Goat Cheesecake

photo by Leah Paulette

I made a quick day trip to Savannah this week with my friend Leah*, who came spur of the moment to see me while her husband was off fighting fires for the Forest Service (impressive, I know.) We spent time on the beach reading aloud from Matilda, ran screaming from scary jellyfish water, walked for about 6 hours straight and ate seafood, icecream, bread, and cookies. And free samples of pralines on River Street.

I don't think most people understand my need to visit every bakery in a given city (this is hard in places like New York City, but believe me, I have tried). But Leah understands. She even reminded me about one we'd missed as we started to head home. Eric would've been praying I'd forgotten so we could get out of there- he doesn't really get it.

If you're planning a visit to Savannah, make sure you stop by Leopold's Ice Cream Shop, Harris Baking Company (AHmazing Ciabatta bread) and one that looked cool but we missed (cause it closes at 4pm), Back in the Day Bakery (a little ways from the main downtown area.)

*Leah and I have been officially best friends since 9th grade, when we stood in the bathroom at school and decided it was so. We shared family vacations. We lived together for a while in college. Then we did the whole maid-of-honor thing in each other's weddings. We're BFFs, no big deal.

So Leah came and hung out at work one morning while I baked. I rewarded her patience with bread pudding, which she confirmed is the best she's ever eaten. She even used her mad photography skills to capture images of this Goat Cheese Cake with Lemon Curd. Which, by the way, is DELICIOUS.

This Goat Cheesecake is one of the creamiest cheesecakes I've ever bitten into. Totally Luscious. The goat cheese flavor is subtle at first, then expands as you swallow each bite. The graham cracker crust is spiced with ginger and cinnamon. The addition of Lemon Curd isn't necessary, but the flavors are lovely together and it does bring it up a notch on the dessert-impressiveness-scale. Throw some strawberries or blueberries on the plate, and you have a dessert worthy of some fan fare. It manages to be tart and sweet, pungent and fresh all at the same time- also, people hear "goat cheese" and go nuts for some reason.

This is not your run of the mill NY style cheesecake with sticky berries in syrup, this is:

Goat Cheesecake with Lemon Curd and Fresh Berries. Inspired by Emeril's recipe.

Preheat the oven to 350. Get out a 9-in springform pan and a baking dish large enough to hold the springform pan.

For the crust:

2 cups finely ground graham crackers (or 2 cups gingersnap crumbs. if using gingersnaps, omit the spices) Using a food processor is the easiest way to get good crumbs.

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

Stir the graham crumbs, spices and sugar together. Slowly add the butter until the crumbs are evenly moistened and stick together when you squeeze them.

Press this mixture onto the bottom and sides of the springform pan, creating the crust for the cheesecake. Use your fingers or a straight-sided glass or measuring cup to make the job easy. Freeze the crust for 10 or 15 minutes. This will help it keep its structure in the oven. After freezing, bake the crust for 10 or so minutes until it is golden brown. Set aside to cool.

Prepare the batter:

3.5 packages cream cheese (28 oz total), room temp

1 cup sour cream

12 oz goat cheese, room temp

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoons Gran Marnier, Cointreau or orange extract

In a stand mixer or using a handheld mixer with a deep bowl, mix the cream cheese until creamy. Add the goat cheese and the sour cream and mix until smooth. Add the sugar and mix, scraping down the bowl occasionally with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Finally, mix in the vanilla, lime juice and orange liquor until the mixture is completely smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared crust and smooth the top. Wrap tinfoil around the sides and base of the springform pan to make sure no water penetrates the pan during baking. Set the pan into the baking dish and fill the baking dish with very hot water so it comes halfway up the side of the springform pan. This is a waterbath and will ensure the cheesecake doesn't crack during baking.

Bake at 350 for about 1.5 hours (or 2 if you have shady spotty oven like me). The center will move only slightly when the cheesecake is done- the edges will be completely set.

Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool on a rack. Once cool, chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

While the cheesecake is cooling, make the lemon curd:

1 t finely grated lemon zest

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 stick of butter

Whisk together the zest, juice, sugar and eggs in a heavy saucepan. Cook over med-low heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture has thickened and is bubbling.

Force the curd through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl to remove the zest, and any eggy bits. Cut the butter into 1/2 in pieces, and add them to the curd. Stir until the butter is melted. If you're in a hurry, use an ice bath to cool the curd, stirring occasionally. (Simply place the bowl of curd into a larger bowl of ice water.) Otherwise, place a piece of plastic wrap over the top and refrigerate until ready to use.

Serve the cheesecake with a dollop of lemon curd and a smattering of berries.

Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake

I think we can all agree that it's hard to know what to get dads on gift giving holidays. And no matter how much my dad actually loves getting socks, I still feel like a schmuck every fathers' day, birthday and Christmas as he opens his gift and feigns surprise. "Just what I wanted! Socks! I was afraid you were going to break from tradition and get me something else this year..."

Which is why it's nice be able to hand him an additional package, one that I can identify with desiring. Dad's favorite candy is the delicious chocolate turtle.

photo from Demet

Chocolate covered-caramel smothered-toasted pecans are dad's idea of a good time. And if we're lucky, he'll gift us with one chocolate turtle each.

photo from Beware the Cheese Photography

We can only assume they're called turtles because of the vaguely turtle shape... although if I ever see turtles that look like this in my local pond, I'm going to have serious questions for our waste management center.

While I'm of the opinion that nuts ruin many a perfectly good dessert, I think this is a pretty winning combination. It's an incredibly easy way to dress up a dessert, too, just add chocolate, caramel and pecans. Plain old vanilla ice cream becomes a turtle sundae! Chocolate cake gets a turtle makeover! Turtle brownies! And the reason we're here today: Turtle Cheesecake.

I think a lot of people are intimidated by cheesecakes because of the long bake time, the longer cool and chill time and the very real risk of crackage. However, a cheesecake is pretty non-fussy when compared to cakes and tarts. After the crust, it's just mix-and-go! The only secrets are planning ahead and a water bath. I now use a water bath every time and cheesecake fissures are a thing of the past. And the beauty of the turtle cheesecake is that even if there are cracks, they're hidden under the turtle topping.

Turtle Cheesecake, recipe adapted from Dorie Greenspan and Emeril Lagasse

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

First, prepare the crust:

2-3 cups finely crushed oreos (depending on how thick you like your crust) (a food processor makes this so easy!)

6-10 T melted butter (don't over-do the butter when it comes to an oreo crust. Add it until it just sticks together when you pinch the crumbs, before it looks all moist.)

Combine the butter and the oreo crumbs, then press the mixture to the sides and bottom of a springform pan. Bake the crust for 10-15 minutes. Let it cool while you make the cheesecake filling.

Filling Ingredients:

2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature

1 1/3 cup sugar

4 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/3 cup sour cream or heavy cream, or a combination of the two

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips or (preferably) roughly chopped dark chocolate

Place a pot of water on the stove to boil for the water bath. Get out a baking or roasting pan large enough to fit the springform pan.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, mix the cream cheese until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the sugar and mix a minute more (the smoother this batter is, the better). Scrape down the sides and add the vanilla and eggs, blending well between each addition. Finally, add the salt and heavy or sour cream and mix until smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour the cheesecake filling into the crust and smooth the top. It's a good idea to put aluminum foil around the bottom and sides of the springform pan to make sure that no water leaks in and makes your crust soggy. Put the cheesecake into the baking pan and pour the hot water around it so that it comes half way up the sides of the cheesecake pan.

Bake the cheesecake at 325 for about an hour and a half, until set. You can tell its set because if you shake it, the whole surface moves only slightly, opposed to the middle still jiggling. Turn off the oven and let it cool with the door propped open, still in its water bath, for about an hour. After the hour, place the cheesecake on a rack to come to room temperature. (When I'm feeling lazy but have some time, I'll take the cheesecake out of the oven after baking and let it come to room temp in the water bath.)

Chill the cheesecake in the fridge for at least four hours, preferably over-night.

Before serving, make the topping.

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups pecan halves or chopped pecans, toasted

1 cup caramel sauce*

Pour the cream over the chocolate and microwave for about 45 seconds. Let sit for a minute and then whisk until smooth. Pour it over the cheesecake. Let set in the fridge for 10 minutes. Finally, sprinkle the top with the pecans and drizzle the caramel sauce over the whole thing.

*You can used a jarred caramel sauce, but of course I recommend making your own. Here's a great recipe.

You can find this and more treats over at sweets for a saturday.

Lemon Curd and Blueberry Cheesecake

MMM!!! CHEESECAKE. It's been so long...

On Sunday our small group had a potluck, and I was just going to bring Spinach Artichoke Dip, which I love....

...but I realized that this was possibly the only occasion on the horizon for which I would have an excuse to make the Lemon Curd Cheesecake I've been dying to make for oh-so-long. I like making cakes for the restaurant, but I do miss the little test ramekins I got to enjoy when making cheesecake.

1. Lemon curd is delicious and deliciously easy to make. It is also very pretty. The final colors of the cheesecake reminded me of spring and easter...white with bright yellow and the purply blue of the blueberries.

2. Oh yes, I added blueberries. There was no reason not to. And they not only aesthetically enhanced the dessert, they provided much needed relief from the richness and tartness of the filling.

My spring form pan leaked a bit and so the crust ended up pretty soggy, but fortunately that is not something I mind. I'm not sure how it was received at the potluck, actually, because I had to leave early, but Eric loved it, and he's tough to please.

Lemon Curd Marbled Cheesecake, adapted from Gourmet, July 2006.

Preheat oven to 350. 1. Make Lemon Curd. 2. Make crust. 3. Make filling.

lemon curd

1 t finely grated lemon zest

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 stick of butter

Whisk together the zest, juice, sugar and eggs in a heavy saucepan. Add the butter (I melted mine first) and cook over med-low heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture has thickened and is bubbling.

Force the curd through a fine mesh sieve to remove the zest, then allow to cool.

Make your graham cracker crust by mixing 1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs, 1/3 cup sugar and a dash of salt with 5 T melted unsalted butter. Press into the sides and bottom of a 9-in springform pan and bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes.

Next, make the cheesecake filling. It's ridiculously easy, just blend 3 8-oz packages cream cheese in a stand mixture until smooth. Add 1 cup sugar and blend for 3-5 minutes. Add 3 eggs, one at a time, blending well between each. Mix in a teaspoon vanilla and 3/4 cup sour cream. DONE.

Now, pour half the filling into the spring form pan. Dot half the lemon curd over the filling and use a spoon or knife to swirl it into the filling. Then, if you're me, you'll sprinkle a handful of blueberries over the filling. (frozen or fresh, either works well.) Pour on the rest of the filling and swirl the rest of the lemon curd in.

Bake at reduced temperature of 300 degree in a water bath. Mine took about an hour and 15 minutes, and was a very soft set, but still cracked. The original recipe called for 40 minutes. Do what you will here, the end result will no doubt be amazing no matter what.

The only picture i could get of the finished cake...

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

The original recipe used an almond-vanilla wafer crust, but I decided I couldn't go wrong making a chocolate cookie crust. Also, I read the reviews, and while most people loved the cheesecake, they also recommended doubling the recipe, which I did. I baked it in a 10-in springform pan.

And while the original recipe called for a sour cream topping, I was having none of it. I made mine with leftover white chocolate and some raspberry juice, though next time I would use waaaay more white chocolate and raspberry and make the topping beautiful like marbled paper...I fear that as it is, it looks like somebody bled all over the top.

(the dream-like fuzziness of the picture below was caused by steam escaping from below the bowl of melting chocolate)

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Adapted from Bon Appetit, February, 1994 (As I made it, crust, doubled and topping).

Crust

1.5 c chocolate cookie crumbs

.5-1 stick melted butter

(pulse the cookies in a food processor, slowly adding the butter, or just just crumbs and butter together. Press into bottom of springform pan. Refrigerate)

Filling

8-oz white chocolate, chopped (they suggust Lindt) (forgive me, Bon Appetit, I used Tollhouse and regular old baking chocolate.)

4 8-oz packages (2 lbs) cream cheese, softened.

1-1/3 cup sugar

4 t vanilla extract

1.5 t grated lemon zest

4 large eggs

1.5 cup frozen (mostly thawed) or fresh raspberries

Directions:

Preheat to 350.

Melt white chocolate in double boiler, stirring often, until smooth. Remove from over the water when melted.

Using a mixer, combine cream cheese, sugar, vanille and lemon peel. Beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating until just combined. Beat in white chocolate.

Pour half the filling into the springform pan. Sprinkle the raspberries all over the top. Add the rest of the filling on top of the raspberries.

Bake until the edges are set, but the center still jiggles. It was about an 1 hr 10 minutes for me. The directions also say to cool 10-20 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and gently press down the edges with your fingers.

(my mini test cheesecake so I can taste it before heading to the restaurant. I ate half before it was even cooled)

Then you can go on and mix 8-oz sour cream, 3 T sugar and 1/2 t vanilla, spread over the top and bake for another 5 min,

OR

you can make white chocolate ganache, pour it over the cheesecake and then swirl in raspberry juice or raspberry jam. (I would recommend a ratio of 1:1.5 -cream:white chocolate)

Either way, let the thing chill and cool overnight (or for 3 hours if you are pressed for time as I was.)

No Bake Cookies n Cream Cheesecake

This cheesecake sets a little looser than regular cheesecake, so next time I might use the whole packet of gelatin (I think it's supposed to be 1 T). But it's AWESOME if you're pressed for time- just make it the night before you need it.

There's no getting up in the middle of the night to take it out of the oven, and then again later in the night to put it in the fridge. (this is my usual routine with cheesecakes.) Just mix, pop it into the fridge, and wake up to cheesecake.

(Below: Dissolving the gelatin in a water bath)

Cookies n Cream Cheesecake recipe adapted from Cheesecake by Pamela Clark

Ingredients:

10-oz oreos (or more, if you're me)

2 t gelatin

3 T water

13 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1-1/2 cup heavy cream

6 oz white chocolate, melted. (I used the microwave for this one. Just nuke in 20 second intervals, stirring between each)

Okay, Let's talk about the crust. The recipe is actually for 8 individual cheesecakes made in sections of PVC pipes...but lacking those I made it in a 9-in springform. In the PVC pipes, you just stick a whole oreo at the bottom for the crust. I preformed my usual butter and crumbs crust, but because it wasn't baked, just chilled, the crust stuck to the bottom of the pan badly. So I would either spray your pan first or figure out some other crust. Maybe spray the bottom then mix the crumbs with some melted chocolate. Worth some experimentation.

Step 1. Chop oreos into quarters. Save some for topping the cheesecake.

Step 2. Sprinkle gelatin over the water in a heatproof cup. Heat in a pan of simmering water until gelatin dissolves. Cool 5 min.

Step 3. Beat cream cheese, vanilla and sugar in a bowl until smooth, then beat in cream. Stir in white chocolate, gelatin and chopped cookies.

Step 4. Pour into prepared pan with crust, refrigerate overnight.

Step 5. (optional) Melt chocolate and pour in interesting swirls over the top.

I do love cookies n cream anything.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

Would you like to impress people with your amazing cheezecake skillz? Here is your chance.

This is the kind of dessert that causes people to moan in ecstasy and sit with their eyes glazed over long after the plate is scraped clean. It doesn't last long at the restaurant, which is ironic, because I made it because cheesecake stays fresh longer than fruity desserts. In fact, some cheesecakes even improve with age. However, we'll probably never know if that's true about this cake, because people simply won't allow it to live that long.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

recipe adapted from recipezaar.

Crust:

I mixed about 1 cup Graham Cracker crumbs with 1/4-1/2 cup cocoa powder and 1/4 cup or so sugar, then melted a 1/2 stick+ of butter and mixed that in as well. (sorry, I wasn't really measuring at this point. follow your heart when it comes to the crust. you can even use oreos or teddi grahams, and some recipes suggest processing peanuts in with the cookie crumbs.) Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a 9-in springform pan and refrigerate while you make the filling.

Also, preheat to 275.

Filling:

2 lbs cream cheese, softened. (4 8oz packages)

5 eggs, room temperature

1.5 cups firmly packed brown sugar (I only had .5 cup brown sugar, so I also used .5 cup white sugar and .5 cup dark brown sugar. I figured it evened it out.)

1 cup smooth peanut butter

.5 cup whipping cream or heavy cream

1 t vanilla extract

12 Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, roughly chopped.

Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese til smooth. Add the eggs one by one, blending thoroughly between each. Add sugar, peanut butter, cream and vanilla, and blend well. Stir in the PB cups and pour into the chilled crust.

Prepare a water bath, so the water comes an inch up the sides of the pan. Bake at 275 for 1.5 hrs or until only the middle jiggles slightly. Let cool inside the oven, turned off, with the door cracked open.

Topping:

The original recipe calls for a sour cream topping made from 3 oz sour cream and .5 cup sugar and a dash of vanilla. It's good, I tried it on the first version of this cheesecake I made. However, this time I decided it needed more chocolate to balance out the PB, so I made chocolate ganache and poured it over the top of the cheesecake before chilling.

Heat 3/4 cup heavy cream until bubbly around the edges, then mix in 1-1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, letting stand for a minute before stirring smooth.

Let the cheesecake chill for a few hours, or preferably overnight before serving. Sprinkle Chopped PB cups on top of the ganache for garnish.

Mint Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache

I've wanted to make this cheesecake for awhile now. Cheesecakes are nice, uncomplicated things to make. Really all your real worries are how done is done? and why did my cheesecake crack?

I got the Cook's Illustrated "All-Time Best Recipes" magazine, and for each entry they explore what potentially goes wrong with a recipe, and then how they made it ULTIMATE pie crust, french chicken in a pot, New York Style Cheesecake or what have you.

In this recipe, they explored crust options, sour cream vs heavy cream, number of eggs and baking times and temps and this is what they came up with for the perfect cheesecake...

...which, by the way, takes 2.5 pounds of cream cheese that looks like this on a plate:

Graham Cracker Crust:

1 cup (4 oz) graham cracker crumbs (8 whole crackers, broken into rough pieces and processed in a food processor til fine)*

1 T sugar

5 T unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan.

*the recipe also says you can subsitute chocolate wafers for graham crackers. I used chocolate teddi grahams in a mad teddi graham massacre.

Cheesecake filling:

2.5 pounds cream cheese (which is 5 of the 8 oz packages you'll most likely buy at the store), cut into rough 1 in pieces and left at room temp for 30-45 min

1/8 t salt

1.5 cups sugar

1/3 cup sour cream

2 t juice from 1 lemon

2 t vanilla extract

1 large egg yolks plus 6 large whole eggs

* I also added about 2 t peppermint extract and some green food coloring

Directions:

1. For the Crust:

Oven rack to lower-middle position and 325 degrees. Combine cracker crumbs and sugar, slowly at 5 T melted butter and combine til evenly moistened. Brush bottom and sides of a 9 in springform pan with most of the remaining butter. Empty crumbs into pan and press evenly into the bottom. Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around edges, about 13 minutes. Let cool and go on to make the filling.

2. For the Filling:

Increase oven temp to 500. With a mixer, beat cream cheese at med-low speed to break up and soften; about 1 min. Scrape beater and bottom, add salt and sugar slowly, scraping and beating until combined. Add sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla and beat at low speed until combined. Scrape bowl, add yolks, combine and scrape. Add the 6 eggs, 2 at a time, scraping and beating in between additions.

3. Set springform pan on baking sheet to catch potential spills. Pour filling into the cooled crust and bake 10 min, without opening door. Reduce oven temp to 200 and bake until an instant read thermometer inserted into middle of cheesecake registers about 150 degrees, about 1.5 hours. Transfer cheesecake to wire rack and cool about 5 min, then run knife arounf edges to release from the pan. (This prevents post-cooking crackage.) Cool until barely warm, 2.5-3 hours. Refridgerate until cold, at least 3 hrs. (will keep up to 4 days.)

Recommended to stand at room temp 30 min before serving.

The recipe made a ton, so I poured excess into little ramekins that Audrey decorated for us for a wedding present (Thanks Audrey!).

When the cheesecakes had cooled for a little while, I made the chocolate ganache to pour on top.

Chocolate Ganache:

8 oz semisweet chocolate (chopped, chunks or chips)

3/4 cup heavy cream

2 T butter

sugar to taste (optional)

Place chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. Heat the cream until bubbling around the edges, and pour over chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute, chunk in the butter and sugar if using, and stir until combined and smooth.

Pour over cheesecake and spread or shake to make smooth. Chill.

I may have gone a tad overboard with the green food coloring, or maybe it intensifies with time, because the cheesecake at the restaurant is awfully green. Hopefully it's not off-putting.

Enjoy!