Chocolate Cherry Truffle Cheesecake

My mom's birthday cake this year was a double chocolate sour cream cheesecake with a pureed cherry swirl. Rather than a crumb crust base, I baked a chocolate and port-soaked cherry cookie, which provided a bit more sturdiness when serving. For presentation, I ringed the bottom with dark Belgian chocolate wafers and topped the whole lot off with chocolate covered cherries!

• Ready In: 25 hrs 20 mins
• Serves: 16
• Yields: 1 10" cheesecake

Ingredients

• Crust

• 1⁄4 cup dried cherries
• 1⁄4 cup port wine (or cherry juice)
• 1⁄3 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1⁄3 cup shortening
• 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1  egg
• 1  teaspoon vanilla
• 1⁄3 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 1⁄4 cups barley or 1 1⁄4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1⁄3 cup cocoa powder

• Filling

• 14  ounces  chopped best-quality bittersweet chocolate
• 4  ounces  chopped  unsweetened chocolate
• 1 (10 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 24  ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1⁄2 cup sour cream
• 2  large eggs
• 4  ounces silken tofu
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄4 cup cherry pie filling, pureed until smooth

Directions

1. Crust:
2. Combine cherries and port in a small bowl. Let stand at least 30 minutes (do not drain).
3. In a large bowl, cream the butter, shortening, salt, egg, vanilla and sugar until fluffy.
4. Sift in flour and cocoa, mixing until incorporated.
5. Fold in cherries and liquid. The dough should resemble a chocolate chip cookie.
6. Spread dough into the bottom of a greased and parchment-lined 10” spring-form pan and freeze 1 hour.
7. Bake at 400 °F for 20 minutes or until just firm. Set aside to cool.
8. Filling:
9. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and wrap the outside of the spring-form pan with foil.
10. Melt together the chocolates and condensed milk. Cool slightly.
11. In a food processor, puree cream cheese, sour cream, eggs, tofu and salt until smooth. Add chocolate and beat until combined.
12. Pour mixture onto prepared crust.
13. Spoon dollops of pureed pie filling onto the cheese mixture and swirl lightly with a knife.
14. Bake in preheated oven for about 1 hour or until filling is set.
15. Refrigerate, covered, at least 8 hours or overnight.