Black Forest Cheesecake

Make the Cherry Compote: Stir water and corn starch together in a small bowl until fully dissolved. Rinse, pit, and halve the cherries. If using frozen, do not thaw them. No need to halve the cherries if using tart ones – they tend to be softer.Add cherries to a medium saucepan with the sugar and kirsch. Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring lazily, until the cherries have released their juices and softened. Re-stir the cornstarch (it will have settled), then stir it into the cherry sauce. Cook 30 seconds to 1 minute more, stirring constantly, until the sauce gently thickens. It should separate and hold when you drag your finger through the sauce on the back of a wooden spoon. Stir in the almond extract. Transfer immediately to a shallow bowl and chill in the fridge completely before using.Make-Ahead Tip: This can be made up to 2 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and make sure the bottom is securely fastened. Stir together crust ingredients and press into prepared pan and up the sides a bit (see photos above). Bake this for 10 minutes. Set aside. Keep the oven on at 350. Fill a large pot with water and set it on your stove, and get out a large roasting pan – you'll need this for your water bath later.

Make the Cheesecake Filling: Remember that your cold ingredients need to come to room temp before you start or the filling won't turn out.In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with electric mixer until creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar & mix until well incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as you go - little lumps of cream cheese love to hide in the bottom, but will incorporate nicely as long as you scrape between each ingredient addition! Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on medium speed after each until just incorporated. Do not over mix at this stage! Mix in the vanilla and sour cream on medium until just combined. Mix in the melted chocolate and cocoa powder last, on medium speed until just combined.

Assemble Cheesecake: Spread half the batter over the prepared crust. Spoon about 40% of the cherry filling (the remaining 60% will go on top) evenly over the batter. Dollop on the remaining batter and spread it evenly. You may have a bit of batter left over that won't fit in your pan - see tip just below. Extra Batter: I had some extra batter each time I made this cheesecake. Don't fret - simply pop 4 muffin liners into a cupcake pan, and place a whole oreo in the bottom of each. Spoon the batter over the top, filling about 2/3 of the way full. Bake these at 350 for 19 to 22 minutes, no water bath needed.

Prepare the Water Bath + Bake: Bring the large pot of water to a boil. Wrap the base of the cheesecake pan in foil and place it inside of a 10-inch cake pan, then place this duo of pans inside the roasting pan. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan only. The cake pan acts as a waterproof buffer between the springform pan and the water in the roasting pan! This is a foolproof method to ensure no water leaks (foil alone can't prevent this). Tip: If you don't have a roasting pan that's deep enough for this, you can use a large 9x13 pan or something similar. Fill it with boiling water and place it on the rack below your cheesecake. The option above is best, but this is better than no water bath!

Bake: Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 40 minutes to 2 hours. When done, the cheesecake will have only a slight wobble in the center, and a knife inserted into the edge will come out clean, and will have just a bit of thick batter when inserted into the center. Turn off the oven and crack your oven door open. Let the cheesecake cool this way, in the oven for 1 hour before removing it.

Cheesecake Cooling: Once the hour is up, remove the pan from the oven. Remove the foil and set the springform pan on a wire rack. Let cool to room temperature (about 1-2 hours), then cover with foil and refrigerate at least 6 hours or up to 1 day before removing from the pan and serving.

Make the Whipped Cream: Add the whipped cream ingredients to a medium bowl and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Serve & Store: Spread the remaining cherry compote over the chilled cheesecake and top with the whipped cream (I like a wilton 4B or 6B tip - pictured I used the 6B which is a tad bigger). Use a vegetable peeler against the edge of your chocolate bar to make chocolate shavings for decorating. Slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.