The Inaugural Use of my Stand Mixer

I finally became the owner of a long-coveted KitchenAid Stand Mixer last Christmas, thanks to my sister-in-law.  So, now that I have this thing, what to make?  I felt like its first use should be special, should have meaning.  But the possibilities were endless and I couldn’t decide.  In the end, I flipped through a Williams Sonoma Baking cookbook and stopped randomly on…cheesecake?  Sure, why not?  Here are few steps in the process of making this absolutely fantastic espresso cheesecake.  A great start to what I hope will be a beautiful relationship between my mixer and I.      

This was the closest thing to a "chocolate wafer" that my husband could find at the store.  We lovingly scraped away the Oreo filling to make the cheesecake crust.

Just seeing a picture of this mixer makes me giddy.

A small slice of the finished product, served as part of a brunch for some friends who were expecting their first child.  With a newborn ourselves, I made sure to use decaf espresso!