Espresso Mocha Swirl Cheescake

Cheesecake is one of the most versatile desserts around. With a $20 limit, I knew I wouldn't be able to go crazy at the store so I needed to work with what we had. After a quick look through our pantry, I found some ground espresso beans and extra dark chocolate and I instantly knew what I wanted to make! The rest of the ingredients were well under our budget putting the final price of supplies well under budget (by nearly $9). Being my first cheesecake, I was excited to get started!

Espresso Cheesecake With A Mocha Swirl
(prep time: approx. 30 minutes)
(cook time: approx 4 hours)
(serves 6-12)

Sandwich Cookie Crust

2 cups (crushed) chocolate sandwich cookies

5 tbsp melted unsalted butter                        

Espresso Cheesecake Filling  
24 oz (3 packages) of cream cheese            
3/4 cup of sugar                                            
1 tsp vanilla extract                                      
1/3 cup brewed espresso                              
3 eggs                                                              

Mocha Swirl                           

4 oz 72% dark chocolate                              
About a third of the cheesecake filling          

Preparing The Pan

The key to a great cheesecake is heating and cooling gradually, otherwise you risk burning the top and leaving the inside a pile of hot goo. To avoid this, we baked the cheesecake using a 9" circular springform pan in a waterbath.

You can use mostly any baking pan, just be mindful of your cooking surface and that it's water-tight.

Get your springform pan ready. Measure and cut out your parchment paper; you'll need a circle for the bottom and a long rectangle for the side. Grease the pan with a layer of unsalted butter and lay in your parchment paper. I added an extra layer of butter to the top of the parchment paper. I was paranoid of anything sticking my first time so I most likely overdid the prep but it ended out working very well for me.

Preparing The Crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Crush cookies into a fine crumble. The easiest way to do this is in a food processor or blender. If you don't have access to either, bag up between 16-20 cookie sandwiches and with your most favorite rolling pin/crushing utensil and break down evenly. Measure out 2 cups.

Combine crumbs and melted butter in a bowl and stir until combined. The mixture should be very crumbly and keep its shape under pressure.

Pour your mix into the parchment lined pan. Evenly distribute the cookie mix and pat down until you have a level base. 

Bake your crust for 8-10 minutes until you start to see the edges develop a slight golden brown color. It may be a little difficult to tell, but if you're feeling daring, give the crust a quick touch test, it will be dry and hard. Let the crust cool completely to room temp before adding the filling.

Before we pour in the filling, let's prepare the pan for the waterbath and since springform pans are not so watertight, we'll keep the cheesecake from becoming a nasty, soggy mess by wrapping the base of your pan with a few layers of aluminum foil to create a good seal.

Filling Preparation

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. This was most easily done with our stand mixer and will definitely reduce the strain of hand beating cold cream cheese. Once smooth, add in sugar, vanilla extract, and espresso and mix thoroughly.

Add in the eggs one at a time, thoroughly incorporating between each.
Beat the mixture for about 1 more minute after the last egg is added just to make sure everything is evenly combined.

Separate a third (about 1 1/4 cup) of the cheesecake batter.
In a small bowl, heat your chocolate in the microwave, removing out and stirring every 15 seconds to keep your chocolate from burning.

Add the cheesecake filling to the melted chocolate a spoonful at a time to combine without heating the filling. Transfer to a piping bag.

Filling The Crust And Baking

Reduce the oven to 325 degrees. 
Pour the espresso cheesecake filling over your cooled crust. If you don't cool it beforehand you will start to cook the cheesecake too early and it'll throw off the whole dish and possibly open a wormhole to another dimension. (Remember gradual, even heat!)

Pipe your mocha filling on top in a pattern of your choice. This is a great chance to be creative! 
Draw something cute or even write a swear. We did concentric circles and ran a toothpick through.

Place your cake in the middle of your waterbath and pop the entire set-up to the oven. Bake for 60-70 minutes. You'll know it's done when it jiggles slightly when moved.

Turn off your oven but leave the cheesecake in with the door cracked slightly allowing hot air to escape.. We want to it to cool gradually so we can avoid cracks to form on the top. This could take up to 2 hours. So this would be a good time to do the dishes!

Decoration

Once your cheesecake has cooled, take your prize out of the oven; gently now. Place your sweet baby in the freezer for another hour or two or in the fridge overnight.

After you've waited so patiently and your cheesecake is sufficiently cooled, take it out and get ready to garnish!

We decided to use some more melted dark chocolate and crushed cookies. Wait until the chocolate hardens, slice yourself a nice-sized piece, and enjoy, you've earned it!