Baked Chocolate Cheesecake—Prototype 15:
 
After more than half a year, I felt that I would make another chocolate prototype. This one reflects updates such as those included in Prototype 5 of my chocolate peanut butter cheesecake, (e.g., arrowroot, yogurt-cottage cheese blend).
 
2-to-1 Blend of Yogurt Cheese and Cottage Cheese:
Prepare ahead of time 32 ounces of yogurt cheese, derived from two 32-ounce containers (that's 64 ounces altogether) of nonfat yogurt. If the resulting yogurt cheese falls below 32 ounces, add back enough of the whey (that was strained out from the yogurt) to make up the difference. To this yogurt cheese combine one 16-ounce container of whipped, lowfat cottage cheese.

Grease a 9 1/2" (or 9") pan, but do not wrap foil around it until just before the batter is added (spreading the crust in an already wrapped pan can result in greater disturbance to the foil, thus increasing leakage risks).

Chocolate Crust:
4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, melted
1 1/3 tablespoons cocoa powder
8 oz. (1 cup) 2-to-1 blend of yogurt cheese and cottage cheese (see above)
3/8 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2.2 oz. finely ground Bran Buds

Place resulting mixture in 9 1/2" (or 9") pan.

Chocolate Batter:
4 tablespoons melted/softened butter
3/8 cup cocoa powder
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons arrowroot
1/2 teaspoon salt
40 ounces (5 cups) 2-to-1 blend of yogurt cheese and cottage cheese (see above)
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs

Pour the batter over the crust and bake this cheesecake in a hot water tub at 300 degrees for 100 minutes (if using a 9 1/2" pan). Then shut off oven and cool cheesecake down while still in it (and in tub), with door slightly ajar, for an hour. Afterwards, remove from oven and tub and (a border of chocolate chips can be added at this point) continue to cool down at room temperature for another 100 minutes, then remove from pan and refrigerate.

Chocolate Cheesecake—Prototype 15 Chocolate Cheesecake—Prototype 15 (top view)

I had been decorating the top of some my cheesecakes with semi-sweet chocolate chips for some time. For this latest prototype, I felt that I would add alternating "white" chocolate chips to liven things up a bit. But they were so small, roughly half-height, compared to their semi-sweet counterparts, so I doubled up on the whites (both kinds of chips used here came from Trader Joe's).

This one tasted terrific! The amount of tartness was just right—not too much, not too little. There seemed be a nice balance of "tang", sweetness and chocolate. Even though the gathering for refreshments (after worship services) in Living Hope Church's fellowship hall was not a full-fledged community/communion meal, there was a somewhat moderate amount of snack competition. Anyway, Prototype
15 was devoured in probably less than 15 minutes (Gaynell, in particular, called this chocolate cheesecake a "favorite"). I myself, finding the taste of this particular treat to be extraordinary, got an urge to hasten plans for making another one in the future.
 

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