Cranberry Orange Cheesecake with Chocolate Crust
Bon Appetit Dec 2002 p. 170
serves 12

Crust
1 9 oz. box choc. wafer cookies, crushed
2 oz. bitersweet or semi-sweett choc. coarsely chopped
5 T. unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325. Finely grind the cookies and chocolate in the food processor. Add butter, blend til moist clumps form. Use plastic wrap as an aid, press crumb mixture onto bottom and 1 3/4 inch up the sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake til set, about 8 min. Cool completely.

Filling
4 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 T. flour
4 large eggs
2 t. grated orange peel
1 t. vanilla extract

Increase oven temp to 350. Wrap 2 layers of heavy-duty foil around bottom and up sides of pan. Beat cream cheese and sugar til light. Beat in flour and eggs one at a time. Beat in orange peel and vanilla.

Pour filling into crust. Place the pan in a large roasting pan so that warm water comes up half way up the outside of the springform pan.
Bake for 55 minutes, the middle will jiggle a little. Remove from water bath and cool completely about 4 hours on a rack. Then chill overnight covered.

Topping
1/2 c. sugar
3 T. water
1 t. cornstarch dissolved in 1 T. water
2 c. fresh cranberries
1/2 t. grated orange peel

Stir sugar and water in saucepot over med-low heat til sugar dissolves. Increase heat to med. add cranberries and cook til they begin to burst. Stir for about 3 minutes, add peel and cool completely. Cover and chill overnight. (Cheesecake and fruit mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance. Keep refrigerated.)

Run knife around edge of cheesecake to loosen, release sides top with fruit mixture and chil til set about 1 hour.