Chicago-style Cheesecake and my 100th post

This is my 100th post, amazing that I have hit my 3 digits posting which I ever thought that I may not last that long. Hope my passion for baking and blogging can last till I hit 1000 posts hahaha... I am too ambitious! But if I ever hit 1000 posts, I will definitely bake a 3-tier cake to celebrate. Oh I am dreaming again heeheehee...

This Chicago-style cheesecake is not for celebrating my 100th posting :p, it was baked for my sister. She ever asked me whether I know how to bake Chicago cheesecake as she love this cheesecake from Coffee Bean. But I never eat Chicago cheesecake before, how is it taste like? Can't get much info from my sis so I was thinking of going Coffee Bean and check it out.

Before I remember to drop by Coffee Bean, my cream cheese is going to expire in 2 months time. Although 2 months is still a long way but I know myself, if dun use it now I will definitely forget about it. I love to buy and stock baking ingredients but sometimes will keep until over the expiry date that have to dump into the dustbin. I know I know, I shouldn't be so wasteful which I keep reminding dear daughter cannot waste food cos a lot of children in developing countries dun even have sufficient food to eat. I am setting a bad example, I am quitting this bad habit by checking stock and the expiry date periodically.


I googled to search for the recipe and I found 2 difference recipes, one is eggs separate method and another one is whole eggs method. I am not sure which is closer to Coffee Bean's but I decided to use this recipe, simply because I dislike to handle the folding of egg whites to the batter and also this recipe is just nice to get rid of all my cream cheese.

From the identical appearance and almost similar ingredients, I was wondering what is the different between Chicago Cheesecake and New York Cheesecake so I googled and found this from wikipedia:

The United States has several different recipes for cheesecake and this usually depends on the region the cake was baked in as well as the cultural background of the person baking it.

* New York-style cheesecake relies upon heavy cream. Usually, cheesecake is made from cream cheese, eggs and egg yolks to add a richness and a smooth consistency. It is baked in a special 13–15 cm (5–6 inches) tall springform pan in many restaurants. Some recipes use cottage cheese and lemon for distinct texture and flavor or add a drizzle of chocolate or strawberry sauce to the basic recipe.

* Sour cream-style uses sour cream instead of heavy cream. This makes the cheesecake more resilient to freezing and is the method by which most frozen cheesecakes are made.

* Pennsylvania Dutch-style cheesecake uses a slightly tangy type of cheese with larger curds and less water content, called pot or farmer's cheese.

* Philadelphia-style cheesecake is lighter in texture, yet richer in flavor than New York-style cheesecake.

* Farmer's cheese cheesecake is the contemporary implementation for the traditional use of baking to preserve fresh cheese and is often baked in a cake form along with fresh fruit like a tart.

* Country-style cheesecake uses buttermilk to produce a firm texture while decreasing the pH (increasing acidity) to extend shelf life.

* Lactose-free cheesecake may be made either with lactose-free cream cheese or as an imitation using vegan recipes combining non-dairy cream cheese alternatives with other lactose-free ingredients.

* Gooey butter cake is a St. Louis variant that has a layer of regular cake with a cheesecake top.


Someone might noticed and wondered why there was a hole (near to the cherry) on the cake, silly me used the skewer to test the doneness of the cake. Only when I poked the cake then I realised it was cheesecake, not tested by this way but too late hahaha...

Ingredients : (for 6" cake pan)
Crust :
64g unsalted butter, softened and cut into chunks
20g icing sugar
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
64g all-purpose flour
pinch of salt

Filling :
500g cream cheese, softened
100g granulated sugar
2 tbsp lemon zest
3/4 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup buttermilk (original recipe call for sour cream)
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 medium egg yolk
2 medium eggs

Method :
For the crust:
1. Beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy
2. Add vanilla extract and mix until combined.
3. Add the flour and the salt and beat on low speed until just combined.
4. Press the crust evenly into the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
5. Pre-heat oven at 175 degree.
6. Prick the chilled crust several times with a fork and bake until golden, about 20 minutes.
7. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

For the filling:1. Pre-heat oven at 175 degree.
2. Beat the cream cheese on medium-low speed to break it up and soften it.
3. Add half the sugar and the lemon zest and beat on medium-low speed until combine.
4. Beat in the remaining sugar, flour, and salt until combined, another minute.
5. Mix well the vanilla extra with buttermilk and add in to the batter to beat until combine.
6. Add the egg yolk and beat for one minute.
7. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat to combine after each addition. (I am not sure is it cos I used buttermilk that caused the batter to be very running)
8. Grease the side of the cake pan. Set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet or aluminum foil to catch any spill.
9. Pour the filling onto the cooled crust and bake for 50 - 60 mins or until the cheesecake is firm around the edges and barely jiggles in the center. (the recipe didn't ask for water bath method but I used another tray half filled with hot water and position at the last row and bake the cheesecake in middle rack)
10. Transfer to wire rack and cool for 3 hours then wrap tightly with plastic and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours and up to 4 days.
11. Unmould the cheesecake and serve.

Verdict?
The cake is rich, smooth and creamy, sinful but absolutely delicious. I can't differentiate much of the taste between Chicago & New York cheesecake, both actually very identically. Whether is Chicago or NY cheesecake, it doesn't matter, most importantly, my dear sister love the cake, she said seem to be tasted alike with Coffee Bean's. This cake also well received by the rest except dear daughter, she told me to prefer to eat slice cheddar cheese instead of eating cheesecake :(.