Week 13: South of France Lemon Cheesecake

This week's cheesecake is different from the other cheesecakes I've made up until this point.  No cream cheese used, rather, ricotta cheese.  On a positive note, this was by far the easiest cheesecake I've made to date!  On the other hand, and to be quite blunt, it is my least favorite cheesecake.  The texture was gritty, and the taste bland.  It's possible I overbaked the cheesecake, as the way to check for doneness of this cheesecake is different from those with the cream cheese base. 

Here is George Geary's South of France Lemon Cheesecake recipe:

2 lbs ricotta cheese, drained overnight (want to drain the ricotta cheese, otherwise there will be too much liquid)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all purpose flour
6 eggs
2 tsp orange zest
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla

In a large bowl, stir ricotta cheese with a rubber spatula until creamy.  Next, add sugar and flour, mixing until blended.  Add eggs, one at a time, until each egg is mixed in thoroughly before adding the next.  Stir in orange zest, lemon zest, juice, cinnamon and vanilla.  Pour batter into prepared cheesecake pan (make sure to grease bottom and sides of pan).  In a 300 degree oven, bake for 75 - 90 minutes or until the tip of a knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool for two hours and then refrigerate for 6 hours.

So, a few things:

• Do not look for a jiggly center and browning edges as a sign of doneness
• Keep a close eye on the cheesecake.  I baked mine for 75 minutes (the min requirement indicated in this recipe), however, it still came out a little overbaked.
• This cheesecake has no crust, so make sure to grease bottom of cheesecake pan.

Week 12: Brownie Cheese Pie

My husband and I survived last weekend's family/friend picnic :)  It was wonderful seeing family members and friends we haven't seen in a while and catching up.  Needless to say though, we were both exhausted once Sunday afternoon rolled around.  With that, I am once again a little late with posting this last week's cheesecake submission.  This week, I chose to make Gary Geary's Brownie Cheese Pie recipe.  It turned out well, and is super yummy! 

Here is George Geary's Brownie Cheese Pie recipe:

1 cup chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs
3 tbsp butter melted
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
5 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips melted and cooled
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 package cream cheese softened
2 tbsp unsalted butter softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp all purpose flour
2 tbsp sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

In a bowl, combine cookie crumbs and melted butter.  Press mixture into the bottom and sides of a pie plate and freeze.
In a large mixing bowl, beat 1/3 cup butter and 1/3 cup sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes.  Add two eggs, one at a time, mixing each one into the batter thoroughly.  Mix in 1 1/4 tsp vanilla, salt, and cooled chocolate.  Quickly beat in 1/3 cup flour.  Smooth batter into bottom of the pie plate.  Refrigerate for 3 minutes.  In a clean bowl, beat cream cheese, remaining butter and sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes.  Add remaining egg mixing thoroughly into mixture.  Mix in remaining flour, sour cream and vanilla.  Spread batter evenly on top of the brownie layer.  Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 25 - 30 minutes (or until the top is light brown and has a slight jiggle to it).  Cool for 2 hours and then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours.

So, I have to admit, again, for this recipe, I "cheated" on the crust and went with a pre-made crust.  I will hand make my next crust - for real :) 

One tip I have is to read this recipe through a few times and make sure you are not using the wrong measurements for the ingredients for the two separate batters.  I followed the instructions to a t, but still had to read and re-read the recipe before adding in the next ingredients.

Week 11: Turtle Cheese Pie

Whew wee, what a week!  It's been a busy week for my husband and me.  We're hosting a family/friends picnic this weekend...this is the first time all week I've been able to sit down and relax :)  Here's hoping next week slows down. 

This week's cheesecake was actually a cheese pie.  It's easy to make and delicious.  I made a few shortcuts as well with this recipe which I'll post at the bottom of this entry.

Here is George Geary's Turtle Cheese Pie recipe:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp unsalted butter melted

2 packages cream cheese softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
3 oz bittersweet chocolate chunks
3 oz caramels, cut into quarters
1/4 cup toasted and chopped pecans
1/2 tsp vanilla (I accidentally grabbed the peppermint extract, but it actually turned out well)

3oz bittersweet chocolate

In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs and butter.  Press into bottom and sides of 9 inch pie plate and freeze.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating each one thoroughly into batter before adding the next.  Fold in 3 oz bittersweet chocolate, caramels, pecans an vanilla.  Pour batter over frozen crust and bake in a pre-heated 325 degree for 25 to 35 minutes or until the top is a light brown and middle has a slight jiggle to it.  While the pie is still hot, grate the chocolate over the top.  Cool pie for two hours and then refrigerate for 6 hours.

Due to this week's time constraints, I made the following shortcuts:

• I used a pre-made pie crust for a 9 inch pie pan (I so felt like I was cheating by doing this, but it sure was nice to not have to roll out the graham crackers with a rolling pin)
• Instead of baking chocolate and caramel chunks, I used bittersweet chocolate chips and caramel bits (same size as a chocolate chip).  This saved time on chopping the chocolate and caramel.
• Instead of grating chocolate over the top of the pie, I chopped up chocolate chips and sprinkled them over the top of the pie.

Also, I accidentally grabbed the peppermint extract instead of the vanilla in my cupboard.  It wasn't until I poured the 1/2 tsp peppermint extract and smelled the mint that I realized my mistake.  But really, can't go wrong with chocolate and mint :)

Week 10: Peaches and Cream Cheesecake

A little late with posting this week's cheesecake as well as last week's.  Been a hectic week with the kiddo - two trips to Urgent Care and one appointment with pediatrics.  Fortunately, he is now getting back to his energetic toddler self ;)  This week's cheesecake turned out well - similar texture to that of the pina colada cheesecake, minus the coconut.  Nice and light!

Here is the recipe for George Geary's Peaches and Cream Cheesecake:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup pecans toasted and ground (I skipped the toasting)
3 tbsp butter melted

4 packages cream cheese softened
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs 1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp vanilla
2 medium peaches, peeled and sliced (I used 3)
1/4 cup pecans, chopped

Classic Whipped Cream Topping

In a bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, ground pecans and butter.  Press into bottom of cheesecake pan and freeze.
In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, whipping cream and sugar on medium high speed for 3 minutes.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating each one into mixture before adding the next egg.  Stir in flour and vanilla.  Pour half of batter onto frozen crust.  Place peach slices on top of batter and then sprinkle the chopped pecans over the peaches.  Pour remaining batter over the peaches.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 to 55 minutes until the top is a light brown and middle has a slight jiggle to it.  Cool for 2 hours on counter, then wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours before serving.  Decorate with the classic whipped topping (or store bought will do to) and peaches.

Recipe for classic whipped topping:
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp granulated sugar

In a chilled bowl, whip cream on medium high speed until soft peaks form.  Sprinkle in the 2 tbsp sugar while the mixer is still running.  Continue whipping until firm peaks form.