Orange Cheesecake

Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 9 inches oreo cookie pie crusts (i use keebler brand)
• 2 (8 ounce) packages light cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup orange juice concentrate, thawed & undiluted
• 2 medium whole navel oranges
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure orange extract
• chocolate curls (optional)

Recipe

• 1 using a microplane grater or the smallest holes on a box grater, zest one entire orange onto a plate or into a bowl; set aside, and refrigerate zested orange for a later use.
• 2 in a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth, making sure there are no lumps; add sugar and mix well.
• 3 add eggs and egg yolk; then add orange juice concentrate, orange zest, flour, vanilla extract& orange extract and mix until thoroughly combined, scraping down sides& bottom of bowl frequently to make sure all of the cream cheese is incorporated.
• 4 preheat oven to 350°f.
• 5 place prepared pie crust in center of a cookie sheet (preferably without sides).
• 6 brush crust with some of the orange juice concentrate.
• 7 pour cream cheese mixture into prepared crust and bake 45-50 minutes or until center is almost set but still wiggles slightly when shaken gently (cheesecake will continue to cook after removing from oven).
• 8 remove cheesecake from oven, and let cool thoroughly on a wire rack (without the cookie sheet).
• 9 when cooled to room temperature, refrigerate cheesecake for several hours.
• 10 while cheesecake is chilling, remove some of the rind from the second orange with a vegetable peeler or citrus zester, being careful to only remove the orange part (the pith is bitter).
• 11 if using a vegetable peeler, cut the pieces of rind into very thin julienne strips; set aside.
• 12 make chocolate curls by scraping a large chocolate bar with a heavy knife, holding knife at a 90-degree angle to bar.
• 13 when ready to serve, place a mound of the chocolate curls in center of cheesecake; sprinkle with julienned strips of orange.
• 14 refrigerate any leftovers.