Red Velvet Layered Cheesecake
A fancy Christmas Dessert
Ingredients
Cheesecake
- 16 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
- Pinch salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
Red Velvet Cake
- 1 box red velvet cake mix
- 1 1/4 cup whole milk
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup canola oil
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 - 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1 box cheesecake instant pudding mix
- 1 cup whole milk
- 8 oz. Cool Whip, or whipped up heavy cream
Instructions
Cheesecake
- Preheat oven to 325°. Place a large roasting pan on the lower rack. Heat a kettle of hot water.
- Spray 9" springform pan with nonstick spray and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Wrap a double layer of foil around the bottom and up the sides of the pan to seal completely.
- Beat cream cheese until smooth. Mix in sugar and salt and mix 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each. Mix in the sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour the batter in the pan. Set the pan in the roasting pan. Pour hot water into the roasting pan until it reaches 1 inch up the sides of the cheesecake pan.
- Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour. Should be set to the touch and not jiggly. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack at least one hour.
- When cooled, place pan in freezer and freeze completely. Several hours or overnight.
Red Velvet Cake
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour 3 9" cake pans.
- Mix cake mix as directed with the ingredients listed above.
- Divide batter evenly between the 3 pans.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until firm. Let cool in pans on wire rack. Cover until ready to assemble the cake.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Beat powdered sugar, cream cheese and vanilla until smooth and creamy, but not air-filled.
- Mix the pudding and milk in a measuring cup and allow to thicken. Add to cream cheese mixture. Mix until smooth.
- Add Cool Whip or whipped up heavy cream with a spatula. Stir only until mixed well.
- Cover tightly and refrigerate until ready to use.
Assemble the Cake
- Place a layer of cake on a cake plate.
- Remove sides from cheesecake (still frozen) and then remove pan bottom. Cheesecake should be the same size as cake layers. Trim the larger to fit the smaller.
- Slice the cheesecake into two layers. Place a layer of cheesecake on the cake layer, then another cake layer, cheesecake, and top with cake.
Frost the Cake
- Apply a crumb coat layer of frosting to the cake. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
- Apply the rest of the frosting, up the sides and on top of the cake.
- Top with decorations of choice: White chocolate curls, candy cane shards, or get fancy with chocolate shapes or pile with clear red candy cracked into thin "icebergs."
- Keep refrigerated when not serving cake.