Vanilla Bean Cheesecake

I went to Cheesecake Factory the other day for dinner.  It's so overwhelming, the number of cheesecake flavors they have there.  Some of the flavor combinations sound not so good but some of them tempt me but in the end, I always get the vanilla bean cheesecake.  I do like to have some sort of berry sauce on my plain cheesecake but that's it.  I found this recipe for plain cheesecake on allrecipes.com but did not follow the recipe exactly.  Their recipe did not call for any vanilla flavoring.  I added about 2 teaspoons vanilla extract AND the seeds scraped from 2 vanilla beans.  Their crust is a classic graham cracker crust.  I used shortbread girlscout cookies for my crust. That was a good choice!  I was somewhat worried about the number of eggs in this recipe - 5 whole eggs & 2 egg yolks.  I thought that amount of eggs would result in a more custardy texture or too eggy of a flavor, but it didn't.  The texture of this cheesecake is smooth, very smooth indeed.  The vanilla was a wonderful addition and I can't imagine this cheesecake without it.  One of the main reasons I chose this cheesecake is because it's one of the only ones I could find that didn't include sour cream, which I happen to be out of. 

I would definitely make this recipe again.  Oh, another thing that I did differently than the recipe, my cheesecake was in the oven for about 2.5 hours, maybe more.  It took a LOT longer to bake then the recipe states.

The last time I made a cheesecake, I used a parchment collar & I don't think I will make another cheesecake without it.  I've always had an issue with my crumb crusts tasting a bit metallic like and that's even after using a few different springform pans.  Also, I've had trouble unmolding the cheesecakes sometimes in the past. The advantages of a parchment collar is, no metallic taste to my crust, the springform pan slides off effortlessly and if there is a bit too much batter for the pan, the collar will hold it in.  I guess I didn't perfectly smooth out the parchment this time which is why the sides of my cheesecake have sort of a wavy texture.

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake

Based on on this allrecipes.com recipe

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/2 cup white sugar 1/4 cup butter, melted 5 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

5 eggs 2 egg yolks 1 3/4 cups white sugar 1/8 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream Vanilla extract & the seeds from 2 vanilla beans

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.	Mix the graham cracker crumbs, 1/2 cup of the white sugar, and the melted butter together. Press mixture into the bottom of one 9 or 10 inch springform pan.
3.	In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, eggs and egg yolks; mix until smooth. Add the remaining 1 3/4 cups white sugar, the flour and the heavy cream (add vanilla extract & vanilla bean seeds). Blend until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan.
4.	Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 10 minutes, then turn oven temperature down to 200 degrees F (100 degrees C) and continue baking for 1 hour, or until filling is set. Let cheesecake cool, then refrigerate.

Cookies & Cream Cheesecake

I haven't baked a cheesecake in awhile.  I've had 4 blocks of cream cheese sitting in my fridge for a couple of weeks (it was a good sale) and cheesecake is a good way to use them all at once.  This recipe is loosely based on a recipe that I came across on allrecipes.com:

chocolate cookie cheesecake

I made so many changes though that it's not really the same recipe.  I just liked the idea of it so I used the recipe as a foundation.  The original recipe uses a 10 inch springform pan but all I had was a 9 inch springform pan so I had to make a parchment collar for my pan.  It's the first time I made one for a cheesecake and wasn't sure how it would work.  I thought for sure that the weight of the ingredients would collapse it. But it didn't.  In fact, even if all the ingredients had fit nicely into my 9 inch pan, I would still have wanted the parchment collor.  It peeled away so nicely after I unmolded the cheesecake.  It was just a really neat removal with no pieces sticking to the side of the pan for once.  I think I will use the parchment collar method from now on. Plus, in the past I've had the problem of a slight metal flavor in my cheesecake crust and with the collar, it doesn't happen.  My cheesecake and then the added chocolate topping went well over the top of the pan and the parchment collar kept it securely in place.  No spillover at all.  So I recommend using the collar next time you make any sort of cheesecake.  I simply used 2 long strips of parchment and kind of "glued" them into place using my pastry brush with some Crisco.  The parchment strips reach all the way to the bottom of the pan and rise about 2 inches above the rim of the pan. I then put Crisco on top of the paper as well as the bottom of my springform pan even though it has a non stick surface.  My layer of Crisco was very light.

As for the crust, I know plenty of recipes that use Oreo cookies in the crust and they usually use melted butter or added sugar.  First of all, Oreo cookies are so sweet on their own, I definitely do not think that extra sugar is needed.  Second, the filling in Oreos acts like a binder so I didn't think the melted butter was neccesary. The finely ground Oreos, by themselves, made the perfect crust.  At first they seemed a bit loose while pressing them in the pan but I just very gently pressed them into place and then slowly transferred the pan into the oven to bake the crust for 10 minutes. After baking the crust was more sturdy.   And because I had Crisco lightly coated parchment lining the pan, the crumbs stayed in place pretty well.  That was another good reason for the Crisco. I've always had a difficult time getting crumbs to make a nice wall up the side of a springform pan.  The Crisco again acted like a "glue" in attaching the crumbs to the side.

The cheesecake filling was very basic and easy to put together.  I usually always use my paddle attachment on my mixer to beat my ingredients but this time I used my whisk attachment.  I thought it mixed the ingredients a lot more thoroughly.  I think I will use the whisk attachment from now on when I make cheesecakes.  It seemed to be smoother with a lighter texture.  The flavor was wonderful.  I probably put a bit more vanilla in than the recipe states.  I usually don't measure.  I just pour.  I used a big blob of vanilla paste in it as well.  Love those little vanilla bean flecks!

After I poured half the cheesecake batter on top of the crust, I added an even layer of Oreo chunks. But for some reason, after cutting the cooled cheesecake, the middle seemed to not have many Oreo pieces.  Not sure what happened there. The edges had the majority of cookies...but it was still good!

I only had the hot cheesecake sitting on a wire rack to cool for about 15-20 minutes before I added the chocolate topping. Oh...maybe it was more like 30 minutes.  I made the chocolate topping and waited till it wasn't so hot before I poured it on top.  And to make things easier, I made my topping in the microwave using the defrost setting and stirring every 30-60 seconds. It didn't take too long.  I just threw the chips & whipping cream into a large Pyrex measuring cup and frequently stireed. You can of course use all semi sweet chips for the topping but I wanted mine a bit sweeter so I used a mixture of both semi sweet & milk.  Since my pan was only a 9 inch, my chocolate topping was very thick!!  You can either make less topping or use a bigger pan if you would prefer a thinner topping (I don't know why you'd want thinner but....).

I tented the whole warm cheesecake with it's topping with a big piece of foil and put it on a rack on my covered front porch to cool over night.  It was about 36 degrees last night.  It set up nicely and sliced very cleanly in the early afternoon. So I had it sitting for about 15 hours before slicing.

This is a very rich cheesecake so slice small pieces!  It's a great cheesecake and would be fun to play around with different combinations.  Maybe different Oreo flavors or maybe Nutter Butter sandwich cookies!  All sorts of possibilities.  Even though the recipe looks somewhat time consuming and/or complicated, it's not.  It pretty easy and VERY yummy and worth it!

\

Parchment collar.  VERY useful

Cookies & Cream Cheesecake
Based on this recipe from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
2 cups chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (finely ground)
2 pounds cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups white sugar
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (Big rough chunks)
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 cups chocolate chips (I used 1/2 semi sweet & 1/2 milk choc)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1.Firmly press the finely ground cookie mixture evenly onto bottom and 1 inch up sides of a 10-inch springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually mix in 1 1/4 cups sugar, 1/3 cup whipping cream, flour, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Pour 1/2 of batter into prepared pan. Top with the 1 1/2 cups big cookie pieces; pour in remaining batter over the cookie chunks.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45-60 min until cheesecake seems set but a little loose in the middle.  Remove from oven and place on rack to cool.  Begin making chocolate topping.
4. Combine 3/4 cup whipping cream and chocolate chips in a saucepan; stir over low heat until chocolate melts, and then stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour mixture over cheesecake while still warm. Refrigerate until serving time.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies

One of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes is the one that uses vanilla instant pudding in the recipe.  Today I tried that same recipe with chocolate instant pudding and an addition of unsweetened cocoa to intensify the chocolate a bit. These were a HUGE hit!  Chocolate overload!  While these were baking, it was a bit difficult to tell when they were done because you couldn't see the edges turn light brown.  I had to lightly feel the edges to see if they were set.   I experimented a bit.  When the edges were fully set, the cookies were wonderful with a cakey sort of texture.  When the edges were only slightly firm, the cookies were more fudgy on the inside. That's how I liked them best. But both textures were great. This is a super easy recipe. The dough is nice and soft and scoops out nicely with a metal scooper.  I bet these would be good with mint chocolate chips as well.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies


4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda, set aside.


In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips. Drop cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven.

Classic Diner Cheesecake

This is one of the creamiest cheesecakes I have ever eaten.  I'm surprised that it sliced so neatly because the texture was ultra smooth and creamy.  I found this cheesecake recipe in a book called Diner Desserts, by Trish Boyle.  This book had been in storage so I have not used it for years.  It was fun to open it up and look at it again.  It seemed brand new to me.

I think this cheesecake is the only one I have ever baked that did not end up with a crack in it.  NOT ONE single crack!  Flawless.  Not that that has anything to do with a cheesecake's flavor or texture, but it is one of those often elusive goals that cheesecakes bakers strive for.  I made a little more of the graham cracker crust mixture than called for because I wanted a crust on the sides as well.  The recipe does not mention to spray or grease your springform pan, but I did even though it's non stick.  I ended up baking my cheesecake a lot longer than the recipe calls for and it probably could have used about 5 more minutes of baking.

This is a wonderful cheesecake recipe.  If you like the more dry crumbly texture of a classic cheesecake, then you won't like this one.  It's so creamy and smooth with big vanilla flavor.  In fact, I added the scrapings of 1 vanilla bean along with the pure vanilla extract.

 Since we have moved, I have taken dozens of boxes out of storage.  Last week I came across this retro diner cake dome.  Perfect for this classic diner cheesecake!



Classic Diner Cheesecake

from Diner Desserts by Tish Boyle

Crust:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling:

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 pounds cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
5 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon zest (I did not add this)

Directions:

To make graham cracker crust, preheat oven to 500 degrees.

In bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs & sugar. Add butter & toss all together with a fork.  Pat the mixture into a 9 inch springform pan.

To make cheesecake filling:

Stir together in a bowl, the flour & sugar. Set aside.

In an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on low speed until smooth. Beat in the vanilla. Gradually add the sugar/flour mixture, beating on low speed. Scrape the sides of the bowl. Add eggs, one at a time. Scrape bowl as necessary. Beat in the sour cream, heavy cream & zest. Scrape batter into prepared pan.

Bake the cheesecake for 10 minutes at 500 degrees. Reduce heat to 200 and keep oven door open for a couple of minutes to let some heat escape. Close the door and continue to bake at 200 degrees for 1 hour. Turn oven off and prop open door with wooden spoon.  Leave cheesecake in the warm oven for an additional hour.  Transfer cheesecake to wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate cake, covered with plastic wrap for at least 4 hours before serving.

Lime Cheesecake with Raspberry Cream

This recipe comes from my new cookbook, "Classic Southern Desserts"- It's from the editors of Southern Living. I've had so much fun reading this book. There are a ton of recipes in this book that I want to make. The only reason I chose this lime cheesecake is because I had a lot of extra limes leftover from some lime bars I made last week. The book calls for "key limes" and therefore they call it "Key Lime Cheesecake" in the book. I only had regular old limes from the supermarket, therefore I call mine simply "Lime Cheesecake". In the book they garnish their cheesecake with a strawberry sauce. I made freshly whipped cream and stabilized it with raspberry gelatin. Supposedly whipped cream will not break down as quickly if you use gelatin as a stabilizer. Most people would use the unflavored gelatin but all I had was a box of raspberry Jello so I figured that raspberry & lime are a nice combo.

This cheesecake is tart and delicious. I had to bake mine a lot longer than the recipe calls for. Probably 40 minutes more. The middle just was not setting up. My crust ended up a little darker than I would have liked but it's still good. The top was not especially beautiful -cracks & some spots too dark - but the raspberry cream covers those flaws just fine. I decided to only pipe the raspberry whipped cream garnish as I cut each slice so I have my entire bowl of raspberry whipped cream sitting in the fridge. I'm anxious to see how long it takes before it starts breaking down. Can I still use it pipe 24 hours from now? Have any of you had experience with whipped cream stabilized with gelatin? I'm not sure what to expect but I do know that for right now, the raspberry whipped cream is absolutely wonderful.

I just love classic southern desserts! I want to make about 80% of the recipes in this book. So stay tuned for lots more.

Key Lime Cheesecake
Southern Living

Ingredients

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 (8-ounce) container sour cream
• 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lime rind
• 1/2 cup Key lime juice

Preparation

Stir together first 3 ingredients, and firmly press on bottom and 1 inch up sides of a greased 9-inch springform pan.

Bake at 350° for 8 minutes; cool.

Beat cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy; gradually add 1 1/4 cups sugar, beating until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in sour cream, rind, and juice. Pour batter into crust.

Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 5 minutes; turn oven off. Partially open oven door; let stand in oven 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and immediately run a knife around edge of pan, releasing sides.

Cool completely in pan on a wire rack; cover and chill 8 hours.

White Chocolate Vanilla Bean Cheesecake

I found this cheesecake recipe on one of my favorite blogs.
notsohumblepie.blogspot.com
It's originally from the Ray's Boathouse cookbook. Ray's Boathouse is a wonderful restaurant on Shilshoe Bay in Seattle It's been there for decades and serves incredible Northwest cuisine and offers the most beautiful view of the bay.
Ms. Humble's cheesecake did not include vanilla bean though and she topped it with a homemade caramel sauce. I would have loved the caramel sauce but no one else in my family would have eaten caramel sauce so I went with my other favorite: raspberry sauce.
I think this may now be my favorite cheesecake recipe. It set up so perfectly. It's not super creamy but it's not dry & crumbly like either. It does not really taste like white chocolate but then again, the flavor of white chocolate is basically vanilla so that's what it tastes like. Along with the vanilla extract in the recipe, I added a fresh vanilla bean. I love the flavor of vanilla beans and I like the little black specks.
I have one concern about my cheesecake. Not just this one, but all of them I have made and I want to know if anyone else experiences this. The graham cracker crust tastes slightly metallic. I thought it was my previous well worn springform pan that caused the metallic flavor but I just recently bought a brand new high quality springform pan (non stick) and I can still taste a slight metallic flavor in the crust. My husband suggested running a strip of parchment around the inside. Has anyone else experienced this problem? My cheesecake is definitely edible but the metallic flavor is noticable - a little bit anyway. Suggestions?
But I highly recommend this recipe. It could be topped with just about anything and be delicious. The raspberry was delightful but the caramel looked so rich and smooth. Maybe I will pull out a jar of my caramel ice cream topping in the fridge and drizzle some of that on.
Enjoy!

Just unmolded it. So far so good. There was one small chunk of the crust that fell out of the side of the cheesecake but I did not photograph that defect! Other side.

No cracks in the top after baking but there were a few bubbles on top and it turned a deep golden brown.

It sliced neatly and came off the springform pan bottom perfectly. No sticking!

I always look forward to the end of my photo shoot because I know I will get to enjoy the subject!

White Chocolate Cheesecake

found at notsohumblepie.blogspot.com
adapted from
Ray's Boathouse: Seafood Secrets of the Pacific Northwest


Crust
10 ounces graham crackers, crushed into crumbs
7 tablespoons unsalted butter

Cheesecake Filling
3 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped
5 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch salt

boiling water

Pre-heat the oven to 375°F. Combine the graham cracker crumbs with the melted butter and press into the bottom and 1 1/2 inches up the side of a 10 inch spring form pan.

Bake for 10 minutes and then allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Reduce the heat to 325°F and prepare the cheesecake batter.

Place the chopped white chocolate into a heat safe bowl and set aside. Bring the 1/2 cup of cream to a simmer over medium heat in a small sauce pan. Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate, jiggle the bowl to submerge it and allow to stand for one minute. Stir the chocolate gently until melted completely.

In your mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until smooth and lump free. Add the sugar and mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

On medium speed, slowly add the white chocolate ganache. Once combined you can add the eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed until each egg is incorporated. Once you've added all the eggs, mix in the vanilla and salt and pour into your prepared pan.

Set the pan onto a couple large sheets of aluminum foil and smooth them up the sides of the pan to waterproof.

Set the cheesecake into a large roasting pan and then place in the oven. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan, filling to about one inch (no higher than the lowest edge of aluminum foil). Allow to bake at 325°F for one hour then reduce heat and bake at 300°F for an additional 60-90 minutes until the center is just set.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Once cool chill for at least 4 hours before serving.