Coffee Mocha Cheesecake

I wanted to try a new flavor of cheesecake and B requested mocha cheesecake for his birthday. I tried this recipe from Bon Appetit, but did a LOT of modifying, both intentionally and not. Well, that’s what a test dummy is for!

For the sake of health (and since B has a sad lack of bakeware) I made a half batch. This time I decided to replace nearly all the cream cheese with nonfat Greek yogurt. With all the rich chocolate and coffee, you can’t tell the difference…it tastes just as deliciously unhealthy and rich as any Cheesecake Factory slice!

I did not have coffee liqueur, but the original recipe calls for it. I also accidentally bought instant latte (the expresso was sold out, and being in a tiny Midwest town, I had limited grocery options). Since the milk powder diluted the flavor, I just went ahead and added coffee grounds straight up for more pizazz.

Bryan: Uh, are used coffee grounds edible?
Chef Uy: Why not? People eat chocolate covered coffee beans from Trader Joe’s!
Bryan: I think those are roasted, so they’re not bitter.
Chef Uy: Oh well *dumps scoops of coffee grounds into the batter*

If you want to sleep well, don’t eat too much of this cheesecake before bedtime, because that coffee caffeine is definitely there.

Coffee Mocha Cheesecake

Ingredients 
Crust:
1/2 9-ounce box chocolate teddy grahams, crushed
2 tablespoons sugar
expresso powder to taste
1.5 ounces chocolate, chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, hot

Filling:
1 8 oz package cream cheese, room temp
1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
3/4 cups sugar
instant espresso / coffee powder
2 large eggs
4 ounces chocolate, chopped
3/4 cups nonfat Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons sugar
instant espresso / coffee powder

Garnish:
heavy whipping cream
sugar
strong coffee
chocolate, grated
coffee bean candies (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Crust: Finely grind cookies, sugar and espresso powder in processor. Add chocolate and chop finely. Add butter and blend until moist crumbs form. Press crumbs onto bottom of the pan. Bake for 10 min.

Filling:  Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese, 1 cup yogurt, and sugar in large bowl. Add coffee powder to a few tablespoons of boiling water until coffee dissolves. Add coffee (plus coffee grounds if desired) to cream cheese mixture and beat until smooth. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until combined. This is the base coffee filling for the bottom layer.

Divide this base filling into two equal portions. Pour one portion (1/2 of your filling) onto the crust. Bake until partially set, about 20 minutes.

Melt chocolate in top of double broiler over simmering water. Stir chocolate into the second portion (te remaining 1/2 of the filling). This will be your chocolate layer; carefully spoon chocolate filling over the (baked) coffee filling. Continue baking cheesecake until set on edges but center 2 inches still move slightly when pan is shaken, about 20-25 minutes.

Transfer cheesecake to rack and cool 20 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.

Topping: Mix remaining 3/4 cup yogurt, coffee, and sugar in bowl. Spoon topping over cheesecake. Bake 10 minutes. Transfer cheesecake to rack. Run small sharp knife around crust sides to loosen. Cool completely. Cover and chill overnight.

Garnish:
Whipping heavy whipping cream, sugar, and coffee (to taste) and top the edges. Grate chocolate and decorate with coffee bean candies.

To simplify, you could remove the last third layer (the topping), but it’s a good way to cover cracks. You can also bake and swirl the two filling layers and bake at the same time, but I think there’s less cracking when you bake a little bit at a time.