White Chocolate Grand Marnier Cheesecake

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter an 8-inch springform pan. TO MAKE CRUST: In a mixing bowl, blend together the butter and the graham cracker crumbs and press that mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. TO MAKE FILLING: In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and confectioner's sugar. In another mixing bowl, blend together the eggs, orange juice, orange zest, and Grand Marnier. Add the Grand Marnier mixture to the cream cheese mixture and blend all of those ingredients together. In a bowl, over simmering water, melt the white chocolate and add it to the Grand Marnier and cream cheese mixture. The result is the basic batter. TO MAKE MERINGUE: In a bowl, whip the egg whites until foamy, add the sugar, and continue whipping until the whites start to stand in peaks. Fold the meringue into the basic batter, and pour the result over the graham cracker crust. Bake the cheesecake for 35 to 40 minutes. When the cake comes out, let it cool completely in the pan on a rack. When it is fully cooled, remove it from the pan and slice it into 8 pieces. The knife is dipped into hot water between each slice to keep the blade from sticking to the cake. Each slice of cake is decorated with two mandarin orange sections and garnished with white chocolate shavings.