Pelican Pete's Oreo Cheesecake - Recipe #91

Trent and I recently celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary. We were married on a boat in Lake Union long before either of us knew that sailing would be in our lives in the future. Some of the wedding ceremony pictures show a race of San Juan sailboats (sister boats to Rock Lobster, though a different size). After we exchanged rings and kissed, we (and the guests) were whisked away for a three-hour tour past the houseboats from Sleeping in Seattle and on to the mansions of Microsoft millionaires. My childhood friends sang ¨Going to the Chapel¨, my younger brother dj-ed, we drank Muscadet (wine made by Trent's French relatives) and fed each other cheesecake - we had chosen an assortment - as we both agreed that nobody really likes wedding cake.

So what better way to celebrate a milestone anniversary than a visit to a new-to-us restaurant (mkt., where we shared small plates of nettle-goat cheese fritters, beet and miner's lettuce salad, lamb and gnocchi and seared scallops, smoked manilla clams, fennel and carrots in a thyme butter sauce, sipped barrel cocktails, wine and a port from the year we met) and a cheesecake. This recipe is spotted with chocolate and was printed out from the Everett Herald in February 2004 as a birthday cake for Trent. Because we remembered the decadence from the past eatings, we skipped the addition of the Oreo and whipped cream on top of each slice. While there is a lengthy prep time (I actually remembered this time around that it needs to chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before putting on the chocolate ganache and then another 30 minutes after and prepped it the day before our anniversary), it does not require any baking - a plus in my book, as I'm always nervous that the water bath will seep into the springform pan and ruin the dessert.

Depending on how you obtain your chocolate cookie crumbs, this can be either a cathartic or traumatic experience. I found myself pulverizing chocolate Teddy Grahams with my fists and a rolling pin thinking ¨oh, the humanity¨, though perhaps it should have been, ¨oh, the ursinity¨!

Pelican Pete's Oreo Cheesecake

• 1 1/4 c. chocolate cookie crumbs
• 3-4 T. butter, melted
• 2 c. whipping cream, divided
• 3 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. granulated sugar
• 34 Oreo cookies, divided
• 4 oz. (4 squares) semi-sweet chocolate
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• Whipped cream for garnish

For crust, combine cookie crumbs and melted butter; press into bottom of 9- or 10-inch springform pan. Place crust in freezer while preparing filling.

Whip 1 1/2 c. of the whipping cream until stiff peaks form; place in refrigerator until ready to use.

With electric beater, food processor or by hand, whip cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and blend thoroughly. Coarsely chop 24 cookies and fold into cream cheese mixture. Fold in whipped cream. Turn filling into frozen cookie crust, spreading evenly to edges of pan, smoothing top.

Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Loosen cheesecake from pan by running knife around edges, making sure to include crust. Release sides of pan.

Melt chocolate in saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly (I did the double boiler method, boiling water beneath a bowl containing the chocolate - less danger of burning that way). Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Whisk in remaining whipping cream and vanilla. Glaze top and sides of cheesecake with chocolate mixture; place in refrigerator until glaze hardens, about 30 minutes.

To serve, cut cheesecake into 10 pieces. Top each piece with whipped cream and garnish with a cookie arranged upright in the whipped cream.