Cheesecake of the Month — April 2024!

Here is an amazing recipe that I ran across for a very hazelnutty-flavored cheesecake. Enjoy!

Ferrero Rocher Nutella Cheesecake

Ingredients:
For the crust
2-1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1 cup of Rice Krispies cereal, slightly crushed
1/2 cup of roasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
1/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of butter, room temperature
1/2 cup of Nutella hazelnut spread
For the filling
3 packages (8 ounces each) of cream cheese, softened
1 cup of sour cream
3/4 cup of sugar
1/3 cup of whipping cream
1 Tablespoon of vanilla extract
5 large eggs
3 Tablespoons of cornstarch
1-1/2 cups of Nutella
1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate, melted
For the Ganache
1-1/2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup of Nutella
1 cup of whipping cream
2 Tablespoons of butter, room temperature
2/3 cup of roasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
For the Garnish
1 cup of the Nutella ganache
13 Ferrero Rocher candies

Directions
To make the crust
1. Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper.
2. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, Rice Krispies, chopped hazelnuts, and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
3. In another, smaller bowl, combine the butter and Nutella and place them in the microwave for 30-45 seconds; mix with a whisk until well combined and pour over the reserved dry ingredients. Mix until evenly combined and press the mixture firmly onto the bottom and up the sides of your pan. Set aside.

To make the filling
4. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and bring about 4 cups of water to a boil; you’ll be using it later for the water bath.
5. Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, whipping cream, and vanilla extract in your food processor and process until the mixture is super smooth and creamy and lump free (about 3 minutes). Stop to scrape the sides a couple of times, as needed.
6. Add the eggs, all at once, and resume processing until they are well combined. You could also throw them down the feeding tube while the motor was running, if this is easier for you.
7. Stop the motor and scrape the sides well; add the cornstarch and resume beating until it gets well incorporated (about 30 seconds).
8. Add the Nutella and melted chocolate and process one last time (about 30 seconds) until well incorporated.
9. Place the prepared pan (with the crust in it) over a piece of aluminum foil and fold the foil over the pan so the exterior is completely covered; this will prevent water from getting into the pan. Now place your pan into a broiler pan and pour the cheesecake batter over the prepared crust. Spread the batter evenly all the way to the edges.
10. Next, delicately pour enough boiling water into the broiler pan so it goes up about 3/4 of the way up the side of your cheesecake pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of your oven and bake the cake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees F. Then, decrease the temperature to 250 degrees F and continue baking for a further 75 minutes.
11. Turn off the oven and crack the door open about an inch. Leave the cake in the oven undisturbed for about 1 hour, or until it is cool enough to be handled with your bare hands, and then slide it out of the oven.
12. When the cheesecake is completely cooled, run a thin spatula or knife around the edges of the pan to loosen and refrigerate uncovered for at least 6 hours, but preferably overnight.

To make the Nutella hazelnut ganache
13. Once your cake is completely chilled, remove it from the refrigerator, but do not remove it from the pan (yet).
14. Combine the finely chopped chocolate, Nutella, whipping cream, and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave to 1 minute. Allow the mixture to rest for 1 full minute and then stir for a minute. Repeat this process one more time, heating, resting, and stirring. At this point, the ganache should be completely smooth and combined, but if there are still lumps remaining, repeat the process again, but for no longer than 20 seconds this time; continue until the ganache is smooth and silky.
15. Reserve about 1 cup of the ganache in a small bowl and place it in the refrigerator (you will want to leave it there until is has the consistency of fudgy frosting, about 3 hours — stir from time to time to check the consistency).
16. Meanwhile, add the chopped hazelnuts to the rest of the ganache and stir until well incorporated; pour over the cake and spread it evenly all the way to the edges. Return the cake to the refrigerator until the ganache is set.

Putting it all together
17. Carefully remove the sides of the cheesecake pan (but leave it on the parchment paper).
18. Put the now fudgy Nutella ganache in a pastry bag equipped with a medium open star tip and pipe twelve (12) generous swirls around the top of the cake and 1 in the center. Place a Ferraro Rocher on top of each swirl.
19. If desired (and if you have a little bit of the fudgy ganache leftover), prepare a piping cone out of parchment paper and then melt a few Tablespoons of the leftover ganache in the microwave (it should only take 3-4 seconds). Pour it into your parchment paper cone and then drizzle a little bit of this melted ganache over each Ferrero Rocher.
20. Place your now finished cake onto a cake plate; keep refrigerated until about an jour prior to serving.

Tags: Cheesecake, Cooking/Baking, Dessert, Ferrero Rocher, Hazelnut, Recipe