Cheesecake

Ingredients

Crust:

• 2 cups graham crackers

• 1/8 cup sugar

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 7 tablespoons melted butter

Filling:

• 2 packages cream cheese, softened

• 3 eggs with yolk and white separated

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 2 tsp vanilla extract/vanilla bean paste

• 2/3 cup greek yogurt

• 1/4 cup heavy cream

• 1 tsp orange zest

• 1 tbsp flour (optional) - see below for details

Recipe

Crust:

1. Crumble graham crackers sugar and salt in a food processor.

2. Add butter and stir to combine.

3. Press firmly down into the springform pan forming the crust and set aside.

Filling:

1. Preheat oven to 325F and lightly grease the sides of the springform pan. Adjust the oven rack to be just under the middle.

2. Add cream cheese and greek yogurt into a large mixing bowl and beat until smoothened. Be sure to wipe down the sides with a flexible spatula and continue to beat on high until fluffy.

3. Mix in sugar and vanilla extract, again beating until smooth and wiping down the sides to combine evenly.

4. Add egg yolks and mix at a lower speed until fully combined. Do not overmix, just stir until it's all fully combined.

5. Quickly stir in cream.

6. Once the mixture is complete, beat egg whites at high speed in a small mixing bowl until stiff peaks have formed.

7. Very gently fold beaten egg whites into mixture being careful not to overmix (keep the air in).

8. Pour cheesecake filling into the pan and bake in a water bath (or above a water pot) on the middle rack for about 1-1:15. Be careful to watch and make sure the top does not get too brown. Set a timer for 45 minutes and keep an eye out for it starting then. The center should still be slightly jiggly but set.

9. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in to gradually cool. Leave untouched for 20-25 min.

10. Open the door to allow heat to escape and avoid overcooking. Leave for another 20-25 min.

11. Take the cheesecake out and as soon as you take the cheesecake out of the oven, run a knife along the edge to prevent it from sticking to the sides of the pan.

12. Lightly cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Q/A with Me

I've made this recipe so many times now, it's the main reason I don't have chiseled abs (and the fact that I hate ab workouts). It started as a Valentine's Day celebration and now it's an "I want sugar" celebration. Point is, I've tried this in a lot of different ways. With and without the beaten egg whites, with and without the flour, with and without the water bath. I've had some that didn't crack at all, and some that looked like the Grand Canyon. To be honest, I think they taste pretty much the exact same either way. It's more about the proudness of not having a cracked cheesecake. I can advocate based on what I've learned, but this is evolving just like every other recipe I have.

Q: Why do you keep saying do not overmix?

A: You have to be super careful about adding air to your cheesecake. There are several things that can cause a crack in your cheesecake, and the expansion and contraction of your batter as it bakes and cools is one of them. Whipping too much air into your egg yolks will cause your cheesecake to expand while it bakes. As it cools, your cheesecake will contract and it can crack. Don't overmix!

Q: Why do I need to fold in these egg whites?

A: Does it sound hypocritical since I just said you don't want too much air in your cheesecake? Well, sorry not sorry because this is a great addition to your cheesecake. It brings it the RIGHT kind of air and results in a deliciously fluffy and light cheesecake. Try it, it's worth it.

Q: Tf you doin' baking water?

A: Tryna sell it for 9.99/lb at the Farmer's Market... *crickets*

Generally, people will use a water bath to create a moist atmosphere for their cheesecake to bake in. I don't have one of those massive dishes to place my entire cheesecake tin in, so I improvise by adding a tray filled with water underneath. As the water heats up, it will start to evaporate and create steam. This helps prevent your cheesecake from drying out and of course, cracking.

Q: What's up with opening the oven and keeping your cheesecake in there?

A: For those that don't have a fireplace in their home, this is a great spot to kick back with your audiobook and warm-up. The real answer always goes back to cracking. If your cheesecake rapidly expands or contracts, it's likely gonna crack. After we bake it, we want to give the cheesecake mixture time to settle in, kind of like a warm cookie right out of the oven. The best cookies happen 5-10 minutes after bringing them out of the oven. The best cheesecakes require this step as well. Don't ignore it!

Life

I recently listened to an audiobook called The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Reuben. If you talk to me even once a month, I've already let you know this and told you what I think your tendency is. If you don't know what the book is, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT. I learned a lot about not only myself but also about how to communicate better with the people around me. However, everyone HIGHLY RECOMMENDS everything nowadays, there's just too much great content out there, so here's a tl;dr.

Yeah right, I'm not writing a summary, here's one from Google though. If you don't even want to click the link then here you go.

1. Upholders meet inner and outer expectations. They love rules, having a clear plan, and are self-motivated and disciplined. Clearly tell them what needs to be done and they’ll lead the way.

2. Questioners meet their own expectations but resist outer ones. They need to see purpose and reason in anything they do. Make it clear why what you want from them is important.

3. Obligers meet other peoples’ expectations easily but struggle with their own. They must be held accountable by a friend, coach, or boss to get things done. They thrive when they have a sense of duty and can work in a team.

4. Rebels defy both outer and inner expectations. Above all, they want to be free to choose and express their own individuality. Give them the facts, present the task as a challenge and let them decide without pressure.

I have a habit of starting something and not continuing it. I quickly create rules or guidelines for myself and while that works out for a while, it's never sustainable for me. I find rules to be incredibly restrictive, I feel trapped by myself and I just shut whatever is causing that feeling out. As soon as I set the expectation, I start to resist it. Even on this blog, I set the expectation in my description that the recipes would be simple. I set the expectation that the focus of this blog would be on preserving traditional Indian cooking recipes from the source, that there would be some sort of Q/A with an expert that I learned the recipe from. Sure, that is the goal and focus of this blog, but honestly, why would I limit myself to JUST that? I'm not meeting an aunty/uncle every other week, cooking with her/him, learning her/his recipe, and making it myself. 96.3% of the time, I'm taking something from Pinterest and making it mine.