Recipe: Black Forest Cheesecake Tart

This recipe for Black Forest Cheesecake Tart is slightly adapted from a recipe I have from an old Pillsbury soft-cover cookbook called “Desserts”. Their recipe makes this in a 9 x 13 pan and they call it squares instead of a tart.

I wanted something that would easily come out of the pan and make a really nice presentation, so I decided to use my tart pan. I used my 9 inch tart pan … next time I’ll use my 10 inch pan… I ended up with a crust a little thicker than I would like… it was delicious, but it definitely had to stand out of the fridge a while before cutting, otherwise the crust was tough to cut through nicely.

You can follow the recipe to the letter and use a 9 x 13 pan…. or if you use a tart pan like I did… you may have a little extra crust mixture that you can discard…. and you will definitely have extra filling…. which really isn’t a problem… I used the extra filling to make about 8 mini cheesecakes (like little cupcakes)… which were a terrific little snack… if you have kids… they’ll love them!

Just line your cupcake tin with paper liners and place a vanilla wafer in the bottom of each… if you don’t have vanilla wafers that’s okay… you really don’t need a crust… and fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 full. Bake at 325 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until set.

To garnish, use fresh fruit or pie filling.

I know it uses a cake mix and not totally from scratch… but this was quick and easy and we really liked the taste. You can use any brand of Marble cake mix.

I must tell you my cheese cake cracked…. but this time it really didn’t matter, the pie filling was on top anyway. You can add brandy to your pie filling or leave it out… I left it out and I didn’t notice anything missing.

I hope you try this… it was delicious!

Enjoy!

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Recipe: Black Forest Cheesecake Tart

All you need:

1 package Pillsbury Plus Fudge Marble or Fudge Swirl Cake Mix
¼ cup oil
3 eggs
3 (8 ounces each) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
½ cup sugar
½ cup sour cream
½ cup whipping (heavy) cream
Cherry pie filling
2 teaspoons brandy (optional)

All you need to do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray cooking spray on a 10 inch tart pan or a 9 x 13 baking pan.

Reserve 1 cup of the dry cake mix and swirl pouch. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the remaining cake mix, oil and 1 egg at low speed until the dough forms.

Press the dough in the bottom of the baking pan and up the sides (go up 1 inch if using the 9 x 13 pan). If you are making the tart, then make the thickness the same as a pie shell would be. You may have some extra dough to discard.

Bake the dough at 350 degrees F. for 8 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth and creamy.

Add the remaining 2 eggs, 1 at a time. Beat well after each egg.

With the mixer on low speed, add the reserved cake mix and mix well.

Add the sugar, sour cream and heavy cream.

Beat mixture for 3 minutes at medium speed until creamy.

Reserve 2 cups of the cheesecake mixture and set aside.

Spoon the cheesecake mixture over the crust…. If making the tart… only fill the tart 2/3 full… use the extra cheesecake mixture to make mini cheesecakes.

Mix the reserved swirl pouch (chocolate) into the reserved 2 cups of cheesecake batter. Mix well.

Spread the chocolate mixture over the cheesecake batter. Fill to just below the top of the crust…. If making the tart you may have a little left…use the extra batter to make mini chocolate cheesecakes.

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 to 40 minutes until edges are set and the center is almost set.

**DO NOT OVERBAKE**

If making this in the 9 x 13 baking pan, run a knife around the sides of the pan.

If making the tart, carefully run a knife around the sides as the cake pulls away from the sides…. because the tart pan doesn’t have a flat side…. Slip your knife in the curves and remove the knife and repeat all around the tart.

Cool to room temperature on a rack.

If making the tart, remove the sides.

If using the brandy in the topping:

In a medium bowl combine the pie filling and brandy, stir well.

Spoon pie filling over the top of the cake.

Refrigerate several hours or overnight.

TIP: Do not skip the refrigeration step…. This will help make slicing the cake cleaner and easier. I also found that setting the cake out for about 10 minutes made cutting through the crust easier.