Gothamist Cooks (Kind of) By the Book: Ruth Reichl's New York Cheesecake

Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl (Penguin, 2005)

"[W]hat is the taste of New York? To much of the world, it's cheesecake." When Gothamist read that line on page 20 of Ruth Reichl's newest memoir, Garlic and Sapphires, we knew that this was the recipe we wanted to prepare for this week's column. As tempting as some of her other recipes sounded--Roasted Rhubarb, Last-Minute Chocolate Cake, Risotto Primavera--we wanted to make a very New York meal for some special guests, one of whom was visiting New York (and the U.S.) for the very first time. So how better to provide a taste of New York?

The other reason we couldn't resist the cheesecake recipe was Reichl's argument that every home cook should know how to make a good cheesecake, as it's not so difficult to prepare yet makes "the most modest meal a celebration." And while we like culinary challenges, we also like the occasional sure thing, too. Having cooked and eaten this cheesecake, Gothamist can assure you this recipe is a sure thing.

Just a few notes on making sure the cheesecake turns out just right: First off, you'll want to line the outside bottom of the springform pan with several layers of aluminum foil so that there's no problem with butter dripping from the crust. (Otherwise you'll end up with a smoky apartment and a blaring smoke alarm. Ahem.)

Secondly, Reichl suggests using stabilizing-gum-free cream cheese. Gothamist didn't know how rare gum-free cream cheese really was. We figured in Manhattan it would be all over the place. Unfortunately, we couldn't get our hands on it at Whole Foods, Citarella's phone customer-service rep wasn't sure, and your more standard supermarkets unsurprisingly didn't have it, either.

Gothamist ended up making a special trip to the always amazing Murray's Cheese Shop in order to procure the gum-free Ben's Cream Cheese. Having some leftover cream cheese for bagels the next day just made the trip all the more worth it.

We're not sure if the gum-free cream cheese makes a huge difference in the quality of the cake (as we didn't have the energy to bake another cheesecake with a regular, gum-laden brand), but we thought it was transcendent and delicious in every way. The lemon flavor was a strong (yet not overpowering) presence; the cake's texture was creamy and dense yet still fluffy. And that graham-cracker crust? Well, utterly addictive. This recipe most definitely goes into our standard dessert repertoire.

NEW YORK CHEESECAKE

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 6 ounces)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, preferably without gum, at room temperature
4 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
grated zest of one lemon
2 cups sour cream

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the graham crackers with 1/4 cup sugar and the melted butter and press into bottom and sides of a 9-inch ungreased springform pan. Chill while preparing filling.

Beat the cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, eggs, 2 teaspoons of the vanilla, and lemon zest until smooth. Pour into chilled crust and bake 50 minutes to an hour, or until the cheese is set and starting to turn golden in spots. Remove from the oven (leave oven on) and cool for about 15 minutes on a wire rack.

Stir together the sour cream, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, remaining teaspoon of vanilla and spread over cooled cake. Return to oven for 12 minutes until glossy and set.

Cool completely, cover, and chill at least 8 hours.

Serves 8

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Allison Bojarski in Food on May 11, 2005 10:54 AM

Comments [rss]

Janet McNichol

My book club read Garlic and Sapphires and I'm hosting our get-together this month. I decided I'd make a few of the recipes in the book including the cheesecake. On the Kindle version I read, it said 1/2 cup of graham crackers. It looked off to me, so I googled the recipe and found your post. Without it, I might have been serving cheesecake glop. Thanks!

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Good looking cheesecake. I will have to give them a try.

Allison Bojarski

Brian, next time I'll try it with Philly so I can compare the results. Thanks for the tip.

brian w

Rose Levy Beranbaum (whose advice I trust for all things cake-related) says that natural or gum-free cream cheeses aren't worth the bother & expense. She uses regular old Philadelphia--and this is a cook who measured the protein content in flours to tenths of a percentage to determine which was ideal for various cakes & breads.

Anyway, I guess my point is, don't be afraid to try this recipe with ordinary cream cheese.