Ohhhh, it’s been so long my friends. But with another deployment looming over head my days have been very full, but I return to you with a gift.. a gift of chocolate, a gift of bacon, and one of cheesecake (oh and there is beer in there too). You may be thinking I went looney tunes in my time away, but I’ve shown you before how well beer and bacon go with chocolate, so what the hay let’s just throw them all together!! While we are at it, let’s candy the bacon too! Ohhhhh yeaaaaa.
I made this recently for a little pre-D barbecue for the Mister and some friends, and let me tell you the guys LOVED it! Not to say the women and I didn’t thoroughly enjoy it, but the men were particularly boisterous with how amazing they thought it was.
Now if you recall, I don’t like beer.. in fact i down right hate it, but there’s something about it that is okay when it’s hidden in chocolate (or on bacon), so if you aren’t a fan either don’t worry, this dessert is still for you. Just trust me on this one. Hope this post finds you all well, I haven’t forgotten about you!
Bacon Chocolate Stout Cheesecake (Print Me)
Ingredients:
For the Crust:
4 standard sized graham crackers
1 cup pretzels
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
6 Tablespoons butter, melted
For the filling:
7 oz dark chocolate (60%)
1 cup stout (I used a chocolate stout)
3 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 Tablespoons flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 Tablespoons espresso powder (or 2 Tbsp ground espresso)
3/4 cup beer candied bacon, finely chopped
For the topping:
2/3 cup hot fudge sauce
1/2 cup beer-candied bacon, finely chopped
Directions:
Place oven rack in the middle position, on the rack below place a baking dish filled with water. Preheat your oven to 350º.
In a food processor or blender add the graham crackers, sugar and the pretzels and process until it’s the consistency of crumbs. Slowly stream in the butter and process until it resembles wet sand.
Spray the inside of a 9-inch spring form pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the processed crumbs into the spring form pan. Using the bottom of a heavy, flat bottom glass, press the crust very well into the bottom and up sides of the pan until well compacted.
In a pot over medium high heat, add the beer and the chocolate, stir until melted then remove from heat. Allow to cool.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. One at a time, add the eggs, scraping the bottom of the bowl between additions. Pour the cooled chocolate into the mixer and beat until well combined. Lift the head of the mixer and add flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and bacon over the batter, stir on low speed until just combined.
Pour the batter into the pan over the crust. Place the pan in the oven positioned over the pan of water. Bake the cheesecake until the center no longer jiggles when you shake the rack, about 45-50 minutes. Do not try to use a toothpick to test, you just want the center to set as it will continue to cook when you take it out of the oven. Allow cheesecake to cool completely.
For the topping, warm your hot fudge sauce just until it is pourable. Gently pour and spread over the top to make a thin chocolate coat, and allow to sit and solidify for about 15 minutes. Top the chocolate with the chopped bacon. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.
Source: Tide & Thyme
