Sometimes I like to create my own recipes. I just have a look into my cupboards and fridge and go from there. Of course I base myself on something I had made before – I’m not THAT confident nor have I the training to do such a thing ex nihilo!

In this particular case I had some Oreo crumbs that needed using and lots of cream cheese lying around so… obviously: cheesecake! The filling is loosely based on a Nigella’s recipe but I used her method to a tee – even though I was scared of using cling film in the oven. When I made her recipe I used a ceramic baking dish but this time I used a loose base tin hence I had to wrap it in cling film and then in foil to make sure the water from the water bath didn’t get to my pie.

It’s quite big so I took it to lunch at my in-laws’ last Sunday and we devoured half of it. I brought home a quarter and shared it with a couple of friends who came over later and we polished it off! My friend Marcos said it was the best chocolate tart he’s ever had – not only the best chocolate cheesecake, THE BEST CHOCOLATE TART EVER (he even asked me to make one for his birthday!). My Official Taste Tester seconded him and said I had something special on my hands 😀

OREO CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE

CRUST
250g Oreo crumbs
125g butter

FILLING (loosely based on Nigella’s Chocolate Cheesecake)
170g dark chocolate, melted
450g cream cheese
150g caster sugar
1 heaping tablespoon cornflour
3 large eggs
160g plain yogurt

FINISHING TOUCHES
100g chocolate, chopped
50ml single cream
50g Oreo crumbs

Out of the water bath

METHOD
Start with the crust. In a food processor blend together Oreo crumbs and butter until the mixture starts to clump. Tip it into a loose base 23cm round tin, press it down the base and up the side about 3cm. Leave it in the freezer while you make the filling.

Preheat oven to 180°C, melt the chocolate in the microwave oven for about 1 minute and set aside to cool. Using the food processor (no need to wash it!), beat the cream cheese to soften it. Add sugar and eggs and beat again to combine. Dissolve the cornflour in half of the yogurt, add it to the bowl with the other half and beat once more. Finally add the melted chocolate and give it a beat one last time.

Take the tin out of the freezer and line the outside of the tin with a good layer of cling film, and then another layer of strong foil over that (this will protect it from the water bath). Sit the tin in a roasting tray and pour in the filling. Fill the roasting tray halfway up with just-boiled water and bake in the oven for 1 hour or until the top of the cheesecake sets – the underneath should still have a wobble to it.

Peel the foil and cling film away and allow it cool. Once cooled, wrap the top with cling film and put it in the fridge overnight.

The next day, make the ganache by heating the single cream in the microwave oven and adding the chopped chocolate. Let it cool whilst you take the cheesecake from the fridge and let it lose a bit of  its chill.

Pour the ganache over the cheesecake and sprinkle the top with Oreo crumbs. Chill for about ½ hour and unmould it before serving.

NOTE: The ganache here acts just as glue to the crumbs hence the thin layer.