Giulia's Marbled Chocolate Cheesecake

Prepare for a recipe that will make everyone fall in love with you! It's easy, it always works, and its love-inspiring effects are guaranteed. Besides, ricotta is a low-fat cheese, so you don't have to feel guilty about it! Make sure you use good quality chocolate such as Bournville, Lindt, Cioccoblocco or Valhrona - the cake will taste so much better! - and, if you can find it, buy fresh ricotta.
This is the first cake I baked, and it is still the one my niece Giulia asks for more often. She has even learnt how to bake it herself because, she says, it makes her smile. 
And that one sentence, right there, is the reason why I do it.


Requirements: 

• a 20-cm deep springform tin, or a rectangular brownie tin

Ingredients:
for the base

• 125g plain biscuits
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 40g unsalted butter

for the filling

• 400g ricotta 
• 150g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla essence (1-2 sachets of vanillina if you are in Italy)
• 150ml fresh cream
• 200g dark chocolate (60%+ cocoa contents works best)
• cream, to serve

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 160 °C. 

Put the biscuits into a clear food bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Mix the crushed biscuits with the cocoa powder.

Melt the butter and stir it into the biscuit mixture.

If you do not want to slice the cheesecake inside its tin when it's ready, line the bottom of your tin of choice with baking parchment (otherwise, simply rub the tin with butter and sprinkle some flour over it), then press the biscuit mixture onto its base. 
At the start, it will not seem enough to cover the base, but persevere and it will!

In a large bowl, beat the ricotta till it softens, then beat in sugar, eggs, vanilla essence and cream. You can do this by hand, using a wooden spoon or a whisk.

Melt the chocolate. Spoon one-third of the white mixture into a separate bowl and beat in the chocolate. Do not worry if it goes a bit lumpy: it will melt in the oven.

Pour the white mixture onto the prepared biscuit base, then place spoonfuls of the brown mixture on top of it. With a knife, swirl it to create a marbled effect.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the centre of the cake feels only just set. Make sure you do not overcook it - it is OK if the centre is a little wobbly. Let it cool, then transfer it to the refrigerator.

Serve warm with cream, and enjoy all the lovely 'mmmmhh' and 'oooohhh' you'll get from your happy customers. Then have a slice yourself, and smile :)