When I think of malted desserts I think of malt shakes, which I have never tasted and have only have ever existed to me in 1950’s based books and movies from back when drive-in movies were still popular and boys and girls “went steady” (I watched a lot of “Happy Days” as a child). I think of girls in skirts embroidered with poodles and silky ponytails tied up high on their heads with ribbon leaning over formica diner tabletops and sipping thick, chocolate-hued milkshakes through striped straws. The only malted dessert I’ve really ever actually tasted comes in the form of malted milk balls, which I love with their soft, milk chocolate shells and their crunchy malted interiors. The flavor pairings and textural differences between exterior and interior are so simple, but so perfectly complementary and, though I’m certainly not a child of the 1950’s, there is still something so nostalgic about them.
This spin on a classic cheesecake recipe takes simple malted milk balls and malted milk power and transforms them into something far less 1950’s and much more modish. The crust is made of shortbread and heavily malted to provide a subtle crunch that you might expect when biting into a Whopper (The candy that is, not the Burger King special. I think my brother was a little disappointed [or relieved] when I clarified exactly what kind of Whopper-infused cheesecake I was bringing over). What I really love about this cheesecake is that despite the fact that it is clearly malted themed, the malted flavor is not overpowering. It is just enough; the flavor is clear in the crisp shortbread crust, softly expressed among the tang of the cheesecake filling yet attention-grabbing with surprise pops of malted milk balls. If you wish to stay true to the malted milk ball theme throughout, you can certainly use a milk chocolate ganache instead, but I felt this made the cheesecake too sweet and the rich, dark chocolate ganache added yet another layer of complexity to this ridiculously delicious cheesecake. All in all the flavors balance extraordinarily well.
I’ve found that a significant number of people hesitate to make cheesecake because they worry it is too difficult, and I think this is a shame. Let me leave you with some tips on how to make sure any cheesecake is a success:
Allow your cream cheese to soften to room temperature before beginning (otherwise you’ll have lumps). Make sure ingredients are well-combined, but don’t over-beat the eggs, otherwise you’ll have cracks. This cheesecake is very forgiving because any cracks will be covered by the thick ganache, but this is still a good rule to follow. Don’t open the oven while your cheesecake is cooking, this will allow heat to escape and will cause your cheesecake to sink. Wait until you think the cheesecake is done, though it is OK to err on the side of checking slightly sooner to make sure your cheesecake is not overdone. I personally feel that the trickiest part is knowing when your cheesecake is finished baking. For this, look for edges that are set but a center that is still slightly jiggly, though it should be firm enough that it bounces back when lightly touched. The edges should ideally not be more than lightly golden brown.
Voila: perfect malted cheesecake. Happy Friday!
More Cheesecake Recipes to Try:
Mini Cheesecakes Oreo Cheesecake Pumpkin Cheesecake No-Bake Cheesecake
