Junior’s® Original New York Cheesecake

As I mentioned in an earlier post, this year I went a little “out of the box” for Thanksgiving. Dessert was one of the changes I made. I was tired of pumpkin and apple pies and was really craving cheesecake. Being a native New Yorker, I wanted a good old-fashioned New York style cheesecake. Yes, it’s a little more work than my Mini Cherry Cheesecakes, but the end result is so worth the extra effort. Actually, the recipe I used was for Junior’s® Original New York Cheesecake. Although I lived in Brooklyn, New York, for years, I never got to experience first-hand Junior’s® Restaurant. They’ve been around since the 1950’s and their cheesecake is to die for. What makes it so different and unique? It doesn’t have a typical graham cracker or cookie crust. The crust is actually a “sponge cake.”
After a big, heavy Thanksgiving feast, the last thing I wanted was a dessert that would sit in my stomach like a lead weight. This doesn’t. I hate to overkill on the word “creamy,” but this cheesecake is unbelievably creamy and the airy sponge cake crust lightens it even more. As with most New York style cheesecakes, it is best to make this the day before you plan on serving it; so, that does help with the stress factor of the extra work that goes into it. But, I can’t emphasize enough, how much this cheesecake is worth it! In my opinion, it’s also “foolproof,” because it is baked in a water bath. You get the best cheesecake results this way; no cracks, no settling in the center, just perfection. I did end up with one “air bubble” on the top crust (which I’m sure was my fault); but, other than that, it was picture perfect and amazingly divine to eat. The best part of it all is it freezes well; so you never have to worry about leftovers (if you are fortunate enough to have leftovers). Uniquely divine!

Note: this recipe requires extra large eggs, and full fat cream cheese only.

Cheesecake Crust (for one 9-inch cheesecake): 

Preheat oven to 350° F. Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch non-stick springform pan, or removable bottom pan (which is my personal preference); and I don’t even use a non-stick finish, the buttering works just fine. Wrap the outside with aluminum foil, covering the bottom and extending up the sides of the pan (to protect it against the water bath).

                                

In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt together.          

Beat the egg yolks in a large bowl with a hand mixer on high for 3 minutes. While the mixer is running, slowly add 2 Tablespoons of the sugar and beat until thick light yellow ribbons form, about 5 minutes more. Add extracts and beat to combine.

Sift the flour mixture over the batter and stir it in by hand, just until blended, until no more white flecks appear. Blend in the melted butter.

Wash and dry the beaters really well, as even a little fat left on the beaters can cause the egg whites not to whip. 

In another small (clean) bowl, put the egg whites and cream of tartar, and beat on high until frothy. Gradually add the remaining sugar. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. The whites will stand up and look glossy, not dry. Fold about 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then the remaining whites. 

Gently spread out the batter over the bottom of the pan.

Bake just until set and golden (not wet and sticky), about 12 to 15 minutes. Touch the cake gently in the center. If it springs back when touched, it’s done. Watch carefully. Leave the crust in the pan and cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on while you prepare the batter for the cheesecake.

Cheesecake Filling:

 

In large bowl, add one package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the sugar and cornstarch. With a hand mixer, beat on low until creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping down sides often. Blend in remaining cream cheese, one package at a time, scraping down sides as you add each one.

Increase hand mixer speed to medium. Beat in remaining 1-1/3 cups sugar, then vanilla. 

Blend in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add cream and beat until blended. Be careful not to over mix (this is where I probably ended up with an air bubble). Gently spoon the batter over the sponge cake crust.

Place the foil lined cake pan into a large shallow baking pan. Add hot water (hot tap water is fine) until it comes about 1-inch up the sides of the cheesecake pan.

Bake for about 1-1/4 hours, or until edges are light golden brown and top is tanned. There might be a 2-inch circle in the center that appears unset. Don’t worry about it; it will continue cooking as it stands. Do not pierce with a knife or toothpick to check for doneness. You may end up with cracks and settling if you do this. Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and place on a rack to cool. Let cool for 2 hours. Do NOT touch…just walk away. Go shopping, get your nails done, or write a blog….just walk away and do not touch. 

As you can see, no cracks, nor settling in the middle (just one air bubble on the side).

After 2 hours, slightly cover top with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. The next morning, remove the sides of the pan (if using springform pan). Remove foil edges and plastic wrap on top. Place in an airtight container until ready to serve.

 

Serve with sour cream topping; or fruit topping of your choice.

JUNIOR’S® ORIGINAL NEW YORK CHEESECAKE
Source: Junior’s® Cheesecake Cookbook
Posted by: www.meldingmagic.com

INGREDIENTS:

Sponge Cake Crust:

• 1/3 cup sifted cake flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch salt
• 2 extra-large eggs, separated
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 drops pure lemon extract
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar       

Cheesecake Filling:

• 4 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened to room temperature (use only Full Fat)
• 1-2/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 3/4 cup heavy or whipping cream

DIRECTIONS:

Cheesecake Crust (for one 9-inch cheesecake):
Preheat oven to 350° F. Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch non-stick
springform pan, or removable bottom pan. Wrap the outside with aluminum foil, covering the
bottom and extending up the sides of the pan. In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt
together. Beat the egg yolks in a large bowl with a hand mixer on high for 3 minutes. While the mixer
is running, slowly add 2 Tablespoons of the sugar and beat until thick light yellow ribbons form, about
5 minutes more. Add extracts and beat to combine. Sift the flour mixture over the batter and stir it in
by hand, just until blended, until no more white flecks appear. Blend in the melted butter. Wash and
dry the beaters really well, as even a little fat left on the beaters can cause the egg whites not to
whip.  In another small (clean) bowl, put the egg whites and cream of tartar, and beat on high until frothy. Gradually add the remaining sugar. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. The whites will stand up and look glossy, not dry. Fold about 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then the remaining whites.
Gently spread out the batter over the bottom of the pan and bake just until set and golden (not wet
and sticky), about 12 to 15 minutes. Touch the cake gently in the center. If it springs back when
touched, it’s done. Watch carefully. Leave the crust in the pan and cool on a wire rack. Leave the
oven on while you prepare the batter for the cheesecake.

Cheesecake Filling:

In large bowl, add one package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the sugar and cornstarch. With a
hand mixer, beat on low until creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping down sides often. Blend in
remaining cream cheese, one package at a time, scraping down sides as you add each one. Increase
hand mixer speed to medium. Beat in remaining 1-1/3 cups sugar, then vanilla. Blend in the eggs, one
at a time, beating well after each addition. Add cream and beat until blended. Be careful not to over
mix. Gently spoon the batter over the sponge cake crust. Place the foil lined cake pan into a large shallow baking pan. Add hot water until it comes about 1-inch up the sides of the cheesecake pan. Bake for about 1-1/4 hours, or until edges are light golden brown and top is tanned. There might be a 2-inch circle in the center that appears unset. Don’t worry about it; it will continue cooking as it stands. Do not pierce with a knife or toothpick to check for doneness. You may end up with cracks and settling if you do this. Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and place on a rack to cool. Let cool for 2 hours. Do NOT touch…just walk away. After 2 hours, slightly cover top with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. The next morning, remove the sides of the pan (if using springform pan). Remove foil edges and plastic wrap on top. Place in an airtight container until ready to serve. Serve with sour cream topping; or fruit topping of your choice.

Creole Stuffed Mushrooms

For years I have been making stuffed mushrooms that, until recently, have always been a major hit with everybody. The filling consists of sausage, Parmesan and fennel seed. It was an Italian recipe handed down through generations, and I was fortunate enough to be given the recipe by a friend. The downfall of the recipe, however, is that the mushrooms are stuffed with raw sausage meat, which scares me to death. I’m always afraid that if the sausage is not cooked thoroughly, someone is going to become ill. As a result of this fear, I started “overcooking” the mushrooms, making them tough and inedible. I tried precooking the sausage but that just dried out the filling. No adaptations of the sausage filling even came close to being irresistibly good, until now. Thanks to Marguerite at Cajun Delights, Mike and I have fallen in love with stuffed mushrooms all over again. I’ve been following Marguerite’s blog for some time now, well before I even started my own blog, because I’m a big lover of Cajun cuisine. When I saw these stuffed mushrooms posted, I just knew I had to try them. They sounded perfect; and they were! I slightly adapted the recipe, but that’s only because for my first attempt I didn’t want to stuff 32 ounces of mushrooms, so I tried to halve the ingredients somewhat. These were so beyond awesome, I won’t even hesitate to stuff tons and tons more double the next time, or any time, because I know they won’t last for long. The sausage is precooked, but the other ingredients in the filling replenish the moisture and add layers of flavor. Not one ingredient overpowers another in this recipe; I think that’s what I love most about it….it’s just a perfect “mouthwatering” blend. They actually melt in your mouth.If you’re looking for that perfect holiday party appetizer, you just found it (and so did we)! Thanks, Marguerite for sharing your recipe! I’m now officially retiring my old “go to” recipe, because it doesn’t get any better than this.

Garlic missing from above pic.

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Finely chop bell peppers, onion and garlic. Seed and finely chop jalapeno. (After dicing by hand, I used a mini food processor to chop the veggies a little finer.)

I couldn't find whole baby bella mushrooms at any of our supermarkets, only white mushrooms or cremini. So, I did a little online research. Turns out white mushrooms are the youngest, cremini mushrooms are a little older and baby bella mushrooms are the most mature. Other than the age, the mushrooms are all the same; so we bought the cremini mushrooms. Wash mushrooms, remove stems. I discarded stems, but you could finely dice them, saute them with the veggies and add them to filling, if desired.

We used sweet sausage this time, because we were unsure as to the overall spiciness of these appetizers. But, I think next time, I'll double the recipe and use half sweet and half hot; as the mushrooms were not at all spicy. Remove sausages from the casings.

In large heavy skillet, over medium high heat, brown sausage, stirring often and breaking up meat, until no longer pink. Remove from pan and set aside.

I didn't have any sausage drippings left to saute veggies in, so I added a couple of Tablespoons of olive oil to skillet. Then I added chopped onion, chopped green pepper, chopped red pepper, garlic and jalapeno. Saute over medium heat for 8 minutes.

Remove from heat. 

In medium sized bowl, add sausage, vegetable mixture, breadcrumbs, parsley, cream cheese, cheddar cheese and Creole seasoning. Blend well.

Spoon sausage mixture evenly into mushroom caps and place on baking sheet (prepared by spraying with a little non-stick cooking spray). Sprinkle additional cheddar cheese over top of each mushroom. 
 

Bake for 16 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Serve hot with toothpicks.

CREOLE STUFFED MUSHROOMS
Source: Cajun Delights
Posted by: www.meldingmagic.com

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 packages (8-ounces each) fresh cremini (or baby bella mushrooms), washed, with stems removed
• 3 links sausage, hot or sweet (about 1/2 pound)
• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 of a whole green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4 of a whole red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning
• 4 ounces (1/2 of an 8-ounce package) cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tablespoons seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus additional to sprinkle over top
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

              
DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a baking sheet by spraying lightly with no-stick cooking spray.
2. Brown sausage in a large heavy skillet, stirring often and breaking up as it cooks, until no longer pink.
    Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Add 2 Tablespoons olive oil to skillet. Add onions, peppers, garlic, and jalapeno. Sauté over medium
    heat for 8 minutes.
4. In medium size bowl, combine cooked sausage, cooked vegetables, dried parsley, Creole seasoning,
    cream cheese, breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup cheddar cheese. Using a fork, mix well to combine all
    ingredients thoroughly.
5. Mound sausage mixture evenly into mushroom caps. Place evenly spaced on baking sheet. Sprinkle
    additional cheddar cheese over top of each stuffed mushroom. Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is
    melted.