Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Bars

Every year I truly look forward to catching up with distant friends and relatives through the annual Christmas Card.  The photo cards are my favorites giving me a peek at those who are close to my heart but far from my home.  The annual letters are always a special bonus, not only giving the visual peek, but also a few stories and highlights from the year.  Saving the letters for a time when I can grab a cup of coffee (and maybe a nice sweet holiday treat!) with a few uninterrupted moments, a few always stand out from the rest...

So far this year I've caught up with friends from Louisville, KY and I am always amazed at how fast the kids grow.  Family from Minnesota wrote about their latest adventures in Holland, and the Traveling Taylors from Palm Desert caught us up on their latest cruise.  I have to say though, that so far my Father-In-Laws card made me laugh the most.  After a summary of their continuing medical maladies he finished up the letter with the following:

In closing, we leave you with the following questions:

Why is last years Christmas card address list in the linen cupboard with the towels?  Our cars are old.  No keyless entry for us.  So how did we get into our locked car in the Home Depot parking lot, but now can't locate the keys to start the car's engine?

I laughed on and off for about an hour at that one, visually picturing my none too patient mother in law exasperatedly questioning him about how he can lose the keys after he got into the car, then my none too mobile father in law trying to get back out of the car after he had spent minutes settling her into the car and then settling himself in as well.  Him searching pockets and around the seats for the lost keys all the while fielding her exasperated, "How could you?" questions.  I'm looking forward to the live version at our Christmas dinner!

Speaking of Christmas dinner, Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Bars are the perfect holiday treat!  Discovered last year on Joe's blog, Culinary in the Desert, these didn't last long on our New Years Eve table.  Last night they were just as well received at a local Christmas party with comments including divine, hedonistic, decadent, and celestial!  All apt descriptions of these dense, chocolaty, pepperminty, little squares.

The secret is the crust... crushed Trader Joe's Candy Cane Joe Joe's (oreo-like peppermint flavored cookies) provide the perfect pepperminty base to the rich chocolate cheesecake filling and luscious ganache-like topping.  A sprinkle of crushed candy canes brings a holiday flair and another welcome dose of peppermint.

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Bars
adapted from Joe - Culinary in the Desert
and
Foodnetwork.com

Crust:
30 peppermint creme-filled chocolate cookies (I used Trader Joe's Candy Cane Joe-Joe's)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon fine salt

Filling
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
16 ounces 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup low fat sour cream

4 large eggs, room temperature

Glaze:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 Tbs non hydrogenated shortening (I use Earth Balance)
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/4 cup low fat sour cream, room temperature
crushed candy canes (about 3, large)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a food processor - add cookies and process until they form crumbs. With the processor running, pour in the melted butter and salt - process just until combined.  Press the mixture into a 9" x 13" pan lined with foil - evenly pressing to cover the bottom completely.

Meanwhile, place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a saucepan of simmering water (don't allow the bowl to touch the water) - stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove and set aside to cool a bit.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add sour cream and mix well, scraping down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix just until incorporated. Pour in the cooled melted chocolate and mix until smooth.

Pour the filling evenly over the crust and smooth the top. Bake until filling puffs slightly around the edges, but is still a bit wobbly in the center, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove and place on a wire rack to begin cooling.

Add chocolate, butter and corn syrup to a small sauce pan on the stove over medium-low heat.  Stir the chocolate mixture until melted and smooth, remove from heat and stir in the sour cream. Spread glaze evenly over the warm cheesecake. When the glaze has almost set sprinkle the crushed candy canes evenly over the top.  Let cool completely and then refrigerate at least 8 hours.

Note:  I'm always looking for ways to cut out a few calories when I can and found that using lower fat cream cheeses and sour cream does not alter the quality of the dessert for me.  With these lower fat ingredients we still produced rich, decadent and delicious desserts!