Demystifying Cheesecake
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[Bakery/Cereal] Vol. 14 No. 3 March 2004 Demystifying Cheesecake By George Geary, CCP, Contributing Editor Cheesecake might not be the first food creation that comes to mind when discussing historic cuisine. However, cheesecakes were reportedly served at the first Olympics in Greece in 776 B.C. The Romans took their cheesecake throughout Europe. Eventually, those personalized recipes were brought from the old country to the new world. American cheese makers were looking to produce a soft, yet simple cheese, similar to French Neufchâtel, to form the basis of their cheesecakes. In 1872, American dairymen invented cream cheese, but it wasn't until 1912 that James L. Kraft invented pasteurized Philadelphia cream cheese. Today, it's the No. 1 product in the world for making cheesecakes. Cheesecakes have stood the test of time. Unlike the popular Italian tiramisu of the 1970s, the French crème brûlée of the 1990s and today's American chocolate molten cake, cheesecakes were found on menus in the 1950s and are still featured today. What other dessert—apart from ice cream—is offered in both fine-dinning steak houses and fast-food establishments in every city in the United States? The ever-popular Cheesecake Factory chain, which started as a small shop in Detroit and then Los Angeles before moving into its first restaurant in Beverly Hills, CA, in 1978, now boasts over 75 restaurants in 25 states. This dramatic evolution of a business all started with cheesecake. The ongoing popularity of cheesecake isn't solely due to consumer demand. From a business stance, cheesecake production also makes sense. The cost of cheesecake production is minimal and has a high return. Also, the amount of waste is lower on cheesecakes than other pastry items, which have shorter shelf lives. Shop owners want high sales, low overhead and appealing products. Cheesecakes meet these criteria and combined with high customer demand just might be the perfect dessert. The structure's hardiness makes storage easy. Cheesecakes can go from freezer to refrigerator without losing any properties that might affect flavor or presentation. That's why cheesecake is usually available in white- tablecloth restaurants and coffee houses throughout the United States and Europe. They just move them from the freezer straight to the refrigerator for display and sale. When hosts serve cheesecake for dessert at a dinner party, they receive rave reviews. Guests think that they just ate something special, unlike an "ordinary" piece of pie, which takes twice the effort to make. Many people mistakenly think that the first cheesecake was created in New York, and I'm routinely asked for a recipe for "New York cheesecake." However, cheesecake styles tend to differ in composition based on regional variations, including several types of American and European cheesecake. American cheesecakes New York cheesecake. This American classic, which is sometimes referred to as "Jewish cheesecake," is pure and unadulterated. It doesn't feature any fancy ingredients or flavors, just plain vanilla added to the cheesecake batter. The top is left unadorned and free from fruit or other decoration. The recipe contains cream www.foodproductdesign.com Page 1 [Bakery/Cereal] Vol. 14 No. 3 March 2004 cheese, heavy cream, eggs, egg yolks and sugar. Sometimes this cheesecake is made on a prebaked lemon cookie crust. The term "Jewish cheesecake" stems from the popular Jewish delicatessens around Manhattan that serve these rich desserts. In the 1900s, cheesecake was very popular in New York, and every restaurant had its own version. New Yorkers began referring to this style as "New York cheesecake" and the appellation stuck. Some New Yorkers claim that cheesecake wasn't really cheesecake until it was created in New York. By 1940, cheesecake was the most popular dish served at Lindy's restaurant in Manhattan's theater district. In 1950, Junior's Deli in Brooklyn developed its own version of the rich, dense New York cheesecake. Junior's cheesecake was one of the first mass-produced cheesecakes that New Yorkers could call their own. Today, Junior's sells thousands of cheesecakes annually through QVC TV and QVC.com. Eli's Cheesecake. In 1977, Chicago steak maven Eli Schulman created a perfect dessert to accompany his menu at his soon-to-be-famous restaurant, Eli's the Place for Steak. The now-legendary Chicago-based Eli's Cheesecake had been born and demonstrated that New York wasn't the only city with great cheesecakes. The baked cream cheese concoction sits atop a prebaked butter cookie crust, either vanilla or chocolate, and is firm outside and creamy inside. Today, Eli's Cheesecake is sold throughout the United States, as well as in England, Japan, Canada, Ireland, Scotland, Norway, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica and other countries. It's also a featured dessert on some major airlines. Flavors offered range from plain to Passion Fruit Brulee to Pumpkin Praline. In 1993, Eli's baked a 2,000-lb. red, white and blue cheesecake for President Bill Clinton's inauguration and was invited back to create another for his second inaugural festivities. American sweet cheesecake. These cheesecakes are typically rich but not as filling as the New York variety. They're made with lower levels of egg and are full of flavorful ingredients, such as fresh berries, chopped chocolates and so on. Also, the crust reflects the flavor of the inside of the cheesecake, such as chocolate cookie crumbs for a chocolate-mint cheesecake or a peanut-butter-cookie crust for a crunchy peanut-butter cheesecake. Pennsylvania Dutch cheesecake. Many regional cheesecakes are based on the cheeses that are typically available in that part of the country. In Pennsylvania, cheesecake makers use a type of cottage cheese with larger curds and less water content, called "pot" or "farmer's" cheese. Draining cottage cheese longer than usual and packing the curd creates this mild, slightly tangy cheese variety. American savory cheesecake. Savory cheesecakes will likely be making a big splash in the medium- to high-end restaurant market in the coming years. Storing a savory cheesecake in a freezer for weeks doesn't sacrifice the taste or texture. It can be prepared in single serving sizes and presented alongside a salad. Savory cheesecakes can also be made larger (around 6 in. diameter) as an appetizer for a group and served with stone-ground crackers. The flavor choices are endless for savory cheesecakes. They can feature a variety of ingredient additions, including fresh herbs, hard cheeses or vegetables, such as sun-dried tomatoes, onions and so on. A cheesecake made with crab or lobster would work in a seafood restaurant. A chipolte chile cheesecake could create a stir in a southwestern-style establishment. Try using an herbed cheesecake to replace a meal's cheese course. European cheesecakes www.foodproductdesign.com Page 2 [Bakery/Cereal] Vol. 14 No. 3 March 2004 Italian cheesecake. Italian cheesecakes, mainly found in Florence and Rome, tend to be made with ricotta cheese and set on a pastry crust or breadcrumbs. This type of cheesecake is typically drier in consistency and frequently washed down with a hot espresso. Often, small bits of candied fruit, as are found in a holiday fruitcake, are added for visual appeal. French cheesecake. French cheesecakes are very light, feature gelatin as a binding ingredient and are typically only 1 to 1½ inches in height. This variety gets its light texture and flavor from Neufchâtel cheese and is found in outdoor markets in the South of France and fine pastry shops in Paris. German quark cheesecake. Germans tend to prefer a slightly sweeter cheesecake made with native quark cheese. Quark is a softened cheese similar to cottage cheese but, unlike cottage cheese, quark is very smooth. These light, creamy cheesecakes often feature a cookie-crumb crust. Dutch cheesecake. The Dutch love their chocolates and chocolate cheesecakes. They're made with melted bittersweet or sometimes semisweet chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa and are a hit in the marketplace. You'll also find Dutch cheesecakes laced with nuts, candy pieces and fruit. However, chocolate is the mainstay of cheesecake in the Netherlands. Cheesecake creation A basic cheesecake consists of a crust with a filling made of cheese that is flavored, sweetened and structured with egg products. It is then baked and topped or decorated with whipped cream. Using all egg yolks in the batter creates a richer, heavier cheesecake while the addition of whites lightens the batter. However, if the whites are whipped into a meringue and folded in, the result is a light, soufflé-type cheesecake that will likely puff up and fall. The egg-to-cheese ratio is important in cheesecake creation. The general rule is 2 eggs to 1 lb. of cheese. When too much cheese is used, it results in a heavy product; without enough cheese, the cheesecake develops an "eggy" taste. The crust is a key factor in holding the cheesecake together. It retains the filling and creates a "serving" layer on the cake. I don't press the crust up the sides of the cheesecake, just on the bottom, because the corners tend to become hard after baking. Crusts can serve as a subtle complement to the cheesecake. For a nut- flavored cheesecake, add the same nuts -- finely ground -- to the crust that accent the filling so that the overall flavor comes together. Another option is biscuits. Some bakeries make buttermilk-style biscuits, dry them out for a few days and then grind them into crumbs before pressing into pans to form cheesecake crusts. This crust style is sometimes featured in the southern United States and elsewhere to a lesser degree.