Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake: National Amaretto Day

Today is National Amaretto Day.  Amaretto is a sweet, almond-flavored Italian liqueur. Interestingly enough it isn't always made from almonds. It's primarily made from apricot pits and spices. The original version was made in Saronno, Italy. Amaretto is Italian for "a little bitter." Here's a link to a Homemade Amaretto recipe from Chow.com.

I love this recipe for Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake. I've adapted this recipe from Cooking Light, but I've added 'less' light ingredients. My feeling, if you're going to do it, do it whole hog.

Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake

Ingredients
6-8 chocolate wafers
Cooking spray
1 cup sugar
1 cup cottage cheese
12 ounces cream cheese
6 Tbsp DARK unsweetened Scharffen Berger cocoa
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (I like King Arthur Flour)
1/8 cup Amaretto
1 Tbsp water
1 tsp Madagascar vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg
2 Tbsp dark chocolate chopped fine (or mini-chocolate chips)

Directions
Preheat oven to 300°

Crust
Place wafers in food processor, and pulse until coarsely ground. Sprinkle crumbs into bottom of  8-inch spring form pan coated with cooking spray.

Cheesecake
Place sugar and next 8 ingredients (sugar through salt) in food processor, and process until smooth.
Add egg, and process until blended.
Pour cheese mixture into prepared pan, and sprinkle with finely chopped dark chocolate.
Bake at 300° for 55 minutes or until cheesecake center barely moves when pan is touched.
Remove cheesecake from oven, and run knife around outside edge.
Cool to room temperature.
Cover and chill at least 8 hours.