Cheesecake and Cake Together, Really?

An actual cheesecake inbetween two layers of cake.  I actually made this before I had my blog site up and going.  I didn't take pictures throughout the process of making this cake but I can tell you how I did it.  My first attempt was to make a red velvet cake with a regular cheesecake filling and cream cheese frosting. You will need to plan a couple days in advance before serving this cake.  It is not a difficult cake to make, just takes time.

First, planning.  Since you are going to have three layers of cake, you need to make sure you have the right pans.  You will need two 9" round cake pans and a 9" springform pan. 

Making your cheesecake.  You will need to make a parchment paper bottom on the pan.  Lay your pan down on the parchment paper and with a small paring knife, trace around the pan (you will want it a little bigger than the bottom of the pan so it can go up the sides a little bit).  Spray the pan with cooking spray and place the parchment paper on the bottom and spray also.  Make your desired cheesecake recipe but skip the crust process.  Wrap up the bottom of your springform pan in foil because you are going to cook your cheesecake in a water bath.  When you are ready to cook your cheesecake, you will need to boil a kettle of water.  Place a pan with 2" sides that your springform pan will fit into (I used the bottom of my broiler pan) into the oven and place your cheesecake into the pan and pour the hot water slowly around the cheesecake about 1/2" deep.  Cook until just set (unlike a cake, you will remove it while it still wiggles a little).  Overcooking will cause your cheesecake to crack.  If it does, it's still fine, you are going to be covering it up with cake!  After you remove it from the oven, remove the pan from the water and place on a cooling rack.  Once it has cooled, place it in the refrigerator for about an hour to firm up.  Remove from refrigerator and carefully remove the outer ring (keeping the bottom intact for support) and wrap loosely in foil and place in freezer overnight.

Bake your favorite cake using the two 9" cake pans, a cake mix works just fine for this, make sure you divide the batter evenly between the two pans (I use a scale).  Cook as directed and cool.

The following day, after the cheesecake has had time to freeze, it is time to assemble your cake.  Place bottom layer cake onto cake place (or cardboard disc). Unwrap cheesecake remove the pan bottom and parchment paper and place onto the bottom layer of the cake, and finish by placing the top cake layer on the cheesecake.

Frost the cake as usual.  After decorating, you will need to make sure you refrigerate the cake to keep the cheesecake cool.  Serve the cake after it has had time to defrost in the refrigerator.  I served mine after it had defrosted overnight in the refrigerator.

People were really amazed at the outcome.  My second attempt was a lemon cake with a blueberry cheesecake and lemon frosting.  I do have to admit that the lemon/blueberry was my favorite.