Comfort Food

This chocolate cherry cheesecake is pretty easy, but waiting until it is chilled before eating is hard to do! The chilling step is an important one, as the texture and flavor really benefit from time in the fridge. Dark chocolate and cherry are a match made in heaven, in my humble opinion.

Ingredients
  • 24 whole chocolate sandwich cookies (such as OREO)
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 pinches salt, divided, or to taste
  • 4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 3 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream, divided
  • 1 (21 ounce) can cherry pie filling, divided
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
Step By Step Method
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
  2. Place whole sandwich cookies In a food processor or high speed blender; pulse several times, until crumbs are quite small.
  3. Combine crumbs, melted butter, and 1 pinch salt. Stir until well blended, breaking up any missed large cookie pieces. Press crumb mixture on the bottom and about 1 inch up the sides of a 10-inch springform pan.
  4. Beat cream cheese in a bowl with an electric mixer and beat on medium speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in 1 egg at a time, making sure each egg is well incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down sides of the bowl as needed.
  5. Add almond extract and sugar to cream cheese mixture; beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup heavy cream, blending well. Carefully pour about half the batter into the prepared pan.
  6. Spoon 1 cup pie filling over the batter in the pan, distributing evenly. Spoon remaining batter in a smooth layer on top of pie filling. Place filled springform on a cookie sheet.
  7. Bake in the center of the preheated oven until the center of the cheesecake is set, about 1 hour and 5 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack, about 1 hour.
  8. For glaze, heat remaining 1/2 cup heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to steam. Remove from heat; add chocolate chips and pinch salt. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.
  9. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place cheesecake on the lined cookie sheet and release the side of the springform pan. Pour chocolate glaze on top of the cooled cheesecake, allowing some of the glaze to drizzle down the side.
  10. Refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 3 hours or overnight. To serve, slice into 16 slices. Top each slice with a bit of remaining pie filling.