Chocolate-Raspberry Cheesecake

I've been looking for ways to use up both the enormous container of ricotta that Gabe bought and the bounty of raspberries from the backyard, so last night I made a few mini ricotta cheesecakes. Even for people like we who pay very little attention to the caloric content of our food, cheesecake is astonishingly unhealthy. For this reason I made a quarter recipe of the usual, made no crust, tried to lighten it up in the ingredients, and made into small portions so we wouldn't be tempted to overeat. The result was a delicious, not-too-sweet cheesecake that was so light and creamy Gabe confused it with (unusually tangy) mousse. The only problem was definitely a "winning personality" cheesecake (i.e. butt ugly). It has a light reddish brown color from the raspberries and chocolate, and turned upside down from a cupcake pan, the cakes look indistinguishable from tinned cat food. I solved this problem by smothering it in chocolate sauce, but it could also be resolved by giving it a crust or adding more chocolate to the cheesecake itself to darken the color.

A quadrupled recipe is posted below - it will make one big cheesecake (16 tiny, calorie-packed slivers) or 16 cupcake-sized cheesecakes. Google "cheesecake recipe" for any simple graham cracker crust if you'd like to add it.


Light and Creamy Chocolate-Raspberry Cheesecake
1/2 cup chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
1/4 cup light cream

1 (12-ounce) container part-skim ricotta
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar, or more to taste
4 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pureed raspberries

Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare your pan by buttering it, or if making cupcakes, line your cupcake pan holes with tin foil or cupcake wrappers and butter these lightly.

Start by melted the chocolate. If you're nervous about burning it, melt it over a double burner - otherwise just melt it with the cream, stirring constantly, over low heat. Let it cool while you assemble the other ingredients.

Beat the ricotta until smooth. Add the cream cheese and sugar and beat more. Add the eggs, vanilla, raspberries, and chocolate and beat until incorporated. Pour into the prepaped pan.

Cook your cheesecake(s) in a water bath if possible - fill a larger pan with water and put the cheesecake pan in it - add water until it comes up as high as possible without spilling. Bake in the oven for about an hour if you're making a full recipe, or about a half hour if you're making less. Check frequently either way. When the cheesecake is done it will look mostly solid but still jiggle when shaken. Take out of the water bath to cool and then chill in the fridge for at least four hours, preferably over night. (We always can't wait and take nibbles early, but it really does taste better if you let it firm up.) Enjoy!

Edit: Gabe would like me to add that he likes this cheesecake.

NEXT: Potato-Ricotta Gnocchi with Tomato-Basil Sauce