Ball Week! - Day 3: Cheesecake Balls

Why don't I eat more cheesecake?  I ask myself that question every time I eat a really good cheesecake and then I forget about it as a dessert option.  Growing up my mom made this orange cheesecake that, at the time, I thought was the fanciest dessert in the world.  She only made it on special occasions and I loved it!  I've made it a few times myself but, for some reason, it was always better when she made it.

I rarely order cheesecake in restaurants either... maybe that's because CA is lactose intolerant so he can't split it with me and I can never eat the whole slab myself. (That's a lie... I definitely could, but I shouldn't)  Plus, there's a lot of bad cheesecake out there that's too dry and heavy.... and then for some god-forsaken reason people want to top it with canned pie filling.  Bleck!

These balls are really just cheesecake dipped in chocolate.  I used a tutorial by Bakerella for Cheesecake Pops as a guide but you don't need complicated instructions because there's really nothing to it...

Step 1: Bake or buy a plain cheesecake
Step 2: Scoop the cheesecake into balls
Step 3: Roll the balls in graham cracker crumbs
Step 4: Cover the balls in chocolate

DONE!

I opted to make my own cheesecake and used Alton Brown's Sour Cream Cheesecake recipe.  The reason I selected this recipe is because I just watched him make it on an episode of Good Eats and it seemed like a good, basic cheesecake recipe.

The good news is that this cheesecake is delicious!!!  It is the lightest, fluffiest, most flavorful cheesecake I've ever made.  It baked up incredibly well and didn't even try to crack.

The bad news is that the cheesecake was SO light and fluffy that I had a heck of a time getting it to roll into a ball.  Even after scooping and freezing the cheesecake, it was still too soft to roll into a uniform ball.  When I proceeded to dip it in the chocolate, it melted a bit and tried its very best to hang onto the fork.

Despite all of the difficulties with these balls, they tasted ridiculously good and the bride and groom selected these to be served at their wedding reception.  I am excited they did so that I can make them again with some adjustments.  I plan to find a recipe for a New York style cheesecake because those tend to be denser.

However, the next time I make cheesecake just for the purpose of eating cheesecake, I will be using Alton's recipe again.

So, we've got a pair of balls on the menu for the wedding reception... peanut butter and cheesecake... and we've got four more versions to come.  What will they pick?  Pecans, coconuts, citrus or krispies?  So many choices... 

Julie