Chocolate-Rum Cheesecake


1 pound cream cheese
4 eggs
salt
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark rum
Chocolate flavored coffee syrup
3 ounces dark semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate

1 cup sour cream
3 Tbs sugar
more rum

Beat  cream cheese and a dash of salt until fluffy. Gradually add 2/3 cup sugar.
Add eggs, one at a time, until batter is smooth. Add dark rum, like Meyer's Planters
Punch. Add 1/4 cup chocolate syrup. I use the thin, coffee flavoring style, not something
like the Hersey's ice cream topping. That may work, I just haven't tried it yet.

When batter is smooth, pour into buttered 9 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Cake
should rise a fair bit, and be light golden brown around the edge of the pan. Remove from
oven, place on cooling rack  Grate chocolate, spread over cake, let cool for 15 -20 minutes.

Beat  together 1 cup sour cream, 3 Tbs sugar, dash of salt, and a healthy splash of rum.
Pour over chocolate topped cake, bake for another 10 minutes or so at 350 degrees, cool.

This is one version. Replace the rum with some Contreau for a nice chocolate-orange
flavor, perhaps amaretto or kalua. Or maybe some hazelnut flavoring with few tablespoons
of rich, strong coffee instead of the rum and chocolate syrup.  Forego the grated chocolate
layer and add a splash of almond extract to the topping instead of rum for something a bit
lighter.  Hmmm, I wonder how using Contreau in the cake and a splash of orange marmalade
in the topping might work?