Polka Dot Cheesecake

I wasn't planning on blogging this cheesecake recipe, at least not without some tweaking, but various family members objected when they found this out so this post is in honor of them. Mainly this includes my mom, aunt, and brother who all brushed off my concerns and disappointment and insisted that I blog the recipe.

I must point out that there is absolutely nothing wrong with the taste of the cheesecake...in fact it was delicious. The cake was perfectly creamy and the mini chocolate cakes were insanely chocolatey and rich. My disappoint with the cake lay in the fact that I didn't accurately carry out my vision in terms of design. I had seen the polka dot concept online and tried to recreate it with my cake, for my birthday no-less. Unfortunately the recipes I saw online where for smaller cake pans than my own and also for different shapes. Therefore I tried to adapt the recipe to my needs but it didn't turn out quite how I would have liked.

My first problem, evident once I separated the batter into the vanilla and chocolate components, was that I had allotted to much batter for the chocolate polka dots and should have kept more for the vanilla. As soon as I piped out the polka dots and saw how much batter I had left I instantly regretted my approximations and knew that the cake would turn out quite short instead of tall like a regular cheesecake. Fortunately the extra chocolate batter did not go to waste as I poured it into a mini muffin tin and baked mini cheesecakes. I suppose it was fated this way because when I later plated the cake I had exactly the right amount of mini cheesecakes to completely surround the cake, not one more or one less.

My second problem, obvious once I removed the cake from the oven, was that the different densities of the chocolate polka dots as compared to the vanilla base created cracks in the cake. Each polka dot became separated from the vanilla and instead of looking like one smooth surface it appeared as though I had cut out vanilla holes from the cake and replaced them with chocolate ones of the same size.

Needless to say, I was not exactly thrilled with the look of the cake once finished, especially considering that I had made it for my own birthday and it didn't turn out as planned. Still, the taste exactly what I had wanted and I decorated the cake with some raspberries upon my mom's suggestion. I still haven't figured out how I could have prevented the cracks and separation of the layers, given the differing densities of the batters, but I'm willing to work on the issue. Despite my initial disappointment, I felt much better once everyone started to eat and enjoy the cake...and surprisingly enough the mini chocolate cheesecakes were everyone's favorite part. I guess sometimes the things you don't plan for actually turn out to be better than the original.

Polka Dot Cheesecake:
Note: This is the recipe I originally created and followed. It produced one 11" cake and 21 mini cheesecakes. Modifications in parentheses are for the new approximations I have made, meant to produce one 11" cheesecake without the minis, but taller.

For the crust:

• 2 cups Oreo crumbs
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Combine the Oreo crumbs and melted butter and transfer to an 11" springform pan, pressing down gently along the bottom and sides. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 minutes then set aside to cool.

For the filling:

• 2 lbs (4 blocks) cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 100 grams chocolate, melted (alternative: 25 grams)

1. Beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth.
2. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, making sure to scrape down the bowl occasionally.
3. Beat in the sour cream then proceed to separate the batter. I had originally taken out 2 cups of batter and mixed it with 100 grams of melted chocolate. (Alternatively: take out 1/2 cup batter and mix with 25 grams). To the remaining batter add the vanilla and mix through.
4. Pour the vanilla batter into the cake pan. Pour the chocolate batter into a piping bag. I just used a ziploc bag and cut off the corner.
5. Insert the tip of the piping bag into the center of the cake, about 1/4" deep. Gently squeeze out chocolate batter until a circle about 1" in diameter forms. You can play around and try bigger or smaller polka dots depending on how you think it looks best. Continue with this until you fill the surface of the cake with polka dots. Make sure to space them far enough so that there is no risk that they will fuse while baking.
6. If there is extra chocolate batter, pour into mini muffin pan or tart shells.
7. Bake the cheesecake in a water bath at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 50 minutes. Without opening the oven door, turn off the oven and allow the cake to cool inside for 1 1/2 hours. Cool completely to room temperature before transferring the cake to the refrigerator and chilling for at least four hours, though preferably overnight.
8. For the mini cheesecakes: Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes. Let them sit in the oven, turned off, for 10 minutes, then cool completely with the oven door slightly ajar. Once cooled, transfer to the refrigerator for at least four hours.