
in the melted chocolate and vanilla. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the flour
mixture, alternately with the milk, mixing well after each until blended.

Put the egg whites and cream of tartar in a clean medium-size bowl and beat with
clean, dry beaters on high until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Fold about
one-third of the whites into the chocolate batter until they disappear, then
gently fold in the remaining whites. Don't worry if you still see a few white
specks--they'll disappear during baking. Divide the batter evenly between the
three pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out with moist
crumbs clinging to it, about 30 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pans on a rack for
15 minutes, then remove the cakes from the pans and gently peel off the paper
liners. Let cool completely, about 2 hours, then cover with plastic wrap and
refrigerate overnight or until ready to assemble the cake.

Directions
Early on the day you plan to serve the cake, make the
chocolate curls and lay them out on the marble or baking sheet to dry. Now make
the frosting: In a large bowl, sift the confectioners' sugar, cocoa, and salt
together. In another large bowl, cream the butter with a mixer on high until light
yellow and slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. With the mixer still running, beat
in the chocolate, corn syrup, and vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat
in the sugar-cocoa mixture in two additions, beating well after each. Blend in the
cream until the frosting is a spreading consistency, adding a little more cream if
needed. Whip the frosting on high until light and creamy, about 2 minutes more.

To assemble the cake, remove the cheesecake from the freezer and let stand at room
temperature about 10 minutes. Place one layer of devil's food cake, top side down,

on a cake plate and spread with some of the frosting. Release and remove the ring
of the springform, then remove the frozen cheesecake from the bottom of the pan.
Place top side down on the frosted cake layer and spread with some frosting. Top
with the second devil's food layer, top side down. Spread with more frosting and
cover with the third devil's food layer, top side up. Brush away any crumbs from
the sides and top of the fudge cake layers. Frost the sides and top of the cake
with the remaining frosting, spreading the top with frosting about 1/2 inch deep.
Use a long metal spatula that has been warmed under hot running water to smooth
out the frosting on the sides and top of the cake. Coat the sides with the
chocolate curls, placing them where you want. With a small spatula or table knife,
swirl the frosting on top into a decorative design. Or, if you wish, decorate with
a crosshatch design: Make about 6 vertical lines, 1 inch apart, then crisscross 6
more horizontal lines the same distance, swirling the icing a little as you go.
Refrigerate the cake for at least 2 hours to allow the cheesecake to thaw enough

to easily slice. Use a sharp straight-edge knife, not a serrated one, to cut it.
Cover any leftover cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate, or wrap and freeze for
up to 1 month.

Ingredients
Chocolate Curls:

Directions
At Junior's, the bakers often use dark chocolate curls
to decorate cheesecakes for a delicious and very professional looking
finish.

Ingredients
For large chocolate curls:

Directions
If you have a marble slab, use it. If not, use a
baking sheet (place the sheet in the refrigerator to chill first).
Melt the chocolate over low heat. Spread it out in a thin sheet on the flat
marble surface--but not so thin that you can see the surface through the
chocolate. Let the chocolate cool.

Using a baker's bench scraper or a wide, flat metal spatula, scrape up the
chocolate into wide curls, lifting them up as you work. The curls will be
different widths and lengths, but that's fine. If the chocolate curls up into one
long sheet, let it cool more before scraping again. Carefully place the curls
where you want them on the cake. If you are decorating the side of the cake with
them, press the curls gently into the frosting with your fingers so they stay,

without falling off.

Ingredients
For smaller chocolate curls:

Directions
Buy a thick bar of chocolate and use at room
temperature (not straight from the refrigerator). Stand up the chocolate bar
vertically, slightly on an angle, against a flat surface, such as a chopping
board. Slowly scrape down the bar with a vegetable peeler, allowing the chocolate
to fall away into a pile of soft curls. Using a wide, flat metal spatula,
carefully place them on the cake.