I Heart NY

After returning form NYC for a quick weekend trip, I was left craving a city staple: cheesecake. I wanted something a little different than just plain old cheesecake, so I decided to make a chocolate cheesecake. I have a recipe from my Aunt Cheryl that I wanted to adapt to my own liking, and I have always tweaked recipes a bit to make them my own. Subbing out melted chocolate for cocoa powder, and cutting down on some of the sugar. Sure, baking is a science, but sometimes it is all about trial and error.

After I made the filling, I decided that I could have nearly doubled the recipe. It wasn't coming up quite high enough with the edge of the crust. Some people like to just have a bottom crust, but I like to bring my crust up to the outer edges of the pan. I also prefer a graham or cookie style crust to a pastry style crust. It's also important to pre-bake the crust for about ten minutes. Having higher edges, and pre-baking ensure that the filling will bake in a protective "shell," and not leak out into your oven.

I also use a spring-form style pan, because once the cheesecake is cooled you can take the outer ring off, and cut beautiful even slices. My favorite cheesecakes are usually a cross between the richness and dense cheesier texture of a New York Style, and the lightness of an airier texture of a French Style. It's basically the best of both worlds in one single bite.

I'll let my readers know how the cheesecake turns out tomorrow after they set up in the fridge overnight.