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Marbled Chocolate-Orange Cheesecake - dairy

Posted by : Karen Selwyn

Since this recipe for Marbled Chocolate-Orange Cheesecake is from a

non-Jewish source, GOURMET, I suspect the magazine thought they were

merely providing a variation of the classic cheesecake recipe.  I

suspect they did not know they were creating a fusion Jewish recipe. 

The basic cheesecake is a classic Central and Eastern European dessert,

but the flavorings are pure Sephardic.



As Faye Levy explains in her INTERNATIONAL JEWISH COOKBBOK, "I learned

that chocolate was brought from the New World to Spain, but I was not

aware of the major role played by the Jews in introducing chocolate to

the rest of Europe.  Parisian chef Alain Dutournier told me recently

that in his home region in southwestern France, near the border with

Spain, many of the master chocolatiers were of Jewish origin.  Bayonne,

a major city in the region was the first city in France where chocolate

was made, and remains a chocolate center to this day.  Chocolate making

in Bayonne was started by Jews who had settled in Southwest France after

being chased out of Spain during the Inquisition.  The new product

rapidly gained favor in the area and spread throughout France."



Claudia Roden writes: "Grated orange zest, chocolate, and vanilla are

signs of an Iberian ancestry."



Karen Selwyn



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Marbled Chocolate-Orange Cheesecake



For the crust:

1 cup chocolate wafer cookie crumbs

1/2 cup sifted confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted



For the filling:

2 pounds cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/3 cup fresh orange juice

1 1/4 teaspoons freshly grated orange rind

1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

5 large eggs at room temperature

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled



For the glaze:

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 cup confectioners's sugar



Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.



Make the crust: In a bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and the

confectioners' sugar. Stir in the butter and press the mixture firmly onto the

bottom of a 10-inch springform pan.



Make the filling: In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream together the

cream cheese and the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the

orange juice, the rind, the vanilla, and the butter.  Beat the mixture until

it is well combined.  Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each

addition.  Transfer one fourth of the mixture to a small bowl, and stir in

the chocolate.



Pour the chocolate mixture back into the bowl containing the cream cheese-egg

mixture.  Using a broad spatula, make swirls through the mixture to achieve a

marbled effect.  Pour the batter into the springform pan. 



Bake the cheesecake in the middle of the oven for 1 hour.  Turn the oven off,

and remove the cheesecake from the oven. Run a sharp knife around the edge of

the of the pan to help prevent the cheesecake from cracking.



Return the cheesecake to the oven, prop the oven door open sightly and let the

cheesecake cool in the somewhat open oven for 1 hour.  Transfer the cheesecake

to a rack and let it cool completely.



Remove the rim of the pan and chill the cheesecake for at least 12 hours and

up to 24 hours.



Make the glaze: In a small bowl, combine the orange juice, the butter and the

confectioners' sugar.  Blend well.  Spread the glaze over the top of the

cheesecake.

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