Mocha Cheesecake

I love the flavor of coffee. In fact, most mornings, it takes every ounce of patience I can muster to wait for the coffee to finish perking. Yes, I like the fact that it makes me feel awake and ready to start the day, but I also LOVE the taste of coffee. 🙂 I guess that’s why I like this Mocha Cheesecake so much. As far as cheesecake goes, Classic Cheesecake is still my ultimate favorite, but this Mocha Cheesecake is a close second.

Making cheesecake is a somewhat long process and needs to be made the day before. I wouldn’t say it is overly complicated, just a bit time consuming and since the cheesecake needs to cool in the oven for a long time, it takes a little planning as well. Cheesecake is best made with a heavy duty mixer, like a kitchen-aide. I’m sure a hand mixer would work too – just might take a little longer. I definitely wouldn’t try making this by hand as I don’t know how the cream cheese would get smooth enough.

To get started with this Mocha Cheesecake, we need to make the chocolate crust. I like to use Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers for the chocolate cookie base. You might be able to use chocolate graham crackers or even oreos if you can’t find the chocolate wafers. These chocolate wafers are sometimes hard to find – check the ice cream topping section if you don’t find them with the cookies. I have no idea why they are there, but that’s where I find them in our local grocery store. In other stores, I’ve found them with the cookies, usually on the very top shelf. They also tend to be a little pricey and I’ve never found them on sale. 🙁 But, I think they are worth it with a strong chocolate flavor and not overly sweet.

Use 1/2 the box of cookies and crush them either in a food processor or in a plastic freezer bag with a rolling pin. Pour these into a bowl. Melt 2 Tbsp. of butter and add this to the chocolate cookie crumbs. Mix well. Pour into a greased 9 inch spring form pan and press down to form the crust. Place a piece of aluminum foil under the springform pan and wrap it up the sides. This will catch any butter leaks from the crust.

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For the filling, start by mixing the cream cheese and sugar until well combined and creamy. Do not under mix at this point because once the liquids are added, if there are any lumps, they will not smooth out. So, get it nice and smooth with no lumps before adding any liquid.

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In a small measuring cup, add 1 Tbsp. of instant coffee. I used 3 of these little packets that were left over from camping – anything works as long as it’s instant.

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Next, add coffee flavored liquor (I used Kahlua) to make 1/2 cup. Mix this well so that the instant coffee is dissolved.

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Add the liquor coffee mixture and 1 tsp. of vanilla extract to the creamed cheese and sugar mixture. Mix until well combined, scraping down the sides as necessary.

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Once this is mixed well, begin adding the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides in between each addition to make sure it is thoroughly mixed.

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Once all the eggs are mixed in, pour the mixture over the crust.

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Heat the oven to 325 degrees and place a pan of hot water on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour 45 minutes. When the timer goes off, turn off the heat to the oven, but leave the cheesecake in the oven and prop the door open with a wooden spoon. Leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool completely, about 8 hours or overnight. Once cool, place the cheesecake in the fridge and leave for at least 8 hours before taking it out of the pan.

When ready to serve, run a knife around the edge of the spring form pan. Pop the “spring” lever and take off the outer rim. Serve from the bottom of the cake pan or simply place on a serving plate. Or, if you want to move the cheesecake to a serving plate without the bottom of the pan, slide a very thin knife under the cheesecake all the way around to loosen the bottom. Carefully and quickly slide it onto the serving plate. Slice and serve.

mocha cheesecake

mocha cheesecake

Mocha Cheesecake

Homesteading Dreams
Creamy and delicious coffee flavored

Ingredients
  

Crust

  • 1/2 package of Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers
  • 2 Tbsp. butter melted

Filling

  • 4 8 oz. packages of cream cheese we use neufchatel
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. instant coffee
  • 1/2 cup coffee flavored liquor we use Kahlua
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 4 eggs

Instructions
 

Crust

  • Crush the chocolate wafers in a food processor or in a ziploc bag with a rolling pin.
  • In a bowl, mix the chocolate crumbs and the melted butter.
  • Pour into a 9" springform pan and press to form a crust.
  • Place a piece of aluminum foil under the pan and bring it up the sides to catch drips.

Filling

  • With a mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar until nice and creamy.
  • Mix the coffee liquor with the instant coffee crystals and add to the cream cheese mixture.
  • Add the vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  • When well combined, add the eggs one at a time, mixing completely after each addition.
  • Once thoroughly mixed, pour over the crust.
  • Heat the oven to 325 degrees and place a pan of warm water on the bottom rack of the oven.
  • Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 45 minutes.
  • When done, turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven with the door propped open until cool. I use a wooden spoon to prop the door open.
  • When cool, place in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours to chill.