The best cheesecake ever

This recipe was made by a person who obviously LOVES their cheesecake. And after making it a few years back, I can see why. It is quite literally the best cheesecake I ever had in my life, and it's one I made myself, which makes it even better. I can't eat it anymore, of course, but that doesn't matter.

I'm sharing this because frankly, it needs to be shared for everyone who can eat it. Seriously - so amazingly good. I'm not even talking about it more than this, just sharing.

Cooking Debauchery's cheesecake
EDIT: Sadly, this website is no longer with us. But thankfully, I copied the recipe itself because it was so awesome, so I'll share this genius' awesome cheesecake with others so it will not be lost.

"Best cheesecake ever
By kitarra

THE Cheesecake
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 pounds cream cheese (4 8 oz packages), softened
4 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup Kifir Cheese [2]
1 ¼ cups sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
Zest of one small lemon, finely chopped
Butter and additional sugar for the pan

Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees.

Set oven to middle rack and slide into it a large roasting pan.  Fill the bottom of the pan with boiling water and allow to heat with the oven to create a little steam.  Bring another pot of water to a boil.

Removed the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan.  Line it with a large piece of tin foil, folding the edges under so that they do not interfere.  Replace the bottom of the spring form pan into the hoop and lock into place.  Carefully uncurl the tin foil from the bottom and bring it up around the edges of ring, crumpling at the top to create a water tight seal.

Brush the insides of the pan with melted butter making sure to coat every nook and cranny.  Once the pan is coated, pour in 3 tablespoons sugar, shaking it around to evenly coat the bottom and sides.  This will prevent the cheesecake from sticking.

Evenly distribute the cream cheese in the food processor.  Turn to on and slowly add the sugar through the feed tube until the cream cheese loosens and becomes smooth.  You might have to scrape down the sides a couple of times.  Add eggs one at a time, scrapping down the sides between each addition if necessary.

Stop the processor.  While it is stopped add the zest, vanilla and kifir cheese.  Pulse until smooth and thoroughly combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared crust [3], resisting the urge to lick the mixer bowl.  Shake the pan, taping it against the kitchen counter to get out any errant air bubbles.

Place into the middle of the roasting pan and add enough water to come up a little more than half way up the sides.

Bake at 500 degrees for 12 minutes.

Open the oven door and reduce the temperature to 200 degrees.  Keep the oven door open for a few minutes until it cools slightly.  Close the oven door and bake without opening for 1 hour.

The cheesecake will look done at this point and be jiggly in the center.  It will want to come out.  Don’t you believe it!  To prevent cracks, run a thin knife between the edge of the cheesecake and the pan.  It should retract readily.  Close the door and bake for another hour to 75 minutes or until the whole cheesecake move in a slightly rubbery way when gently shaken.

Bring the temperature up to 350 and bake until the top is golden and puffed.

Remove to a wire rack and cool, tearing away the tinfoil to allow heat to escape.

Chill in the refrigerator over night.  DO NOT be tempted to cut into it right away.  This is very hard, I know, but the texture will not right until it has chilled thoroughly.

[1]  Cheesecake Nirvana is currently located in my freezer where it will sit and await my birthday on the 16th.
[2]  Kifir Cheese is sometimes called Lebnan and can be found in Persian or Arabic markets.  If kifir cheese is not available, substitute with Greek Yogurt, preferably drained for a few hours in a coffee filter.
[3]  The first hint I had that I was on the right track is that this cheesecake was nearly half an inch shorter than the cheesecake mousse horror!  The pan should be about half full, maybe a little more.

Originally from http://www.cookingdebauchery.com/cooking_debauchery/2007/02/the_cheesecake.html"

As for allergens - It's gluten free, can be grain free (depends on some brand names), peanut and tree nut free, but it contains dairy, eggs, sugar, and lemon or vanilla.

Herbal Remedies

Unsurprisingly, when you react to chemicals and man-made ingredients (like artificial preservatives) a lot, it doesn't matter where they are. In our food, our clothing, our beauty products, or very importantly, our medications.

This has proved to impact me quite a bit in the last few years. I grew up with chicken soup and taking extra vitamin C, sure, but otherwise, there was cold medicine, Tylenol, neosporin, and all those good, everyday kinds of drugs that make getting sick or injured a little more bearable.

Old drug ampoules look like the aftermath of a frat party, eh? (source)

They're all gone now. It's been 4 years now since I had an over-the-counter med, and the last one was benadryl that I was taking to try and stop an allergic reaction, which instead made it even worse.

So what the heck do you do when you have grown up in a culture that primarily uses over-the-counter medication for everyday ailments?

Homemade electrolyte solution

An electrolyte solution, yeaaa!  I have never been able to find an electrolyte solution free from my allergens, so this is the result of a little research on nutrients needed in electrolyte solutions and some taste testing.

As this is an electrolyte solution of my own design, I would be wary of using this in an emergency situation where you need a more precise and verified balance of electrolytes, but I'll put in the specifics of what I've found, so you can see if it works for you, eh? If I'm really dehydrated, I have it as is, but more often, I dilute it more and have it instead of water. It seems to help me a little better than plain water does.

Making Tea

More information on brewing your own tea, both regular tea and herbal tea (herbal infusion).

(source)

Dairy Substitutions

When my family can't eat a certain ingredient, my tendency now is to simply drop it, pick different recipes than I had before, and move on. But sometimes, you have a nostalgic moment and you want a substitution for an ingredient you had before. Or you have a recipe idea and you need to figure out what ingredients can serve the same purpose as the ingredient you can no long eat.

When that happens, it's nice to know substitutions.

Dairy Free Cream of Mushroom Soup

For safer food: apples

At this point, I would be very careful about eating apples that you don't grow yourself.

1. Once again, apples are the #1 produce item on the 'dirty dozen' list of produce containing pesticide residue. In other words, they have the most pesticide residue of everything tested. Good to at least go organic. The dirty dozen list.

2. Some of them may have antibiotics used on them, including organic varieties:
Antibiotic use on apples and pears.

Considering the state of antibiotic resistance that the World Health Organization has just weighed in on after an international study, this is NOT something we want to encourage.

3. And in the USA, on average, apples are stored for 14 months before you ever get to see them. Which is likely why Europe may not allow them to be imported from the USA - too much residue used to keep them looking okay from such long storage.


I'm looking into getting my own apple tree, and if I DO buy apples, I get ones from local farmers now that I can interview, and only in season. :-/

Sweet Potato Cakes

I finally got these suckers to work!  I saw that the gluten free girl used yogurt to make an egg-free sweet potato latke, and that finally pinged a connection with the cashew cream I've been using, and this is the result. Inspired by her recipe.

Yummy!