Elisha's It's-It Cheesecake

Two posts in a row regarding Elisha?  I must love her or something. 

Plain and simple:  I thought Elisha's cheesecake was genius.  If you're not from the Bay Area, the inspiration was the It's-It Ice Cream Treat, an oatmeal cookie ice cream sandwich all dipped in chocolate.  They come in a variety of flavors, my favorite being mint.

Elisha's cheesecake follows this theme by having an oatmeal cookie crust and what would have been a hard chocolate shell (it was a very hot day and being brainiacs, we neglected to have the tasting in the shade).  The cheesecake itself is espresso flavored.

There was little wrong with the cheesecake.  Espresso cheesecake: Mmm....  Chocolate coating: Mmm....  Oatmeal cookie crust: MMM....

It's-It Cheesecake

For crust:

1-1/2 C. Nabisco Classic Oatmeal Cookies
1/4 C. unsalted butter, melted

For filling:

2 lbs. (four 8-oz. packages) cream cheese, softened
1-1/2 C. granulated sugar
1/2 C. sour cream
4 eggs
2 T. instant coffee powder
1 T. hot water
1 t. vanilla
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Grease the sides of a 9-inch spring form pan, or leave a 9-inch cheesecake pan (a straight-sided pan with a drop-out bottom) ungreased.

Make the crust: In a medium bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and butter. Press into the bottom of the pan and freeze.

Center a rack in the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 F. In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer set on medium-high speed for 3 minutes. (Use a paddle attachment, if you have one.) Add sour cream. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. In a small bowl, dissolve the instant coffee in the hot water. While the mixer is running, pour the coffee in a steady stream into the batter. Add vanilla. Stir 1 cup of the batter into the melted chocolate, and set aside. Pour remaining batter over the frozen crust.

Using a spoon, drop the melted chocolate-batter mixture on top of the plain batter in 6 large puddles. Using spiral motions, drag a small knife through the puddles to create a marbling effect.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the top is light brown and center has a slight jiggle to it. Cool on rack for 2 hours. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 6 hours before decorating or serving.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings