Wednesday 3 January 2007

Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake



Today is the start of the new school year. How time flies! I have already been a stay-at-home-mum for one full year! After a fun-filled year end holidays, we are back to our normal routine life. I made this Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake with the help of my 2 boys during the school holidays. This recipe was taken from C W Cookbook 3.

Ingredients:
Cream Cheese Mixture
250g cream cheese (soften at room temperature)
60g castor sugar
1 egg

Chocolate Mixture
180g butter
150g caster sugar
3 eggs
3 tablespoon cocoa powder
120g self-raising flour
1 tablespoon baking powder

Method:

  1. Preheat oven at 150°C.
  2. Grease and line a 20cm round cake pan.
  3. Cream Cheese Mixture - beat cream cheese with sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the egg gradually and beat until well incorporated. Set mixture aside.
  4. Chocolate Mixture - Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time until well incorporated into mixture. Sieve all the dried ingredients together. Fold into the egg mixture.
  5. Pour half of the chocolate mixture into the cake pan.
  6. Pour all the cream cheese mixture and then the remaining chocolate mixture. Gently spread the chocolate mixture to cover all the cream cheese mixture.
  7. Bake for 45-50 min or until skewer comes out clean. Cool completely and chill in the fridge before serving.

73 comments:

Small Small Baker said...

Hihi, I wanna try this. Is this steam bake or normal baking?

Happy Homebaker said...

hey lousy baker, this was done by normal baking, that is, using the oven :)

serena said...

Hi Happy Homebaker, I tried this cake over the weekend with great success. Now I'm hook. I need to visit your blog everyday now. thanks for the great receipe. One question, with so many different types of cakes that calls for so many different types of ingredients. How do you store the flour and it's such a waste when I have to another type of flour when other types of flour are sitting in my fridge.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Serena, glad to hear that your cake was a great success :D
Yes, storage is indeed a problem ;)
I try to keep only those flour that I will use most often, such as bread flour and plain flour.

Karenology said...

Hi, I just wanna say that I tried this recipe and the cake turned out to be fabulously delicious! Thanks for the great recipe!

Anonymous said...

Hi, thank you for sharing this recipe, it's delicious! Because of the cream cheese I stored it in the fridge but the cake gets really dry and tough. How do you store this cake?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Anonymous, good to hear that you like this cake :)
To store cakes in the fridge, it is better to cover it. Since this cake has got no frosting, you can cover it with cling wrap, or put it in an air-tight container before putting it in the fridge. It will help prevent the cake from getting dry. Do bring the cake to room temperature after you have taken it out from the fridge before serving. It will also taste less hard & dry. Hope this helps :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the advise! To quickly serve it I tried microwave, turned out great, brings out the wonderful chocolate smells too! Thanks again, Nells. (It's not my choice to be anonymous, I just haven't signed up for an account yet ;-)

Miracle said...

Dear Happy Home Baker, I have tried making this cake today.. its my first time doing a combination and i am using a mould with foil as base.. would u kindly have a look on my disaster attempt? *Sobz*

Thanks in advance and hope to receive ur well advice.. Geeez

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Miracle, Sorry to hear about the diaster. but I am not able to access your blogger profile page. Would you mind let me know your blog link so that I can access it directly.

Miracle said...

Hi dear,

Apologies about there.. here it goes : http://eden-of-miracles.blogspot.com/

Thanks thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Miracle, I have left a comment in your blog. Hope it helps :)

Miracle said...

Thanks a million happy homebaker, I have learnt from this and surely will try it using a normal round baking pan the next round. =) Baking is surely something not easy and i will continue to learn and enjoy this wonderful sweet journey.. hehehez. Cheerios!!!

Anonymous said...

HHB, thanks for the recipe~ :) i tried this! Made them into muffin size :) and mummy who doesnt fancy cheesecake had 2 of them~ ^^ many thanks! enjoy a good holiday with your family~ :D

Amanda

Anonymous said...

Hi, it looks delicious :) if i don't have self-raising flour, can i use 120g of cake flour + 2 tablespoon of baking powder? thanks

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Carol, I am not too sure about replacing it with cake flour. However, if you refer to this site joyofbaking.com you can replace it with plain flour(http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html)
You will need to use 140g plain flour plus 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder plus 1/4 teaspoon salt.
You can place the above 3 ingredients in a plastic bag...tighten it and give it a good shake. You can then measure out 120g of the flour mixture to make this cake. Hope this helps :)

Anonymous said...

Hello HHB

I tried this recipe yesterday & I am slightly disappointed due to the overflow. The cake mixture flow out from the 20cm round cake pan. I am thinking the baking powder is the cause of the overflow as I used the double action baking powder with the same required amount. This is my mistake.  But overall, the taste is good with moist soft texture. I will bake it again with less sugar version. Between, I replaced the self raising flour with the cake flour as I don’t have the self raising flour. How is your cake texture? Wanna find out the different of cake texture by using cake flour & self raising flour.

Again, thanks for the recipe as I am a chocolate & cheese lover, this recipe indeed a keeper for me . 

Rgds, Jessie

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Jessie, I think there will be a slight difference in texture. As self raising flour has got baking powder, whereas Cake flour has got corn starch and is more fine. I think with cake flour, cake should be softer. I like this cake too :)

DG said...

Hi HHB,

Thanks for sharing the recipe, I tried it and it is a delicious cake.

-nich- said...

Hi HHB,

the recipe given uses 1 tablespoon of baking powder. Just to clarify is it 1 TABLEspoon or 1 TEAspoon?

Thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi nich, yes it is 1 tablespoon.

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing your baking journey.
I probably didn't cover the cream cheese mixture well enough with the chocolate mixture. Part of the top of the cake appears to be yellow, especially at the side. Aside from the not-so-pretty-look, the cake turned out to be very yummy, for a novice baker like me!
Is there a trick to make sure that the cream cheese mixture is well-covered?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Han Han, maybe one way to get around the problem is, you can add less than half (around 1/3) of the chocolate mixture first, followed by the cream cheese mixture, and cover with the remaining 2/3 of the chocolate mixture, hope this helps :)

A Full-Timed Housefly said...

My girl loves this cake so much cos she is a chocolate and cheese lover and she prefers cake over rice... you have inspire me to try baking again because most of my baking failed.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Pearlyn, most of the cakes I made are very simple and easy ones since I lack the skills. I hope you will pick up baking again :)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB,
I've tried baking this cake past few days ago, the cheese is light & delicious but the cake base turn out to be so dry): I grease the side using butter and flour while the base i use greasing paper(?) Is this the main problem? ( I tried basic choco cake the base was dry too): )

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Anonymous, is the heating element of your oven located at the bottom? Looks like the bottom of your cake was overbaked, causing it to turn dry. You can try adjust the temperature, or bake your cake at a higher rack position.

Amaia said...

Hi Happy Homebaker!
I made this cake last week. It had a nice taste, but yours looks waaaaay better than mine. I've posted the photos here. The only flaw that I found is that the cake resulted a bit dry, should I add more chocolate and more of baking powder next time I try?
Thanks a million for the recipe. I think your blog is great!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Amaia, I think you may have over-baked the cake causing it to turn dry...as all oven works differently, maybe you can cut down on the baking time...or test for doneness 10mins before the baking time is up.

proudweirdo said...

Hi Happy Homebaker,

I just want to let you know that your blog is awesome! I am always inspired with your blog. Really. I made this cake last night and I really loved it! Well, thanks for sharing the recipe! And thanks for creating such a great blog! :D

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB, your this receipe looks yummy thought of trying it out. I am new to baking, appreciate if you could advise on the following:
What is the brand of cream cheese u used?
Do I need to cut down the sugar as I dun like my cake to be sweet.
Thanks!
WL

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi WL, I use Kraft's Philadelphia cream cheese.
Since you are new to baking, it is best to stick to the ingredient amount stated in the recipe. If you really want to cut down on the sugar amount, maybe you can just cut it down by about 10%. Besides acting as a sweetener, sugar has other purpose in baking, eg it helps to incorporate air into the batter when you cream the butter with sugar; and it also helps to attract moisture in the batter so as to yield a more tender crumb and it also helps the cake to rise. You are refer to this site for more details: (http://www.joyofbaking.com/sugar.html). Hope this helps.

Anonymous said...

Thanks!HHB..one more question-Is it ok to use Heshe unsweeten choloclate powder? I am also looking at the Oreo butter cake receipe- which type of yohurt do u use...sorry for so many questions.
I do enjoy your blog very much and your kind guidance to all the questions post really helps. There is too many to do list here...your nutella swiss roll, the pooh biscuits(need to get the cutter first), oreo butter cake...just can't wait to try...
WL :P

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi WL, you can use Hershey's cocoa powder.
I used non-fat plain yoghurt, usually it is from this brand 'Marigold'. I am glad to hear that you enjoy baking as much as I do, happy baking!

Anonymous said...

Hello HHB

Do you think I can use this cake to make as a birthday cake? I use flesh cream as topping & decorate with fresh fruit?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I won't advise using this cake as it is taste good on its own, with added fresh cream and fresh fruits, the taste may be compromised.

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB

I tried this recipe yesterday & it turn out perfectly. My colleauges they all like it so much and 1 colleauge of mine order from me for xmas. Ha! Ha!. Thanks for the recipe. Take Care

MH said...

Hi HHB,

May I know how to replace "120g self-raising flour" with plain flour? I'm wondering since the self-raising flour already contains baking powder why add baking powder again, huh?

This cake looks too good to be missed! :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi MH,
You can replace self-raising flour with 1 cup (140 grams) plain flour plus 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder plus 1/4 teaspoon salt. See here for the details: (http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html)
Apparently self-raising flour has got salt added.
Since this recipe only requires 120g of self-raising flour, what you can do is, mix 140g plain flour, with the necessary amount of baking powder and salt(best way is to sieve the mixture and then but inside a plastic bag and shake it really well), and then use only 120g of the mixture. Otherwise you will have a hard time trying to convert it to suit this recipe.

I think maybe this cake needs more baking powder than what is contained in the self raising flour? Let me know how your cake turns out, I have not been baking this cake for a long while, but many who have tried it are happy with the result :)

MH said...

Thanks for your prompt reply. :)

Now then I know how to replace the flour with your method (mix, sieve, shake and use only the right amount of flour)! Thank you so much for your valuable information! I really appreciate all your helps & tips from time to time! :)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB

Can you tell me what is the right portion of ingredient for 24cm round cake pan. I want to make bigger to donate for charity. Thanks

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I am sorry, I do not know the right portion to use for a 24cm cake, maybe you want to try make two 20cm cake instead?

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB

I wonder why my cake sink in the center?I heard from my fren that I should turn the cake, bottom side up.But the cake is too soft to do so. Please advise.... Thank you. Veronica

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Veronica, I am not sure what went wrong, maybe your oven temperature is not right Did you preheat your oven? Or, maybe you didn't cream/beat the butter and sugar well? Did you cream the mixture till it turns light pale, and the texture is quite fluffy? Over beating the butter may cause it to melt/soften too much (the mixture will appear greasy/glossy). Also the butter should not be left till it turns too soft before you use it. Otherwise the mixture will also turn greasy and will not be able to trap air. Since you did not provide much detail on how you went about making the cake, I am not sure whether I am of any help.

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB

Thank you for your reply. Your advise do give me a big help. Yes i do have the habit of leaving the butter on the table until soft. I also notice there are grease flow out from the cake pan (I use springfoam cake pan). I will try to make the cake again bcos I want to give to my fren for X'mas. Will let you know what is the outcome. Thank you very much for your time to reply my question. Take care!!

Anonymous said...

Happyhomebaker, Would like to ask if this cake if left in fridge after baking, how long will it last? Probably two days will it still be tasty?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I didn't store it in the fridge, I left it in room temperature for two days. If you keep it in the fridge please make sure it is covered if not the cake may turn dry. I think it should keep well for 2 to 3 days in the fridge.

Unknown said...

Hi Happy Home Baker,
I tried out this cake recipe for the first time, and it came out great.. my son likes it so much..
thank you so much for sharing the recipes.. now i come and look at all your food everyday...
look so yummy and mouthwatering...

Gaya said...

Dear HHB

Am such a big fan of your blog. Inspired by you to restart my own =) Have tried many of your fail proof recipes and been very satisfied with the yummy results! Thank you for being so inspiring =)

happyjan said...

hi happy home baker..

im new to baking.. and very inspired by your blog.. :)

intend to try baking this cake this weekend.. here's one question.. when you say 'beat' the mixture.. do i use an electric mixer or mix using by hand? if using an electric mixer, what is the speed i should use?

pls pardon my ignorance.. :p

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi happyjan, you can use either an electric mixer (use medium speed) or a manual whisk. Hope this helps :)

Larissasjy said...

Hello HHB,
I've tried this recipe for twice & it always have some burnt on the surface of this cake ): Not sure of what has gone wrong. When i bake this cake, most of the part are cooked but only like left one portion it's not cooked so i bake it a few mins. And this recipe is definitely a keeper to me. It's not so sweet or bitter its way just right <3

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi JIAYI, it sounds like your oven temperature is not uniform, maybe you can turn your cake pan around half way into baking to ensure the cake is evenly cooked. If you extend the baking time, you can cover the cake with alum foil to prevent the cake surface from getting burnt. Hope this helps :)

happymumcarol said...

I baked this cake yesterday. It was still moist after 45 min n I had to pop the cake into the oven for another 10-15 mins for better results. My kids love the chocolate part, not so much the cheese part. On the whole the cake tastes very nice, this morning we warmed it up for breakfast n it was still very yummy. Tks for the recipe. Will try again without the cheese mixture or just a portion if it the next time.

strawberry cheesecake recipe said...

This is similar to a strawberry swirl cheesecake I just made I will have to try this one!

Unknown said...

Hi HHB, i tried this the first time today and I adhere to the ingredients as indicated. However the cake overflowed rather badly. Next the centre didnt cook despite extra 30 mins of baking and increasing the temp as well. Any idea what went wrong? Tks.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Gracia, so sorry to hear about the mishap :(
Not sure what went wrong, could it be the pan size? and did you preheat the oven, or use an oven thermometer to check that the oven is preheated to the right temp?

Unknown said...

Will any kind of cream cheese do? Is there some that are specifically meant for cheesecakes?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Gracia, I always use kraft's philadelphia cream cheese that comes in 250g block.

Baking Scientist said...

Hi HHB, your cake looks great! It reminds me of the Coffee Club log cake few years ago. Will like to try baking this Sat. A couple of questions: do we leave the cake in the pan while cooling it? do I need to turn the pan upside down while cooling? Thanks for sharing this recipe :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Baking scientist, you can leave the cake to cool in the pan for 5 mins unmold and leave to cool on rack (not necessary to invert the cake), hope this helps and happy baking!

Baking Scientist said...

Thanks HHB for your reply! :)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB! I was looking at your blog and this cake title interest me. Because my hubby love chocolate and cheese so I decided to bake this cake. I baked it last night! But think my oven is different, I baked it only for about 35-40mins and i baked it on a 8 inch square tin instead of a round one like yours. Luckily it turns out ok, just that the top is not straight. And my hubby love the cake!! Wonderful recipe! What I am gonna try next is your Chocolate Gateau cake. Hope it will be a success as well. Thanks for sharing!!

Love, Ser

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Ser, thanks for visiting and trying out this recipe. very happy to hear that you and your hubby like the cake :) Have fun baking the chocolate gateau cake!

Luther King said...

Chocolate Cake hmmmm, yummy Cake

Anonymous said...

Hi thanks for your wonderful recipe. I turned it into cupcakes. Look not very nice but taste very nice.

Happy Homebaker said...

What a good idea to turn it to cupcakes! It is the taste that counts :):)

Unknown said...

Hi, I have tried to use your recipe above but replace cocoa powder with Nutella.End up the cake is not cooked inside. may I know how come

Happy Homebaker said...

You could have under baked the cake. Did you pre heat the oven? Do you use an oven thermometer to check that your oven temperature is accurate? Did you test the doneness with a skewer or toothpick, does it come out clean or sticky?

Unknown said...

I did preheat and baked for 1 hr at 150°C. I do not have the tester for temp. yes, I preheated for 10 mins at 150°C

Unknown said...

Yes I did preheated the oven for 150C but did not checked temp as i dun hv temp tester. used a skewer to check and still wet. I baked another 30 mins but still same. my temp is 150C as stated. Last night I tried again. also uncooked. so I increased temp to 175C for another 15 mins and it seems ok. just that the center of cake sank in. shape not nice

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Sofia, I think your oven did not reach 150degC when you put in the cake. Usually oven will take at least 15 to 20mins to preheat, and if you open the oven during baking, the temperature will drop further (may drop 10 to 20degC) and it will take another 10 to 15mins to reach the desired temperature again. the cake center sank probably due to the uneven temperature.
I strongly recommend getting an oven thermometer, it is not very expensive, can get at Phoon Huat for less than $15. Hope you get better results next time :)

Unknown said...

thanks. will take note