Archive for the ‘Cakes – Cheesecake’ Category
New York Style Cheesecake is known for being rich, creamy, heavy and indulgent. And when I say “heavy” I mean it literally, because the classic recipe for this type of cheesecake calls for 2 1/2 lbs of cream cheese! The dense but smooth texture of the cheesecake is its signature, setting it apart from other types of cheesecakes and making it so popular – and rather high in fat from all that cream cheese. Having a slice once in a while is a real treat and not one to miss, but a lighter version of this classic recipe, like the Authentic New York Cheesecake developed by America’s Test Kitchen from The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook means that you can indulge a little more often.
This cheesecake looks and tastes just like the real thing. It is dense and creamy, with a wonderful cream cheese flavor backed up by a hint of lemon zest and a bit of vanilla extract. It feels very decadent when you take that first bite, so you might be a bit surprised to hear what goes into this cheesecake. It uses light cream cheese – with only a fraction of the fat of regular cream cheese – as well as low fat cottage cheese and low fat yogurt cheese. The trick to using the cottage cheese is draining it. Getting rid of that excess moisture allows it to blend very smoothly in with the rest of the ingredients in this cake. You will need a food processor to make this cheesecake, as it is essential to getting the texture of the filling down pat.
The yogurt cheese is also an unusual ingredient. Some stores sell yogurt cheese already packaged (it is also called labne), but you can simply use thick Greek-style yogurt and drain it along with the cream cheese for a similar result if your store doesn’t carry the labne. America’s Test Kitchen recommends draining plain, non-Greek yogurt for 10 hours to make your own yogurt cheese, but it is a lot quicker to start with the thicker Greek yogurt, which is easy to find in just about any grocery store.
The other trick to this cheesecake is the baking method. Some cheesecakes call for the use of a water bath, which allows heat to hit the pan at a very consistent temperature. This cheesecake is baked briefly at a very high temperature to set it, then baked for a long time at an extremely low temperature, which allows the custard to cook gently even without the aid of a water bath. Your cheesecake shouldn’t crack during baking with this method, although I will confess that mine cracked during cooling because my kitchen was very cold and the big temperature change caused the cheesecake to cool too quickly (and therefore crack).
This cheesecake is delicious plain or topped with fresh berries. It keeps well, covered in the refrigerator, for at least two days after baking, too.
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One way to combine cheesecake and brownies is in a batch of cheesecake brownies. It’s a fantastic combination of rich cream cheese and decadent chocolate that is also very portable and easy to enjoy. But it’s not the only way to enjoy this combination of ingredients. I put them together in the form of a cheesecake with a brownie base, delivering more brownie and more cheesecake in each bite – and giving you a dessert with a real wow factor on top o it.
This dessert is put together in two parts. First, the brownie base is baked in a springform pan, then a no-baked cheesecake batter is poured on top of it. I like the no-bake cheesecake for this recipe because it has a slightly lighter texture than some cheesecakes, which really highlights the difference between the creamy cheesecake and the dense brownies. The cheesecake still has that luscious, smooth texture to it that you would expect from a cheesecake, it just has a hint of airiness that helps it melt on the tongue and contrast with the chewy brownies.
You can prepare this whole dessert in advance, as it needs time to chill and allow the cheesecake to set up before serving. The cheesecake only needs a couple of hours in the fridge to set up, but you can easily prepare this the night before you want to serve it so you don’t have to do any last minute preparation. For a unique twist, if you want something a little different that just a classic vanilla and chocolate combination, add in a teaspoon of mint extract along with the melted chocolate in the cheesecake batter for a mint chocolate marble dessert!
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Samoas are easily my favorite Girl Scout cookie because of all the great contrasting flavors and textures they have. It is a shortbread-type cookie topped with caramel and toasted coconut then dipped in chocolate. I like them so much that I have a homemade version that lets me make them any time I want – no Girl Scouts necessary – as well as a slightly easier bar cookie variation that still captures those flavors. This time, I have yet another variation on the theme with some Samoas Cheesecake Bars. They’re not quite as cookie-like as my other homemade Girl Scout Cookie recipes, but I’m pretty sure that those girls could easily sell just as many of these bars!
These cheesecake bars are fairly easy to make and start off with a shortbread base topped with a layer of vanilla cheesecake, a combination I’ve used before in Vanilla Bean Cheesecake Bars. The bars are topped with a mixture of caramel and toasted coconut, then drizzled with chocolate. The result is a delicious bar with a buttery crust, creamy cheesecake, gooey caramel, crisp coconut and rich chocolate.
The only trick to making these bars is that you need to make the caramel sauce by hand. It needs to remain soft when refrigerated because the cheesecake bars need to be stored in the refrigerator. The bars are a bit less satisfying to eat when the caramel hardens up and you can’t slice into them! This caramel is smooth and rich tasting, and remains soft enough to slice easily after it has been spread on the bars and chilled, though it is firm enough that it won’t run everywhere and make a mess. You could get away with using a thick, store-bought caramel sauce if you want to give a shortcut a try, though.
This recipe makes a big batch that is easy to share, but equally easy to enjoy yourself. They keep well in the refrigerator, so you can take your time eating through them. There are several stages to making this recipe, but most of the down time is just waiting for things to chill. Be a bit patient and the results will be well worth it!
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Eggnog is one of those foods that really conjures up thoughts of the holidays because it’s only available for a few weeks of the year (although you can make it at home anytime). There are also lots of eggnog-flavored treats out there, like cakes and cookies. Many don’t even use eggnog as an ingredient and just include vanilla and nutmeg in the recipes to capture a big of flavor that is reminiscent of eggnog. This is a huge disappointment when you want something that actually tastes like eggnog! It’s also unfortunate because eggnog can be a great ingredient to use when baking around the holidays. In many recipes (cakes, puddings, etc.) regular eggnog can be substituted for regular milk, adding a lot of holiday flavor to an otherwise unseasonal recipe.
Eggnog plays a big part in this Eggnog Ricotta Cheesecake, so you get a cheesecake that is a balanced mix of cream cheese and eggnog flavors. Ricotta cheese has such a mild flavor that it doesn’t come to the forefront, but it does have a big impact on the texture of the cheesecake. The cheesecake is light and very tender, not heavy or dense.
I used a shortbread crust for this cheesecake. Its plain, buttery flavor goes well with the cheesecake and it is very sturdy, so it slices and holds together very well. It is also very easy to throw together. The cheesecake batter is poured over the crust while it is still warm, so the whole cheesecake takes very little time to come together. I refrigerate this cheesecake before serving. It can be served warm or at room temperature, but you may want to bake it the night before and simply put it in the fridge for 8-12 hours before serving.
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Oreo cookies are a great addition to cheesecake, whether you use them in the crust or chop them up and mix them into the batter. The crisp, chocolaty cookies are a nice textural contrast to the creamy cream cheese base of the cake, and the creme filling of the cookie blends in smoothly and sweetly to the rest of the dessert. I like them in any kind of cheesecake, but when I saw the Halloween Oreos – with their bright orange centers – on the shelves, I knew that they would make a fabulous Halloween-themed cheesecake.
I lined the muffin tin with paper liners and then placed a whole Oreo cookie into each cup to act as the crust of these cheesecakes. Not only does it make for a good, solid base, but you don’t need to spend time fussing with getting graham cracker crumbs into the muffin cups or prebaking crusts and waiting for them to cool. I also chopped up some Oreo cookies and stirred them into the cake batter. The cheesecake itself is very easy and mixes up in one bowl. Just pour it on top of the cookie bases and you’re ready to bake! Once all your ingredients are at room temperature, you can actually have these in the oven in less than 10 minutes.
I took these to a little party recently and they were a huge hit with both adults and kids alike. It was really fun to see faces light up when they bit into the cheesecake and realized that you could see the whole Oreo cookie, complete with bright orange filling, sitting at the base of the cake. The cupcakes travel very well as the cheesecake is relatively firm. Also, since the orange filling isn’t orange flavored, these taste just like cookies n’ cream.
Don’t forget, regular Oreos (or similar brands) of cookies will work well in this recipe, too, and you can always opt for a non-Halloween colored version in the off season.
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