The Perfect Pumpkin Cheesecake

It's certainly no secret that I love cheesecake. While I have located my favorite restaurant cheesecake and even baked up a perfect plain cake, my favorite homemade cheesecake by far is of the pumpkin variety.

There is something about the texture of cheesecake - smooth, silky, and substantial enough without being overly heavy - that when combined with the flavor of pumpkin and a few autumn spices, something positively magical results.

We first made this cheesecake a few years back, when I first got into baking, but I've since adapted the recipe to suit our tastes. Since I only make it once a year (for Thanksgiving), it's an absolute treat. The warm combination of fresh spices and sweet pumpkin is the perfect pairing for a spicy gingersnap crust.

I think one of my favorite things about cheesecake is that there is minimal work involved to actually make it but there is a huge payoff once it's all done. I think cheesecake is one of the most impressive desserts you can serve; it's an added perk that it's also one of the easiest (and deceptively so). That said, there are a few guidelines that I always follow when making a cheesecake:

1. Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. A few hours before you make the cheesecake, put the cream cheese and eggs on the counter to come to room temperature. It will make mixing the batter so much easier. If you forget to take the eggs out, you can submerge them (uncracked) in a bowl of warm water for five minutes. Although I don't advise this, you can also soften the cream cheese in the microwave, but that's a tough task because you don't want the cream cheese to melt too much. It's just easier to let the cream cheese warm up by itself on the counter. (I have, however, found that sour cream, if used in the recipe, does not need to be at room temperature. Same goes for small quantities of milk or heavy cream.)

2. Employ a rubber spatula often. It's crucial to scrape down the sides of the bowl you're using, especially if it's the bowl of a stand mixer, in order to fully incorporate all ingredients. Inevitably some sugar or cream cheese won't mix in entirely, and the last thing you want is unincorporated pockets of cream cheese in the finished cake.

3. Bake in a water bath. Always. Even if the recipe doesn't advise it. Actually, if the recipe doesn't advise it, then I don't even use that recipe. Cheesecake is a delicate specimen and it must be treated with care. If you cook it too fast, it will overcook and crack. There's certainly nothing wrong with cracks as far as taste goes, but appearance-wise, they leave something to be desired. Ideally, you have a roasting pan (sadly we don't) that can hold your springform pan. In this case, make sure to wrap the pan in a double layer of aluminum foil. When the cheesecake goes into the oven, pour in hot, steamy water to go about halfway up the sides of the pan. The water bath helps the cheesecake cook evenly and avoid cracking. The next best thing in our house to a roasting pan is the bottom of a broiler pan. Unfortunately, the low sides of the broiler pan encourage fast evaporation of the water. If this is your case, monitor the level of the water and refill with hot water as needed. (And, yes, I realize that this cheesecake does have a crack in it. That's why I advise monitoring the water levels as needed, something I neglected to do. It was still delicious, though.)

4. Let it cool. When the cheesecake comes out of the oven, it will have a solidified, matte-looking top layer. When you shake the pan it should still jiggle slightly in the center, though. Let the cheesecake cool for a little while on the counter (up to an hour, if possible) before chilling it in the refrigerator overnight. (That's another bonus of making cheesecake: it's an entirely make-ahead dessert, so it's perfect for company or hectic holidays.)

The original recipe, with notes scrawled all over: a sure sign of a tried and true favorite.

I realize this diatribe may be slightly intimidating if you've never made cheesecake before. I assure you that cheesecake is easy, though. I encourage you to make it for your next holiday gathering (or any other occasion). But if you find yourself needing help, don't hesitate to Skype me. I'm particularly skilled at giving late-night, virtual cheesecake-making lessons.

Pumpkin Cheesecake
Inspired by Bon Appetit

As I noted earlier, over the years I have changed quite a few components of the original recipe to suit our tastes. Namely, using only gingersnaps in the crust for a spicier contrast to the sweet pumpkin filling and using more spices in the filling. If you can, use freshly grated nutmeg. This may seem like a trivial detail, but you can really taste the nutmeg flavor in the finished cake, which, owing to the variety of spices used, has a wonderfully complex flavor. This cheesecake lasts for a long while in the refrigerator and, like other cheesecakes, freezes well. If you opt to freeze a few slices, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil. I prefer this cheesecake chilled, but you can also serve it at room temperature. Although I think the cheesecake is perfect on its own, I imagine a dollop of spiced sour cream or Greek yogurt or a spoonful of whipped cream (similarly spiced or, if you'd like, bourbon-infused) would be a welcome addition.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings

For the crust:
About 12 ounces gingersnap cookies
3 tablespoons butter, melted

For the cheesecake batter:
4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese (I use low-fat Neufchatel cheese)
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 (15-ounce) can solid pack pumpkin
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Process the gingersnap cookies in a food processor until finely ground. (Alternatively, you can place them in a ziploc bag and crush them with the bottom of a pan or a rolling pin.) Add butter and pulse until blended in.

Spray the inside of a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray and wrap the outside of the pan with a double layer of aluminum foil. Pour buttered crumbs into the pan and, using the bottom of a measuring cup, press the crumbs onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Try to get as even a layer throughout as possible. Bake until just lightly toasted, about 10 minutes. Let cool while you prepare the filling.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and beat thoroughly to incorporate. After adding the sugar, the batter will appear shiny. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure that all the sugar has been incorporated. Add the spices and beat until well-blended. Next beat in the pumpkin until well-blended. Scrape down the bowl again. Add the eggs and mix until well-blended. Once again, scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat to incorporate. Scrape down the bowl for a final time, making sure that the entire batter is homogeneous and that no lumps remain. If there are lumps, briefly beat the batter on high speed for a few seconds.

Pour the batter into the prepared crust and set the springform pan in a roasting pan or other large baking pan with high sides. Meanwhile, put a kettle of water on to boil. Once the water is boiling, set the roasting pan with cheesecake in it into the oven. Quickly and carefully pour the hot, steaming water into the roasting pan so that it comes about halfway up the sides of the springform pan. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes. As the cake bakes, periodically monitor the water level, refilling the roasting pan as needed. (Use the oven light to check on the cheesecake; don't open the door every 20 minutes. If you do need to refill the water level, do so very quickly to let out as little oven heat as possible.)

After an hour and a half, remove the roasting pan from the oven. The cheesecake will have a browned and set top. When lightly shaken, it will still jiggle somewhat in the center. Cool for 30 minutes to an hour. Then place the springform pan on a paper-towel lined (to avoid slipping) plate and transfer to the refrigerator. Refrigerate overnight.

When you are ready to serve the cheesecake, remove it from the refrigerator and run a knife around the perimeter of the springform pan to loosen the crust from the sides. Remove the sides of the springform pan. Cut into slices and serve.

The cheesecake will keep, wrapped well in foil or plastic, for at least a week (if it lasts that long). You can also freeze the cake (see note above) for enjoying later.

The Perfect Cheesecake, Part II

Ladies and gentlemen, I think I've found my new standby.

A while back, I talked (okay, rambled) about my ideal cheesecake. Since I'd already found my ultimate restaurant slice, the only obstacle left in my cheesecake conquest was the ideal homemade cake.

I called that post "Part I," anticipating that "Part II" would follow very closely behind it. I was preparing to make Dorie Greenspan's Tall and Creamy Cheesecake, which sounded absolutely wonderful to me, because, well, it's... tall and creamy. I love tall and creamy. (I also love tall, dark, and handsome, but that's another story.) Unfortunately, the recipe that I followed was incredibly flawed. It was missing a vital step and I ended up underbaking the cheesecake. Don't get me wrong, the cheesecake was still delicious enough to eat, but it was underbaked.

Wednesday is my dad's birthday and he requested a simple menu of "sausages, kraut, and cheesecake." Since I'm home for fall break, I decided it was time to give Dorie's recipe another go, this time with accurate instructions.
The final result was, thanks to an extra 90 minutes of baking time, perfectly baked. It definitely lives up to its namesake qualities. The gingersnap crust that I used once again added a much needed spicy element. The cake itself is just sweet enough and ethereally creamy.
However, it's just not as dense as I like. I really wasn't expecting it to be, though. All I was hoping for was a modest (and moderately prepared) recipe that I could come back to whenever I needed to make a cheesecake. Until I summon the courage to use 5+ blocks of cream cheese and half a dozen eggs, I'll continue to use this recipe. Only in my world would this recent series of events feel like a weight lifted off my shoulders. One culinary obstacle down, infinitely more to go.

(Next mission: master pie crust. Stay tuned on that front.)

Tall and Creamy Cheesecake
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

This cheesecake is a great base recipe for any plain cheesecake, and the quantities are painfully easy to remember for such a wonderful end product. That said, I took a few liberties with the ingredients. The crust is gingersnap because that's my favorite, but you could certainly substitute graham crackers or vanilla or chocolate wafers. Also feel free to add sugar (up to 3 tablespoons) or spices to the crust to your taste (I prefer a less sweet crust). You can also add more butter if you want a sturdier crust. I used low-fat cream cheese and sour cream, but full-fat would work just as well. And I also added half a vanilla bean because... well, it was there. Upon serving the cake, I was frustrated that some of the crust stuck to the sides of the springform pan. For aesthetic reasons, take the extra five seconds and spray the pan with nonstick spray to ensure an easy release. You'll thank me later.

Yield: 12 to 16 servings

For the crust:
About 7 ounces gingersnap cookies
1/4 teaspoon tables salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake:
4 (8-ounce) packages Neufchatel cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups l0w-fat sour cream
1/2 vanilla bean
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and wrap it in a double layer of aluminum foil. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the gingersnaps and salt together until the cookies are ground into crumbs. Add butter and pulse until the crumbs have begin to clump together and have taken on the appearance of wet sand.

Pour the buttered crumbs into the springform pan. Using the bottom and sides of a measuring cup, press the crumbs onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.

Meanwhile, prepare the cheesecake batter. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (you could also use a hand mixer), beat the cream cheese on medium speed until soft and creamy-looking, about 4 minutes. Add the sugar and salt and beat until well-blended, about 3 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure the batter is well-blended. Add the vanilla and mix until well-blended. Beat in the eggs, one by one, mixing well after each addition and scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add in the sour cream, again scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl. Scrape the beans from half a vanilla bean (or a whole one if you have it) and add to the batter. One last time, use a rubber spatula to make sure the batter is entirely incorporated and smooth.

Put a kettle of water on to boil. Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared crust and place the springform pan in a roasting pan (I use the bottom of broiler pan because we don't have a roasting pan). Quickly (but carefully!) place the roasting pan on the center rack of the oven. Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the springform pan.
Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 30 minutes. It will rise just above the top of the pan, but it will be beautiful, lightly golden, and crack-free (that's because of the water bath). Turn off the oven and crack the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecake to "rest" for an hour in the turned-off oven.

After an hour, pull the cheesecake out of the oven. Take the springform pan out of the roasting pan and set it on a paper-towel lined plate (to absorb any water from the roasting pan and to reduce slippage). Let it come to room temperature. Transfer the cooled cheesecake to the refrigerator; chill at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.

To serve, run a knife around the circumference of the cake and remove the sides of the springform pan. The easiest way to cut the cheesecake is with a long, sharp knife that has been dipped in warm water in between slices.

The cheesecake will keep in the refrigerator, wrapped well, for up to a week, or up to 2 months in the freezer. Defrost the frozen but still wrapped cheesecake in the refrigerator before serving.

That Strawberry Sauce You See

Yield: about 1 cup of sauce, enough for 4-6 servings

About 8 medium strawberries (I used frozen)
Water
1 teaspoon sugar

Put the strawberries in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add enough water to come about halfway up the sides of the strawberries. (This is all very approximate because I just made this up as I went along, but I'd guess I added about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of water.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until the strawberries begin to break down. Add the sugar. Use a potato masher or fork to mash the strawberries. The strawberries will never become completely smooth but you want to make sure there are no huge chunks of strawberries. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the mixture until it is reduced and syrupy. Cool and serve alongside cheesecake or pound cake, on top of ice cream, or straight off the spoon! Yum....

The Perfect Cheesecake, Part I

There are people in life who are in search of happiness, truth, knowledge, inner peace, the ideal pair of shoes. You know, all perfectly worthy things to be looking for. I, however, am in search of the perfect cheesecake.

You may be thinking that this cheesecake looks slightly deformed. My mom took a sliver from the center before I had the chance to take these pictures.

I would like to call myself somewhat of a cheesecake aficionado. Again, some people rationally discuss the particular merits of wine and cheese ("buttery," "ashy," "oaky," "Asian pear-y"). I, however, am devoting an entire blog post to the specific merits of my ultimate cheesecake.

Of course, I must admit that I have not found my ultimate homemade cheesecake (stay tuned for the latest details on that front). Nevertheless, my search for the perfect commercial cheesecake has come to a successful, delicious, creamy close. Hailing from Carnegie Deli in New York City, this thing is a real looker.

How crazy delicious does this look? Admit it: you want a slice now.

But to really understand how this slice stands up to years of cheesecake scrutiny and wins my award for the best I've ever eaten, it's necessary to dissect its components. This cheesecake is a prime example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

First up, the crust. Even though this slice is definitely in the New York-style (that is, dense and creamy with a bronzed top), it forgoes the typical pastry crust and uses a cookie dough base. For me, the crust must extend at least halfway up the side of the cake (none of that bottom-only nonsense, or, worse, crustless variations) and actually complement the cheesecake. I love the cookie dough crust here, but my actual favorite is a gingersnap base. The subtle spiciness of gingersnaps balances the creaminess of the filling without overwhelming it. Traditional graham crackers aren't far behind, while chocolate cookie crusts are just alright (likely because of my biased distaste for Oreos). And let's not even go there with pastry crusts, because you know how I feel about pie dough.

This scrumptious cookie dough crust extends all the way up the cheesecake. As a more neutral crust, it is the perfect complement to the decadence of this dense filling.

Second, the filling. As the main affair in the cheesecake, it must be no less than ethereally smooth (ricotta cheesecakes are another story for another day). Texturally, I tend to favor denser cheesecakes, but I also appreciate lighter cakes. I think it all depends on the flavor. For a plain cheesecake like this lovely specimen, a denser texture is more palatable, not to mention appropriate because of its New York roots. However, a pumpkin or chocolate cheesecake simply cannot boast the same density as plain cheesecakes. Can you imagine such a confection? It would be like tasting a whole slice's worth of pure pumpkin flesh or working your way through three inches of ganache. Better in small doses, I say.

I am also a firm believer in a variation of textures. That is, I like a natural but subtle transition from creamy bliss at the cake's center to a more cake-like, drier texture at the perimeter. This gradation not only adds interest to the slice but it also cuts through the thick cream cheesiness that dominates the cake's center.

This aerial view shows the nutty brown crown of this cheesecake wonderfully. Beneath the lovely golden top is an intensely dense filling. Even when sliced, this cake shows almost no aeration. That is because it is pure awesome.

Finally, flavor. I love the toasty, light-brown top that many cheesecakes exhibit as a result of their baking. An initial blast of high heat (again, a New York tradition) followed by low and slow oven heat makes for a nutty brown surface that I've come to regard as a fine attribute in a cheesecake. I'm actually quite open to cheesecake flavors, though, whether they be seasonal (pumpkin cheesecake with a spiced gingersnap crust is a Thanksgiving favorite, as is a cranberry swirl cheesecake), indulgent (chocolate Kahlua, anybody?), or bare-bones minimalist (this cake, obviously). One of my favorite things about cheesecake is the blank canvas that it provides. Anything is possible with a cheesecake, and I'm pretty much open to anything.

That said, there are a few major downfalls of cheesecake. A few that immediately come to mind are gloppy "strawberry" pie filling used as a topping, unincorporated cream cheese that suspends in the filling (room temperature ingredients, people!), and insufficient crusts (only four graham crackers? Why even bother? Also, crusts must be baked prior to adding the filling.).

Now, you may also be thinking, What about humongous cracks that look as if an earthquake has wreaked havoc on your dessert? Well, I have mixed feelings about this. The folks at America's Test Kitchen swear that cracked cheesecakes are a sure sign of overbaking, and I do believe them. They also say that you can forgo a bain marie (water bath) so long as you check the temperature of your cheesecake with an instant-read thermometer and promptly whisk it out of the oven once it reaches 160 degrees. This scientific approach makes perfect sense, so I tried their water bath-less method, and the cheesecake still cracked. It had nothing to do with my falling asleep on the couch as the cake sat in the oven (oops), because the cake cracked within the first 30 minutes of its baking. So now I only bake cheesecakes in water baths. Always, even if the recipe doesn't say so. It's too easy not to, and my cheesecakes come out so much prettier. Still, I think a cracked cheesecake is still a cheesecake, which is to say that it's still awesome.

Notice the thickness of this crust. It is pretty much uniform throughout, about a quarter-inch. Also observe the cheesecake's stature, about three inches. A short cheesecake is a sad cheesecake, and a too-tall cheesecake never gets eaten in one sitting.

Of course, I realize that I sound like an ultimate cheesecake snob. I hope some of you are still reading this lengthy digression. Anyone? Okay, well, as I said before, this ultimate cheesecake is truly greater than the sum of its parts. Yes, the filling is incredibly lush and the crust is sweet and wonderfully chewy (like cookie dough...) and the top is just brown enough, but this cheesecake fills me with so much joy. I get so happy thinking about this cheesecake, talking about this cheesecake, ordering this cheesecake, looking at this cheesecake, and taking 11 pictures of this cheesecake that eating it is somewhat of an afterthought. Sure, it's my favorite thing on this wonderful Earth and I don't think I'll ever make one as tasty as this, but I believe the thought of this cheesecake is enough to satisfy my appetite for it....



...You didn't really believe that, did you? I ate it last night, every last bit.