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.