I’d been wondering why I’ve been receiving so many comments and questions from India recently (an unusually high number of people made a point to tell me you can’t get cream cheese there). Happily over the weekend a helpful reader by the name of Rishika cleared that up for me. It seems I recently received […]
READ ONSo OK, it’s not straight-up New York. I added a cookie crumb crust at the last minute. But it looks pretty good, n’est-ce pas? It tastes good too. And that’s coming from a guy who really isn’t wild about cheesecake. This is a very simple thing to prepare and it goes like this… Preheat your […]
READ ONReader Laura suggests that the original inspirations for New York cheesecakes weren’t Italian cheesecakes: Since Leo Linderman (Lindy’s) and Arnold Reuben were both German immigrants, and since Reuben claimed that Lindy’s stole his German chef with the cheesecake recipe, it is more likely that the inspiration was German kaesekuchen (or some Eastern European cheesecake) than […]
READ ONNew Yorkers have a habit of claiming credit for pretty much everything. However in the case of cheesecake, they’re pretty much right. For it was upstate New York dairymen who invented “Philadelphia” cream cheese in the 1880’s, and it was the Jewish deli owners of Manhattan who subsequently used that cheese to make the thing […]
READ ONI think that pun occurs in every article on cheesecake history ever written. And boy, have there ever been a lot of them. I think of cheesecake history as a sort of bottomless pit, one that will take you as deep into the history of food as you care to go, according to your definition […]
READ ONReader Theresa from Bangalore, India, offer this: I have been making New York style cheesecakes for a while. And been getting extremely good feedback on the lightness of my creations. Well, my method is to use a mix of yogurt and cream. The yogurt is hung till it has absolutely no water content. Mix this […]
READ ONA few members of the professional baking comunity sent in tips about pans yesterday. Here are some representative emails. This one from reader Laura: Here is another alternative to a springform pan: disposable foil pans. They come extra deep, although I use regular depth pans because I like to make a smaller cheesecake. I use […]
READ ONThe idea of making a cheesecake with more non-cheese dairy ingredients has clearly gotten a lot of readers thinking. What about using a Mexican crema or a homemade crème fraîche instead of the store-bought cream or sour cream? Would that add a more interesting taste? Would it work? The answers are yes and yes.
READ ONOr bain marie as it’s often called by fancy foodies. I’ve written about this before, but it’s such an interesting subject I just can’t help myself. A water bath is the classic way to prevent custards from curdling (or “breaking”) because it keeps the temperature of the cooking custard at a constant low. How so? […]
READ ONReader Ben comments: I’ve never had luck with a springform pan in a water bath. Even using heavy duty aluminum foil in a couple layers, I still get seepage. I’ve gone back to just baking without the water bath. Any tips? That much cream ain’t cheap, and I’d hate to ruin another cheesecake. I hear […]
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