Yup, our new store is open. You should come. It is awesome, but it has been a whole lot of insanity. And now Thanksgiving is nipping at the heels…and well, I am too old for this excitement and madness. I promise to spill more words about the buildout and opening shortly, but right now I want to talk about two things: Ovenly and Dessert-apoolza.

First: Ovenly. If you don’t know this amazing little bakery in Greenpoint, Brooklyn you should acquaint yourself immediately or buy their wonderful new book or both. I swear, in another universe (one with rivers of chocolate and mountains of sugar) in some weird time-warp-worm-hole thing, we are probably related to the owners, Erin and Agatha. On some strange twin planet, they are our sweet rock and roll dessert sisters.

In fact, the only chocolate chip cookie I really eat often besides our own is their Salted Chocolate Chip Cookie. And I covet their Brooklyn Blackout Cake. But the first thing I made from their new book was the Chocolate Cheesecake because I don’t make myself cheesecake enough! Oh, and this cheesecake is perfect. Lighter than my old tried and true with just enough chocolate to satisfy any craving. The entire (and easy) lovin’ recipe is below.

Second: Dessert-apoolza. If you like dessert and you will be in New York this Dec. 11th, you should treat yourself and come to our first ever dessert-apoolza. There will be TONS of dessert, wine, coffee….and the best part…we have a great line-up of cookbook authors (yup, they will be selling and signing their cookbooks):

Dorie Greenspan author of Baking Chez Moi
Agatha Kulaga and Erin Patinkin of Ovenly
Brian Smith and Jackie Cuscuna of Ample Hills
Allison Kave of Butter and Scotch
Yup, we will be their as well 🙂

But GET YOUR TICKETS now…we are almost sold out. And, yes, the entire proceeds benefit Cookies for Kids’ Cancer and Getting Out and Staying Out. So do some good, eat some dessert!

And now, the recipe for Chocolate Cheesecake from Ovenly by Agatha Kulaga and Erin Patinkin

Ingredients

CRUST
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 ½ cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs (about 12 graham crackers)

FILLING
2 cups (2-8 ounce packages) cream cheese, softened
1 ¼ cups sugar
½ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder (like Valrhona)
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

TOPPING
½ cup sour cream, room temperature
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Directions

MAKE THE CRUST
In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and set aside to cool. Pour the butter into a large bowl and whisk in the sugar and then the graham cracker crumbs. Combine thoroughly. Press the graham cracker mixture into the bottom of an 8-inch (I made mine in a 9-inch and it was fine) springform pan and a third of the way up the sides. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes to set.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

MAKE THE FILLING
Beat the cream cheese in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add sugar and cocoa. Mix on low for 10 seconds. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs, vanilla, and salt. Beat the filling on medium low for about 10 seconds, then increase the speed to medium high until fluffy and silky smooth, about 30 more seconds. Remove the prepared crust from the freezer, and pour the filling into the springform pan. Smooth the top with the spatula and bake for 30 minutes.

MAKE THE TOPPING
While the cheesecake is baking, whisk together the sour cream, sugar, vanilla and salt. Remove the cheesecake from the oven (leaving the oven at 375 degrees) and very carefully spoon the sour cream topping on the hot cake. Use a small spatula to smooth into a thin layer, being careful not to press too hard on the delicate, hot cake. Return the cheesecake to the oven, and bake for another 30-40 minutes more, or until the top looks set. Cool the cheesecake completely at room temperature, and then chill it for at least 6 hours before serving.