RCE: Garlic & Sapphires: NY Cheesecake

Our latest report from the world of Garlic & Sapphires comes from Susan who made the REALLY deliciously gorgeous NY Cheesecake:

So I finally got around to making half of my Garlic & Sapphires assignment: the New York cheesecake. I haven't made a cheesecake in eons. The dinner reception I had last week was a perfect excuse to get a new springform pan and go for it.

As I was preparing the cheesecake, I started having major flashbacks to a cheesecake I learned to make from my college boyfriend's mother. Mrs. Cohen was famous for her cheesecake. For the four years I was with her son, she always made me a cheesecake on my birthday. It was an amazing and decadent treat. I mostly remember the part about having to stand over the bowl with an electric mixer for a full thirty minutes, so that the filling was as creamy and fluffy as possible. Not a minute less than thirty! The ingredients looked VERY similar, so I checked back on the old notebook with the handwritten recipe from Mrs. Cohen. Same ingredients, but slightly different composition. Instead of the 24 oz. of cream cheese that RR uses, Mrs. Cohen used 32. And instead of putting the sour cream on top as a glaze, she mixed hers in with the cream cheese.

I think it came out very pretty looking, and it was rich, delicious, but somehow a little bland. I think that adding the sour cream into the mix gave it a bit more zing. I don't know. People raved over it, and for the most part I think it was a huge success.

Now for the second half of my assignment: I picked Spaghetti Carbonara, but when I learned that it was "authentic" Carbonara, made with bacon and eggs (no cream), somehow I lost my appetite for it. (I am such a sucker for dairy products!) In fact, the idea of it kind of grosses me out. I am not sure I am going to be able to follow through on this one. Sorry, everyone!

Susan, we say go for it - try it out and if you don't like it? Chuck it in the bin and make a new one... :-)

Next I've got my report on Matzo Brei to post - and there's a few out there who I'm sure are working on their pieces still! Looking forward to reading them! September is just a few days away with a whole new set of fun reading, cooking and EATING!