Week 5: Swiss Alps Cheesecake

First thing I have to say is, I'm glad I've picked up running!  Oherwise, I'd surely gain a ton of weight with this cheesecake experiment ;) 
This week, I chose an appetizer style cheesecake - it can be likened to a heavy cheesespread that you can put on crackers.  It's listed in the "Savory" section of George's cookbook.  This cheesecake turned out well, and our friends who had us over for brunch today seemed to enjoy it, too.

Here is the adapted version of George Geary's Swiss Alps cheesecake:

3/4 cup crushed crackers
2 tbsp melted butter

1 package cream cheese, softened (and as a reminder, cheesecake and eggs should come to room temperature before making cheesecake)
1 egg
1tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp chopped dill
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1 clove garlic minced (I just used 1 tbsp pre-minced garlic from a jar)
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

In a bowl, combine the crushed crackers and butter, then press mixture into the bottom of a cheesecake pan (if using a springform pan, make sure to grease the bottom and the sides).

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese on med speed for 3 minutes.  Add egg, and mix until blended.  Then add the lemon juice, salt, dill, onion flakes and garlic.  With a spatula, fold in the Swiss cheese.  Pour the mixture over the frozen crust, and bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes (my oven runs hot, so I only baked my cheesecake for 25 minutes).  Bake until the middle has a slight jiggle and top has slight brown color.  Cool for two hours, then wrap tightly in saran wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours. 

This can be served with crackers.  

Next week.... something chocolatey!! :)

Week 4: Lime Cheesecake

I was really excited about making this cheesecake... love keylime pie and cheesecake, and, this was a no-bake recipe, too!  Well, I have to say, I was a little disappointed with the outcome.  I'm not sure if it was because this wasn't a baked cheesecake, but this cheesecake was very dense and rich.  It was like I took a bite off of a block of cream cheese, and the cream cheese just happened to have a hint of lime to it.  It was so rich, I couldn't even finish a piece.  I brought this cheesecake over to my dad's side of the family for father's day, and the general consensus was that it was a very rich cheesecake.

However, if you do like a really dense cheesecake, here is the adapted version of George Geary's Lime Cheesecake:

1 1/4 cups butter cookie crumbs (I used graham cracker crumbs)
3 tbsp butter - unsalted and melted

1 packet powdered unflavored gelatin
1/4 tsp lime zest
1/2 cup lime juice
3 packages cream cheese softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whipping cream whipped

Decorate with Classic Whipped Topping (you can top the cheesecake with store bought whipped cream too, or with no topping)

In a medium sized bowl, combine cookie crumbs and butter.  Press the mixture into the bottom of the cheesecake pan an freeze (if you using a spring form pan, make sure to grease the bottom and sides of pan).

Sprinkle gelatin over lime juice in a small saucepan, and let it stand for a few minutes.  Then place saucepan over low heat stirring constantly, until gelatin is completely dissolved.  Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
In a big bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium speed for three minutes.  Slowly add the dissolved gelatin and lime juice mixture.  Mix in vanilla and lime zest and then fold in the whipped cream.  Pour mixture over frozen crust.  Chill cheesecake for 6 hours until firm.  (That's right, no baking!)

Things I learned from this experience:

• Use the recommended cookies for the crust - my crust turned out almost soggy, and crumbled to the touch.  My guess is that the crust needed to be made from a heartier cookie. 
• Allow crust to freeze longer.  The crust was only in the freezer for an hour before pouring the cheesecake mixture over it.  This, combined with the wrong crust mixture, made for a bad crust.
• Again, thou must practice patience!

Week 3: Black Forest Cheesecake

NO CRACKS!!!  More specifically, no cracks in this week's cheesecake!  Seriously, I was practically jumping up and down for joy when I peeked at the un-cracked cheesecake as it was cooling.  The verdict from those who ate this week's cheesecake is that this is the best one yet (of course you can't go wrong with chocolate and cherries).

Here is the adapted version of George Geary's Black Forest Cheesecake recipe:

1 1/4 cups chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (I used Oreos)
3 tbsp of melted butter, unsalted

2 packages cream cheese softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips melted and cooled
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 can cherry pie filling (21 oz)

For the crust, combine the cookie crumbs and melted butter and press into the bottom of a cheesecake pan (if using a spring form pan, make sure to grease the bottom and sides of pan).  Place pan in freezer and freeze.

For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes.  Then add the eggs one at a time making sure to beat each egg thoroughly into the batter before adding the next egg.  Mix in vanilla and melted chocolate.  Pour the batter over the frozen crust and bake in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for 45-55 minutes or until the top has a slight golden brown color and the middle has a jiggle to it.  Cool cheesecake on rack for two hours and then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours. 

For the topping, in a well chilled bowl, whip cream on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.  With mixer still running, slowly add the 2 tbsp sugar and continue whipping until firm peaks form (I misread the directions and mixed the whipping cream and sugar all at once... it still turned out fine.  Also, I recommend doubling up on the whipping cream and sugar).

So, a few things I did differently this week:

• allowed the cream cheese and eggs to come to room temperature
• pre-heated the oven to 325 degrees, then turned it up to 350 degrees after placing the cheesecake in the oven.
• used a cheesecake pan (and wrapped the bottom in aluminum foil, just in case...)
• kept a watchful eye on the cheesecake as it was baking, and pulled it out at 40 minutes

Week 2: Mint Chocolate Cheesecake

Week 2... a little better than last week, although not without its own hiccups along the way :).  First off, I NEED to buy an actual cheesecake pan.  No more springform pans.  If you do use a springform pan, I suggest wrapping the bottom tightly with aluminum foil.  Otherwise, you will have cheesecake batter leaking out of the bottom which in turn will burn in your oven causing a very smoky house (and make your house smell like burnt pan for the next few days).

Here is the adapted version of George Geary's Minty Chocolate Cheesecake recipe:

1 1/2 cups chocolate sandwich cookies (I used Oreos)
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 packages of cream cheese softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
3 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips melted and cooled
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tsp all purpose flour

For the crust, in a medium bowl combine cookie crumbs and butter.  Press into pan and freeze (make sure to grease the sides of pan if using a springform pan).

For the filling, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar and medium-high speed for 3 minutes.  Next, add eggs one at a time beating thoroughly after each addition.  Mix in 1/4 cup of flour.  Then, mix in the sour cream, vanilla and peppermint.  While the mixer is running, pour in the melted and cooled chocolate in (if you have a hand-held mixer like I do, you may need the assistance of another person).  In a small bowl, combine the chocolate chips and remaining flour.  Toss this into the batter and pour batter over frozen crust.  Bake in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for 45-55 minutes (IMPORTANT -- all ovens are different... my oven has a tendency to run hot, so my cheesecake was done in 37 minutes).  Bake until the top is a light brown and the middle has a slight jiggle.  Cool for two hours, and then refrigerate for 6 hours.

This cheesecake turned out better than my first, although it still had some pretty deep cracks on the top.  According to George Geary, the cracks are caused by not allowing all ingredients to come to room temperature.  Now, I know that he is the expert, but this time around I did allow the cream cheese, sour cream and eggs to come to room temperature.  So, who knows. 

Here is a picture of the final product.  I decided to add crumbled Oreos as a topping/decoration to my cheesecake. 

Week 1: Blue Ribbon Cheesecake

Okay, so this was my first real attempt at making a baked cheesecake.  And do I have a lot to learn!  I decided to start with George Geary's "Blue Ribbon Cheesecake".  Nothing too fancy about this cheesecake, but it sure is tasty.

Here is the adapted version of George Geary's Blue Ribbon Cheesecake:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter (unsalted)
4 packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla
Decoration:  2 cups sliced strawberries


For the crust, mix 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs and 1/4 cup melted butter in a bowl.  Press the mixture into the bottom of a cheesecake pan or springform pan and freeze.
For the filling:  In a large mixing bowl beat the cream cheese and 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar on medium to med/high speed for 3 min.  Add 4 eggs one at a time, beating each one thoroughly into the mixture before adding the next one.  Stir in 3 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tsp vanilla.  Pour mixture over the frozen crust.  Bake in a pre-heated oven (350 degrees) for 45-55 minutes, or until the cheesecake has a light brown color and the middle has a slight jiggle to it (really important, let me tell you).  Pull cheesecake out of the oven and let cool for 10 minutes (do not turn the oven off).  While the cheesecake is cooling, mix 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1 tbsp lemon juice and 1/2 tsp vanilla in a small bowl.  Once cheesecake has cooled for ten minutes, pour topping mixture onto the center of the cheesecake and spread out to the edges with a spatula.  Return cheesecake to the oven for an additional 5 minutes.  Once the final baking is done, pull cheesecake out of oven, and cool on counter for two hours.  Then cover cheesecake tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours before serving. Before serving, you can decorate the cheesecake with strawberries or whatever topping you so desire (I chose to not add a topping to my cheesecake).

Seems simple enough, right?  Well, good news is the cheesecake tasted better than it looked.  Bad news...my cheesecake had HUGE cracks in it.  And, it also didn't have the slight jiggle in the middle - this means it may have been overbaked, which in turn gives you a dry cheesecake.   

A few things I learned from my first cheesecake baking experience:

• Allow all refrigerated ingredients to come to room temperature, otherwise you will wind up with cracks in your cheesecake.  This takes about 3 hours.
• Keep a close eye on on the cheesecake during the baking process.  All ovens are different!  I baked my cheesecake for 50 min, but that was probably about 5 min too long.
• Mix all ingredients for the filling thoroughly
• Have patience!