Black And Cheesecake

Total Time: 7 hrs Preparation Time: 5 hrs Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 16
• 22 graham crackers (2 "inch" square)
• 3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, very finely chopped
• 2 1/2 lbs cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 5 large eggs
• 4 ounces chocolate, melted and cooled
• 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled

Recipe

• 1 position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees f.
• 2 lightly butter the bottom only of a 10x3" springform pan, and wrap the outside of the pan with foil to prevent leakage.
• 3 in a food processor fitted with the steel blade, pulverize the graham crackers into crumbs (you'll have about 1-1/4 cups).
• 4 transfer the crumbs to a mixing bowl, add the melted butter, and mix with a rubber spatula.
• 5 with your fingers, press the crumb mixture over the bottom of the springform pan, reaching all the way to the sides so it forms a bit of a seal against leakage.
• 6 bake for 10 minutes.
• 7 remove the pan from the oven and immediately scatter the chopped chocolate evenly over the crust.
• 8 return the pan to the oven for a minute to melt the chocolate, remove it from the oven, and with a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon, quickly spread the chocolate over the crust.
• 9 set aside and lower the heat to 300 degrees f.
• 10 with an electric mixer (or a stationary mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) on low speed, beat the cream cheese for 2 minutes or until soft and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• 11 with the machine running, add the sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
• 12 add the orange zest, flour, and cream, and continue to beat slowly until homogenized.
• 13 add the eggs, one at a time, beating for 15 seconds between additions to make sure each one is thoroughly incorporated.
• 14 pour 3 cups of the batter into a separate bowl and blend in the chocolate.
• 15 blend the unsweetened chocolate into the remaining batter.
• 16 alternately and randomly spoon the dark and batters into the prepared pan.
• 17 with a knife, or the blunt end of a wooden skewer, swirl the chocolate batter into the one, but don't overmix.
• 18 set the pan on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour.
• 19 lower the heat to 250°f and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour longer, or until the batter does not look wet.
• 20 the cake will still appear wobbly, but that is okay.
• 21 remove the cake to a wire rack and cool it to room temperature in the pan.
• 22 unlock the springform and lift out the cake, but leave it on the metal base.
• 23 chill the cake in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.
• 24 keep in the refrigerator, wrapped airtight in plastic, for up to 5 days.
• 25 remove the cheesecake 30 minutes before serving.
• 26 you can also freeze this cake for a couple of months.