Organic Vanilla Cheesecake

The Plain, or Vanilla as I like to call it, Cheesecake is the basic recipe from which all my other cheesecakes are born. Other cheesecakes can be created by modifying this recipe using one rule of thumb: substitute like for like, liquid ingredients for liquids, solids for solids. I like to use liqueur in my cheesecakes, but they are not necessary, just fun. However, this does count as a liquid ingredient; to take out the liqueur replace it with milk or something similar. Some ingredients are always included, I like them thick and creamy so I use 4 packages of cream cheese and 4 large eggs. The other always included items are sugar and vanilla extract. I always substitute Xylitol for sugar in a 1:1 ratio because it has a lower glycemic index and it tastes just as good, plus it has 'cool mouth feel' (like when you pop in a curiously strong mint and inhale through your mouth, that is cool mouth feel). Vanilla is the star of the flavor show, don't go cheapo on this ingredient, get the best you can find. It will last for multiple baking excursions. Pure Vanilla is a must, Organic is my preference as well. Do not use 'imitation vanilla' flavored Vanilla extract, it is the unwritten eleventh commandment. Seriously though, what is imitation vanilla even made of? Another thing you will find consistently in my cheesecakes are Organic ingredients. The only Organic cream cheese available in my grocery store  is Organic Valley pure cream cheese, so that's what I use, but I also like that it is a product of WI, right next door. By the way never use neufchatel in place of real cream cheese for a cheesecake... I'm not sure why, but I'm pretty sure real bakers will laugh at you for it. My choices in the egg department are much broader, there are a few different brands of Organic and/or free range eggs, currently I've been getting Larry Schultz Organic Farm eggs. However, I thought they were free range and now I see they are not. Have no fear, chickie babies to the rescue, we are now 8 weeks into our own brood of layers. Their eggs will be my first choice once they start laying.


Those are the rules everything else is up to your imagination, or you can use mine, and go on to one of my other posts. Now how about that recipe? 

Crust:

2 C Graham cracker crumbs
5 Tbs Organic Unsalted Butter
2 Tbs Xylitol



 

Preheat the oven to 350⁰F. Wrap a 9" spring form pan with 2 layers of foil to prevent water from getting into the cake, as well as to contain any butter that will tend to run out of the crust and make a mess. 

 

Lightly grease the sides of the spring form pan with butter.
(Tips: I also put down a sheet of parchment on the bottom of the pan if I'm going to need to take the cake out of the pan, saves loosing the pan or tearing up the cake to get it off the bottom).
 

Melt the butter and dissolve the xylitol in it for the crust, grind the graham crackers, and combine the two thoroughly.

(Tips: I use a metal measuring cup on a stove burner on med low heat to melt the butter. A nut grinder can be used to crush up the crackers, but I've found a stick blender or food processor work very well for powdering graham crackers or sandwich cookies. However, they'll make dough balls with some moist cookies.)

Smoosh (aka the technical term for press)  the combined sweet buttery crackery nomness (sbcn) into the bottom of the spring form pan.
(Tips: I use a square sided ball glass to smoosh the sbcn into the pan evenly)
Bake the crust at 350⁰F for 10 minutes.
Then let it cool to at least room temp, refrigerated is good too.

The Filling (is it just me or does anybody else hear a chorus of Angels singing at this point):
32 oz Cream cheese
1 Tbs Organic Pure Vanilla extract 1 C Xylitol
1/4 C Vanilla Liqueur
4 large Organic Eggs

In the bowl of your electric mixer beat the cream cheese, one at a time, on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes), scraping down the bowl as needed.
(Tips; this is your chance to get the lumps out, the cream cheese needs to be smooooooth, once you add the eggs you can't beat it as much or you'll start to make cheesy meringue)

Mix in the xylitol, vanilla, and the liqueur combine thoroughly.
(Squirrel!, isn't 'liqueur' a strange word? Like 'queue' way to many letters to make that noise, don't you think?)
Then mix in the eggs one at a time and beat on low about 30 seconds each. Ensure each addition is thoroughly combined. Scrape down sides of the bowl once or twice during the process.
(Tips: stir each egg in a separate container before adding it to the filling helps it mix in evenly)

Pour the filling into the spring form pan and gently shake the pan to smooth and distribute evenly. (Similar to tamping concrete if any of you have that kind of experience)

Baking (this will take at least 4 hours, plan accordingly):
Place the cheesecake pan in a larger baking pan (I use a 12" skillet with the handle removed) and place in the oven. Add tap water to the larger frying pan to create a water bath. This will prevent the cheesecake from getting too hot too fast, and help in cooling the cheesecake slowly. Bake at 350⁰F for 15 Minutes, then change the temp to 200⁰F for 1.5 hours more.  Check the water bath level at 1 hour to make sure it has not gone dry.
When the cheesecake stops looking glossy or wet, turn off the oven, slide a thin narrow knife around edge of the cheesecake to loosen it from the sides of the pan. This helps prevent the cake from cracking as it cools.
(Tips: running the knife around the edge is not necessary if your crust is all the way up the side. The crust will release from the side of the pan and automagically prevent cracking.)
Return the cake to oven for 1/2 hour with the door closed. Then open the door a crack and leave the cake in the oven for 1 hour to cool slowly. Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack for 1 hour. Then refrigerate overnight, uncovered to prevent condensation (at minimum 6 hours).
(Tips: cooling the cake slowly will help prevent cracks, and as everybody knows 'crack kills', so we  don't want any cracks. If you want to serve the cake at a later date, freeze it with out topping after it has cooled for 24 hours. Just move it from the fridge to the freezer and let it freeze uncovered over night, then you can transfer it to a cardboard plate and wrap it in cellophane and a large zip lock bag. Then return to the freezer, it'll probably keep for at least a month. I've not tested how long it can be kept frozen, I can never wait that long.)

Topping:
~21.5 oz Organic Cherries
1/4 C Xylitol
1/2 tsp starch

At this point I will diverge from my Vanilla cheesecake recipe, because Vanilla Cheesecake doesn't need a topping. However, this is also a birthday cake for my Hunny Bear and her favorite cheesecake growing up was plain with cherries on top. So here is my attempt at "Cherries on Top".
I'm starting out with 21.5 oz of Organic Sweet Cherries from Stemilt Artisan Organics including stems and pits. I use this size because that is how much my bag of fresh cherries weighs. Turns out that is 67 cherries and you only need about 50 to cover a 9" cheesecake, but the extras don't seem to go to waste. Nom!
De-stem and de-pit the cherries then stir them in a small saucepan along with 1/4 cup of purified water, 1/4 cup of xylitol and 1/2 tsp of corn starch. Simmer on medium-low until thickened and bubbly. The bubbles won't be popping as right away and it will drip off your stirring stick slower when it is done. Cool the syrup using an ice bath. Then spread the cherry syrup on the center of the chilled cheesecake, and return it to the ice box.

Sounds easy peasy lemon squeezy... not so much. This is what a cherry pitter looks like, if you have one then great, I don't. Instead I used a bamboo chopstick, an old can of lentils, and a can opener to make a cherry pitter. It was a little more work, but it turned out and worked just fine.
Here's how I did it: Take a cheap disposable bamboo chopstick, it needs to be flat and pencil size or a little smaller on one end. (can be round or square). Use a file to put a groove in the diameter of one end, then do it again at 90 degrees (it should look similar to a phillips screw when done). Taadaa, the pitter. Then you need a can, I used whatever was in the recycle bin, turned out to be lentils. Poke a hole in the center of the remaining end and then twist the beak end of the can opener into the whole to enlarge it. The whole should be about 1/2 inch when you are done.

What I wasn't prepared for was that the cherries would take an hour and 15 minutes to simmer down to syrup. I guess it takes awhile, who knew? All told this part took about 4 hours, to make the pitter, resize the hole in the can a couple times, de-stem and simmer down to syrup.

1 C Whipping cream
1 Tbs Powdered sugar
1/2 tsp Almond extract
In a small bowl beat the whipping cream, powdered sugar and almond extract until it starts to thicken. Pipe or spread the whipped topping decoratively around the outer edge of the cheesecake.

Serve, savor and repeat.