Chocolate and Peanut Butter Cheesecake

So, it was hubby's birthday on Thursday last week so I decided to make him a cake. Not just any cake may I add, this hits you between the eyes and knocks you out! It's definitely not for the faint hearted either! This chocolate and peanut butter cheesecake is a recipe I have again stolen from my favourite lady of them all... Drum roll please... Nigella Lawson! It's rich, decadent and heavenly! I highly suggest you try it sometime, if you're concerned that you may not be able to finish it all, maybe adjust the recipe to make a smaller one, just make sure you change the timings to suit - its meant to be rich and silky with a little wobble ;)

Ingredients

for the base

• 200 grams digestive biscuits
• 50 grams salted peanuts
• 100 grams dark chocolate chips
• 50 grams soft unsalted butter

for the filling

• 500 grams cream cheese
• 3 large eggs
• 3 large egg yolks
• 200 grams caster sugar
• 125 ml sour cream
• 250 grams smooth peanut butter

for the topping

• 250 ml sour cream
• 100 grams milk chocolate chips
• 30 grams soft light brown sugar

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas mark 3/325°F.
2. Then process the biscuits, peanuts, dark chocolate chips and butter for the base in a food processor.
3. Once it comes together in a clump, turn it out into a 23cm / 9inch springform tin and press into the bottom and up the sides to make the crunchy crust.
4. Put in the fridge while you make the filling.
5. Process the filling in the cleaned or wiped-out processor bowl, putting in the cream cheese, eggs and egg yolks, sugar, sour cream and peanut butter and whizzing to a smooth mixture.
6. Pour and scrape the filling into the base in the chilled springform tin and cook for 1 hour, though check after 50 minutes. The top – only – should feel set and dry.
7. Take the cheesecake out of the oven while you make the topping.
8. Warm the sour cream and chocolate with the brown sugar gently in a small saucepan over a low heat, whisking to blend in the chocolate as it melts, and then take off the heat.
9. Spoon and spread the topping very gently over the top of the cheesecake, being as careful as you can in case you break the surface of the cheesecake. (not that anything bad will happen; you’ll just have chocolate marbling the cake a bit.)
10. Put it back in the oven for a final 10 minutes.
11. Once out of the oven, let the cheesecake cool in its tin and then cover and put into the fridge overnight.
12. When you are ready to eat the cheesecake, take it out of the fridge, just to take the chill off: this will make it easier to spring from the tin. don’t let it get too warm, though, as it will become a bit gooey and be hard to slice.

Additional information - for vegetarians make sure the cream cheese is a brand that doesn't contain rennet