Contests

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs or graham wafers
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 32 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 6 eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup maraschino cherries, chopped and dried
• 12 marachino cherries with stems patted dry
• 6 ounces dark chocolate
• 1/4 cup marachino juice
• 10 drops red food colouring

Directions

1. Be sure to put your racks in the centre and the lower third of your oven
2. Place a roasting pan on the lower rack filled halfway with water.
3. preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
4. Grease a 9 X 3" springform pan.
5. Mix together cookie crumbs, 2 tbsp sugar and melted butter till combined
6. Press cookie mixture into springform pan and set aside.
7. On medium speed, beat cream cheese and 1 cup sugar ONLY to combined, but few lumps.
8. Over a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate till smooth.
9. Take about 1/3 of the cream cheese mixture and set aside.
10. In this, add about 1/2 of the melted chocolate. Keep the chocolate warm and melted for dipping.
11. Mix well. Add the chopped cherries to the 2/3 batter left till combined along with cherry juice and food colouring
12. Randomly dollop each into the springform, like a marble cake.
13. When the filling is used up, tap the bottom of the pan very lightly on the counter to level and reduce air.
14. bake on centre rack for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until centre jiggles slightly.
15. While the cheesecake is baking, dip you stemmed marachino cherries in the remaining dark chocolate and place on parchment paper.
16. When the cheesecake looks to be done, DO NOT REMOVE FROM THE OVEN.
17. simply turn off the oven, open the oven door so that it is slightly ajar and leave for 1 hour.
18. remove from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the pan.
19. cool on a rack and chill overnight.
20. decorate with whipping cream, drizzle with melted dark chocolate or chocolate fudge and of course your chocolate dipped cherries!
21. You can also turn this one up a notch and use strawberries in place of cherries as well! Yummy!