Mascarpone Cheesecake with Almond Crust

I looked all over for a dessert to go with the Chicken Marsala dinner. My boyfriend loves mascarpone cheese so I wanted to make something with it in the recipe since it was for his birthday. My sister suggested Giada's cheesecake recipe. It has an almond crust that is terrific, and it also has Nutella, which I love! Since I already had whipping cream to use for the Nutella topping, as an addition, I whipped the remainder of the heaving whipping cream (and added confectioners sugar to it) to dab on top of each piece. I had a little bit of trouble with the Nutella sauce, so I would suggest using a wisk to mix it together instead of a spoon. Here's the link to the original recipe: Marscarpone Cheesecake with Almond Crust

Mascarpone Cheesecake with Almond Crust

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Crust:

1 cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted

2/3 cup graham cracker crumbs

3 Tablespoons sugar

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature

2 (8-ounce) containers mascarpone cheese, room temperature

1¼ cups sugar

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs, room temperature

Topping:

½ cup chocolate-hazelnut spread (recommended: Nutella)

¼ cup whipping cream    

For the crust: Preheat oven to 350˚.

Tightly wrap the outside of a 9-inch diameter springform pan with 2¾ -inch-high sides with 3 layers of heavy-duty foil. Finely grind the almonds, cracker crumbs, and sugar in a food processor. Add the butter and process until moist crumbs form. Press the almond mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan (not on the sides of the pan). Bake the crust until it is set and beginning to brown, about 12 minutes. Cool. Decrease the oven temperature to 325˚.

For the filling: Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, and sugar in a large bowl until smooth, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition

Pour the cheese mixture over the crust in the pan. Place the springform pan in a large roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the springform pan. Bake until the center of the cheesecake moves slightly when the pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour 5 minutes (the cake will become firm when it is cold). Transfer the cake to a rack; cool for 1 hour. Refrigerate until the cheesecake is cold, at least 8 hours and up to 2 days.

For the topping: Combine the chocolate-hazelnut spread and cream in a small bowl. Heat in the microwave until warm, stirring every 20 seconds to blend, about 1 minute.

Cut the cake into wedges. Drizzle the chocolate sauce over the wedges and serve.(Alternately, drizzle the sauce over the entire cheesecake before it hardens and then cut into wedges and serve).

Photo from the Food Network

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