And So It Begins… With A Giveaway (Closed)

So, here I am again, feeling a bit sheepish that I am blogging when I have been ignoring all your gorgeous posts for what? A week and a half?

I would say ‘oops’ and cover my mouth with my hands all Marilyn Monroe style and pretend innocence, but it is just not that situation! 😛

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You guys know that I graduated, and was rather thrilled with it. And then you found out for some obscure reasons, my finals at school were not my finals per se, because I have another set of exams now. #whatisblogging

I promise you all, it seems like exams are all I ever do, but these are for real, my final exams ever. For 4 months. For high school. Despite the fact that I am taking quite few holidays after I finish, I will be all yours. Soon my darlings… so soon!

4th November. Remember that. 😀

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So on Monday, my final exams begin (On one day, I have 2 exams in one day 6 hours in one day, and my hand will fall off, I guarantee it :P)

I am already feeling the euphoria, the rush of chucking away sheets (You’ll see what I mean when I post again!) but no, let it begin. Like Jordin Sparks says, ‘Take one step at a time, there’s no need to rush‘ (Lies, I want to rush my butt off!) 😉

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But because I have to leave you guys for the journey, as a kind of apology, GIVEAWAY TIME! No, no this is not the massive giveaway I promised (your computer will actually sparkle when it happens!) in my 2 year anniversary post, but it certainly is not something inconsequential!

Especially not for any food blogger out there, trust me!

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Thanks to the wonderful people at Finish, I got sent wonderful Quantum Finish Powerballs (in lemon!) to test as my choice for dishwashing powder!

Now I want to make sure one of you lucky readers wins it at as well! 😀

You all are probably thinking, what is so exciting about washing up? Well, nothing really, I am not going to lie to you! BUT, there is no way around it as a chore for us food lovers, and eating on a clean plate is not only hygienically the done thing, but it feels smooth and awesome!

And when it smells of lemons, I am just saying, it makes it extra special! The fact that using a dishwasher helps to save energy as well as resources is kind of an extra 😀

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These little powerballs certainly pack a punch, my glasses were so shiny, I could see my face in them and I was impressed by the fact that legit, for the first time, there was not one single dirty plate to come out – now that is one awesome product 😀

So get to  so get to it and load a dishwasher! Oh, and dream about winning this pack of amazeballs… I mean… these lemony fresh powerballs 🙂

If you want to enter (this is international btw), all you have to do is

  1. Comment on this post OR/AND
  2. Like my Facebook Page and let me know 🙂

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Now, I reckon your dishwasher will be coming in handy really soon. Why do you ask? Because you will be making the cheesecake you have been seeing photos of throughout this post.

But why Choc Chip Uru, what is so special about it?

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Are you a cookie dough lover? Stupid question, who isn’t, am I right? 😉 – this is a cookie dough extraordinaire, with an extra dose of caramel and cheesecake goodness. It is so soft and smooth inside, with the crunch of the cookie crust, and topped with a bit of ganache never hurt right? 😀

Enjoy mes amis and I announce the winner of this giveaway next week (because after Monday the 21st of October, I have 1 exam left… which is on the 4th… whatever… :O)

Oh and this cake was made for PDS’ birthday party, hence the huge amount of 18s everywhere 😛 – surely you know her by now?

Choc-Caramel Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Idea + Cookie Dough Balls adapted from: The Girl Who Ate Everything
Cheesecake adapted from: Exclusively Food
Cookie Crust Recipe: Choc Chip Uru’s Chocolate Chip Cookies”
Whipped Cream: Kitcheninspirations

Ingredients:

Cookie Dough Balls

  • 120g butter, room temp
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 3 tbs full cream milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 1 cup plain flour, sifted
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Cookie Crust 

  • 130g butter, divided in 1/2, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tbs dark brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup caster sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla essence
  • 2 tbs golden syrup
  • 1 large egg
  • 2/3 cup SRF (self-raising flour), sifted
  • 1 cup plain flour, sifted (some extra may be needed, 2-3 tbs)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon/allspice
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup caramel chips

Cheesecake:

Caramel

  • 20g butter
  • 1/4 cup thickened cream
  • 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tbs golden syrup

Filling

  • 500g cream cheese, room temp
  • 90s caster sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 130g sour cream
  • 125ml thickened cream
  • 1 tbs lemon juice

Decoration (optional)

Whipped Cream

  • 1 tsp gelatin
  • 3 tbs cold water
  • 200ml thickened cream
  • 1 tbs icing sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Method (finally!)

Cookie Dough Balls:

  1. Combine butter and sugars until light in a saucepan and melt till smooth
  2. Add in vanilla and milk and mix in
  3. Stir through flour and chocolate chis until a wet dough forms
  4. Gently roll into teaspoon sized balls and place them on a wax lined plate and put into the freezer (resisting eating them was too difficult!)

Cookie Crust:

  1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Grease and line a 20cm springform tin with baking paper.
  2. Melt half the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally and let it brown – when smells nutty and turns brown, immediately take off heat and let cool
  3. Place other half of butter in a bowl and beat with all sugars until pale in colour – scrape down the bowl
  4. Add in brown butter to mixture and beat until well combined
  5. Add in egg to mixture and beat until just combined
  6. Beat in vanilla essence and golden syrup
  7. Sift both flours, cinnamon, salt in a large separate bowl. Stir chocolate and caramel chips through until coated and mixture is combine
  8. Spoon the mixture into the bottom of the tin and using your hand, press the dough until it covers the bottom of the cheesecake and comes up slightly on the sides
  9. Bake for 8 minutes or until the crust is slightly golden brown
  10. Take out and let cool on a wire rack (do not loosen off the base, just give it a bit of air by releasing the sides around it)

Caramel of Cheesecake:

  1. Place all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium high heat
  2. Stir until well combined and let come to just under simmer (first couple of bubbles appearing on the sides – 4-5 minutes)
  3. Take mixture off heat and let thicken slightly over the course of 30 minutes

Cheesecake:

  1. Lower oven temperature to 160 degrees C
  2. Beat the cream cheese and caster sugar on high in a large bowl, occasionally stopping to scrape down the sides, until smooth
  3. Add in the eggs one by one, beating after each
  4. Beat in the sour cream, cream and lemon juice
  5. Mix through the cooled caramel mixture (takes the cake to a whole new level!)
  6. Snap the sides of the springform tin bake onto the base with the cooled cookie crust on it. Wrap the bottom tightly in aluminium (grease from the pan or the cookie might escape) and place it on a baking tray.
  7. Pour half the cheesecake into the into the resealed tin
  8. Put the cookie dough balls throughout the cheesecake filling
  9. Pour the remaining half on top and ensure it covers the cookie dough
  10. Jiggle and hit lightly on the counter to even out the top and remove air bubbles. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until set on the side and slightly wobbly in the centre
  11. Let cool to room temperature, even off the top (eat that!) with a serrated knife and refrigerate, covered in a box

Decoration: Make Whipped Cream

  1. You can use ganache like I did, or do whatever you want, but the stabilised whipped cream (thanks Eva!) really added to the cake! So here you go 😀
  2. Place 1 tsp of gelatine in the cold water and microwave until it is dissolved
  3. Whip the thickened cream using a hand held mixer and drizzle in the gelatine mixture, icing sugar and vanilla essence
  4. Voila! Place into a piping bag and pipe cornets everywhere 😀 – It sets much nicer in the fridge and is not prone to melting!

And now I am off! *Star Wars Theme* – See you on the other side ❤

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86 Comments

  8. laurasmess says:

    So happy for you Uru, one exam to go, woop!!! Can’t believe that you managed to come up with an extensive post like this one during such a busy time! Good luck with your last on the 4th… eek, almost done! Oh, and by the way, this cheesecake looks awesome. Your friend is lucky! x

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  9. Pingback: Candy & Our Winner! | Go Bake Yourself

  17. Tammy says:

    Ahhhhhh Uru, this cake looks FABULOUS & Congratulations! 😀

    I’m going crazy staring at these pics…seriously OMG. Best of luck with your studies..gosh, I can’t even keep up anymore 😮 Guuurl I miss you! D,: Don’t stay away too long!!!!

    xoxo,
    Tammy<3

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  21. Amy Tong says:

    This is such a fun cake with all the cookie dough in it. 🙂 Must be delicious and irresistible! Wow, you do have many exams. Best luck to all of them and take care. You definitely deserve a great celebration after all these exams and studies. 😉 Take care.

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  28. easyfoodsmith says:

    Phew! When ever I hear the word ‘exam’ it still gives me shivers. No kidding, but i still get nightmares about being in the examination hall and goofing up with some or the other subject!!

    The cake sounds delicious. I once popped in coconut ladoos into a chocolate cake batter and it turned out delicious (my Saturn Midnight Moon Cake) Seeing your post, I am keen on trying your version. Thanks for sharing 🙂

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  30. Nami | Just One Cookbook says:

    I’m not much of a baker so I am not so familiar with cake recipes, but this is probably the first or one of first time that I saw cookie dough balls are actually in the cake! That is so cool! I am using similar (or is it same? not sure – they all look blue, white and red just like yours but could be diff company) dishwasher detergent. It works great! I run dish waster at last 2 times a day too. Good luck with you finals! You can do it! 😀

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  49. Veronica says:

    I don’t have a dishwasher so don’t’ enter me in the giveaway, but I had to say you’ve got one lucky friend! That cheesecake looks to die for. Good luck with your final final exams! 🙂

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  51. Three Well Beings says:

    Well, I should be very happy to be near you when I have a birthday and be the recipient of one of your amazing cakes or desserts, Uru! My goodness this is gorgeous. I don’t know how you have time for anything else at all with your study and exam schedule, but we are really going to celebrate with you when you done–finally done–completely done!! And I use these Finish power balls, although i don’t think I’ve seen the lemon. They are wonderful. Funny to say that, but it’s true, clean up is the final step and I don’t like to open a dishwasher and discover the job wasn’t well done! I do like Finish products. Good luck with all you’re doing. You are one busy person! ox

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  56. Eva Taylor says:

    OMG! What a crazy, decadent cheese cake CCU! Over the top even for you, I dare say. We use Finish regularly but I wasn’t aware if the lemon scented kind, would love to try it! Good luck with your exams, I know you’ll ace them!

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  60. gottagetbaked says:

    Girl, this is cheesecake perfection – it’s so high and decadent. I love the balls of cookie dough throughout. Good luck with the rest of your exams. I can’t wait till you’re done and you can get back to important stuff like baking and blogging! And relaxing of course, cause you deserve a vacation after all that studying!

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  62. Kathleen Richardson says:

    CCU, I could tell it was cheesecake from the first picture. What I didn’t realize until reading through the entire recipe is that it is THE CHEESECAKE. You’ve outdone yourself this time. Wow! As for the dishwasher tablet giveaway, those will go straight to my daughter if I’m the winner, since she’s the one with the dishwasher (she’s also the one who insists on cheesecake for her birthday each year!)

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  66. hotlyspiced says:

    Good luck tomorrow. I’m sure you’ll be fine. When I did my HSC I had three exams in a row. One in the morning, one in the afternoon and another the next morning. It was a horror schedule and it’s so difficult to study for three at once. And then there was about 10 days until my last exam – now that’s too much of a break. And everyday friends were finishing up and going on holidays but I still had to sit that last exam. It was 3 unit Art History. Anyway, the cheesecake looks like just the fuel you’ll be needing while you sit in front of your books and Finish is excellent – I use it all the time. Again Uri, good luck and may the force be with you xx

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  67. Curry and Comfort says:

    I don’t envy you… exams (especially big ones) freak me out!! I can get the cold sweats for you right now!! I wish you all the luck in the world to ace these exams and leave this chapter behind you. 🙂 Good Luck my friend!!

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  69. foodfashionparty says:

    Happy Birthday!! Interesting cake my girl.
    Exams..not so much.:(…Hated exams then and I feel for you. All the best and I know you will do good.

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  70. Cindy Kerschner says:

    I don’t have an automatic dishwasher (gasp from the crowd) so I just want to say best of luck with your finals even though you won’t need any luck, you are a smart, caring girl and will go far in the world!

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  71. A_Boleyn says:

    What a gorgeous looking cheesecake Uru. Happy Birthday wishes to your frined PDS.

    There are several elements that I’ve never used before in it ie the actual baked cookie crust and the cookie dough balls which I would have loved to see ‘in situ’ as in a nice big slice of the cake with the baked cake balls inside. It’s such a smart idea to use those coloured candy balls to write the birthday sentiment instead of piping it in icing.

    Seems like a case of the ‘boy who cried wolf’ with the end of exam announcements … I may miss the actual date. Nov 4. 🙂 Best of luck again.

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  73. kitchenriffs says:

    Great looking cheesecake! And fun post. But exams? No fun at all, and you certainly seem to have to take more than your share. Good luck! And looking forward to seeing many more posts after November 4. 🙂

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  76. Edible Celebrations (@lavesta) says:

    That is one amazing cake, Uru. Oh yes, since discovering the versatility of cookie dough, I am so hooked!

    I can appreciate what you must me going through with all those final, final exams. Soon it will be over:) Good Luck, Uru.

    A very nice give-away also. I very rarely, if ever, use my dishwasher. Truth be told, I pretty much use it for storage, lol…so please count me out from this lemony give-away. Good Luck to the winner!

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  77. Liz says:

    so, you’re saying there are balls of cookie dough inside of the cheesecake? Holy cow. Can’t even imagine! Looks amazing and the photos are gorgeous and make my mouth water. Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Good luck to you as you march toward the finish line. Totally get why you’ve been busy, but I have a cake for you up at my “gorgeous blog” (lol, you’re funny 😉 ). Seriously–check out the cake as you will like! http://wp.me/p2dvv9-1bj

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  79. viveka says:

    Congratulation to the graduation, I was never worried about that you would make it. And I know you will make the final too.
    A stunning cake again – Uru, you are just incredible. And good luck with the give-away, I don’t have a dishwasher, I’m the dishwasher *smile – and cakes keep me running *smile
    Have a great weekend.

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  81. Kim Bultman says:

    Uru, best wishes on your exams! Your incredible cheesecake would be a sweet reward after all the studying and waiting and wondering… hope you had time to make another one before the clock started ticking. I also agree with you, there’s nothing worse than pulling a “dirty clean” dish out of the dishwasher. Thanks for the chance to win this product!

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