You are going to fall for this chocolate brownie cheesecake topped with a mocha whipped cream. The combination is absolutely amazing and sure to impress!
Do you know what today is? It’s Cake Slice Day!
It is so fun to have an excuse to bake something a little extra special once a month and share it with my cake baking friends. We have been baking our way through Maida Heatter’s Cakes since November.
Each month we are given four recipes to choose from and we each bake one. Usually it is a surprise what everyone else baked, but there has been a little cheating on that this month! 😉
In the end, that only ends up being a win for you guys as there is a great chance you will get to see them all! I love the book, but there are no pictures and I have no imagination so I love seeing what everyone made!
So I was choosing knowing 2 of the 4 choices has already been baked. I wanted to do a different one, so the remaining options were the Mocha Chip Chiffon Cake and the Chocolate Brownie Cheesecake.
Having done a coffee flavored cake in the Coffee and Cream Sponge Cake last month (it was delicious and you should totally make one!), I almost through the chiffon cake out based on it being another mocha cake.
But, I really like using this group to further my baking skills and I have never made a chiffon cake. I was in a real quandry.
So, I turned to my trusty assistant, otherwise known as my husband, for a verdict. He doesn’t have nearly as hard of a time making a decision as I do.
He chose the cheesecake based on the fact he didn’t know what a chiffon cake was. Goofball!
But I asked, so I didn’t have to like the reasoning, I just had to bake a cheesecake!
The cheesecake was fun to make too. I simplified the process quite a bit. I love hearing how Maida does it, but I feel like she adds a lot of steps in just for the sake of adding steps.
First you bake a batch of Fabulously Fudgy Brownies. Then you cut them into small pieces and freeze them.
Maida makes cheesecakes in a solid pan, dumps them, presses in graham cracker crumbs and inverts the whole thing. I just pulled out a trusty springform pan and made a more common graham cracker crust.
I do like to keep the crust layer thin though, I don’t like a huge crust on my cheesecake. You can increase the crust measurements if you like a thicker crust.
I loved the recipe, even with my simplified instructions. The texture of the cheesecake was great and the fact that it was studded with brownie made it all the better.
The only place I really went wrong was choosing my heart shaped springform pan. I couldn’t find a pan large enough to do the water bath, so I just gave it a steamy oven instead.
I really should have dropped the temperature a bit, but didn’t think of it until after my cheesecake had already cracked. So, I did what anyone in my position would do, made Mocha Whipped Cream to cover the crack.
The whipped cream was completely to hide a boo-boo, but it was DELICIOUS! I mean the combination is absolutely decadent and delicious.
I’ll say it’s optional as it wasn’t part of the original recipe, but it is HIGHLY encouraged! When one of my brothers asked what kind of cheesecake it was, my youngest brother Collin (who had already taken a couple bites of his slice) said “too good!” I’ll take that as a win!
Update: Chloe has been wanting this cheesecake ever since she saw it on the blog. So much so that she requested one for her birthday.
Of course I had to make her one and it was as big of a hit the second time around as it was the first! She was happy to keep the leftovers too.
Collin has also requested this cake for his birthday. I think it is now the most requested birthday treat in the family.
If that’s not a sign that you should make one, I am not sure what is. So go ahead and get the ingredients on your grocery list so you can bake it up!
Brownie Chunk Cheesecake with Mocha Whipped Cream
You are going to fall for this chocolate brownie cheesecake topped with a mocha whipped cream. The combination is absolutely amazing and sure to impress!
Ingredients
Brownies
- 1 cup flour
- 3 T cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup butter
- 2 oz bittersweet chocolate
- 1 tsp instant coffee
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
Cheesecake
- 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 2 T cocoa powder
- 3 T butter, melted
- 2 T sugar
- 2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
Mocha Whipped Cream
- 2 T bittersweet chocolate
- 1 T water
- 1 T instant coffee
- 1 cup cream (super cold)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 T sugar
Instructions
Brownies
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease an 8×8″ pan
- In a large saucepan, melt butter and chocolate over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat.
- Stir in coffee powder, extracts, salt and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Sift the flour and cocoa powder into the pan and stir until fully incorporated.
- Pour into prepared pan and smooth the top.
- Bake for 23-25 minutes.
- Allow them to cool. Enjoy 1/3 of the pan for your treat and cut the other 2/3 of the brownies into really small pieces, about 1/2″ squares. Freeze the small pieces until ready to use.
Cheesecake
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease a 9" springform pan. Mix together graham cracker crumbs, cocoa powder, sugar and butter. Press into the bottom of your pan. (Feel free to double those ingredients if you like a more substantial crust.) Bake for 7 minutes, then set aside.
- In your mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is soft and completely smooth scraping the bowl a few times along the way. Add the vanilla, salt and sugar and beat until well mixed. Add the eggs, one at a time. Mix on low speed after each addition and for no longer than is necessary to incorporate the egg.
- Pour enough of the cheesecake batter onto the graham crust to form a layer about 1/2″ thick. Fold the frozen brownie bits into the remaining cheesecake, being careful to leave them as intact as possible. Spread the batter with brownies into the pan, smoothing the top.
- If possible, place the pan into a water bath (if not, turn the oven down to 325°F and bake for about 1 hour and 45 minutes). Bake for 1 1/2 hours. The top should brown and the middle should be mostly set. You can check the internal temperature if you’d like, it should be at least 150°F.
- Remove from water bath if using and allow to cool at room temperature for a couple of hours. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Topping
- In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate until it is smooth. Start with a 30 second burst, then stir. Microwave in 15 second bursts after that, stirring after each one until just melted and smooth.
- Stir together 1 T hot water and 1 T instant coffee. Stir into melted chocolate until smooth and allow to cool to room temperature.
- If you have the space, place your mixer bowl and beater in the refrigerator to chill. (It's not necessary, but does help the cream whip easier.) Whip cream, vanilla and sugar until it just begins to form soft peaks.
- With the mixer blade going, add the chocolate/coffee mixture to the bowl. Whip until you reach your desired consistency.
- Pipe or spread over cold cheesecake. Garnish with mini chocolate chips if desired
Notes
This cheesecake cuts best when cold. It can be eaten straight from the fridge, but it better at closer to room temperature. I suggest you cut it while it is still cold and allow it to come to room temperature as individual pieces already on their serving dishes. This will cut the time needed to come up to temperature considerably and will give you the nicest looking pieces of cheesecake.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 372Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 110mgSodium: 205mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 25gProtein: 6g
All nutritional information is estimated and will depend on the exact ingredients you use.
More great cheesecake recipes:
Now it’s time to see what the other bakers baked!
Carlee
Wednesday 30th of March 2016
The mocha whipped cream really sets it off! Thanks so much, Elaine!
Unknown
Wednesday 30th of March 2016
Oh my gosh, this looks amazing Carlee! I am sharing and I'm pinning to make the next time we have an event!
Carlee
Wednesday 30th of March 2016
Thank you! It is definitely a great one to knock the socks of your guests!
Unknown
Wednesday 30th of March 2016
Ohh! Mocha whipped cream sounds amazing! Thanks so much for sharing at Inspiration Thursday! Pinned this recipe!
Carlee
Wednesday 30th of March 2016
It is! ;-)
Kim - KnockitoffKim.com
Tuesday 29th of March 2016
Carlee, this looks delicious and beautiful! Thanks so much for linking up at the You Link It, We Make It party and we hope you'll link up your favorites with us again!
Carlee
Tuesday 29th of March 2016
Thanks, Kim! It really was so good! Thanks for hosting!
Unknown
Monday 28th of March 2016
Could this be any more perfect? I love brownies, cheesecake, and coffee and chocolate. This dessert has my name written all over it. I love that you made it in the heart shaped pan it makes it just that much more special. And perhaps the crack in the cheesecake was a lucky break because then you all got the coffee mocha whipped cream on top. I love the star tip that you used for the whipped cream this is really a special and gorgeous dessert. Almost too pretty to eat, but I think I'd get around that!
Carlee
Monday 28th of March 2016
You would definitely have to get around it! I was sad about the crack to start, but was thanking my lucky stars after it came together. It is funny how that stuff works, sometimes things are a blessing in disguise ;-) Though with cheesecake it is pretty much a blessing no matter what!