Hello my Foodie Friends!
This weekend marks the 150th running of the Travers Stakes for Saratoga Springs. Travers is the most popular day during the entire Saratoga summer racing meet. The city will be packed with residents and tourists. Many of us will be creating menus for our guests who will be traveling in to watch this spectacular event. This weekend is also my Mother-in-law’s 87th birthday. Her favorite dessert, and one that would be a great one to serve your guests, is Cheesecake. My Mother-in-law makes her cheesecake with a graham cracker crust layered, crushed pineapple, and cherries.
Cheesecake is can be a unique global dessert. Each region of the world also has its own take on the best way to make the dessert. Italians use ricotta cheese, while the Greeks use mizithra or feta. Germans prefer cottage cheese, while the Japanese use a combination of cornstarch and egg whites. There are specialty cheesecakes that include blue cheese, seafood, spicy chilies and even tofu! In spite of all the variations, the popular dessert’s main ingredients – cheese, wheat and a sweetener –remain the same. No matter how you slice it, cheesecake is truly a dessert that has stood the test of time. From its earliest recorded beginnings on Samos over 4,000 years ago to its current iconic status around the world, this creamy cake remains a favorite for sweet tooths of all ages.
To help make a cheesecake, you do need very important tools – the spring form pan.
Spring form pans are a kitchen essential for producing flawlessly smooth cheesecakes, perfectly crusted tarts, or intricate ice cream cakes without damage to their tops, bottoms, or sides. Meant to eliminate the risks associated with removing cakes from traditional pans, removing your product from the pan is the final step before placing your delicate treats on display, serving to the customer, or packaging them to go.
Many people ask me how I won Paula’s heart and I tell them on our first date I brought a dozen Red Roses and a cheesecake to meet her Mom and Dad. When I entered their home carrying both of them Paula said, “Wow, how did you know my mom loves cheesecake?” Thinking quick on my feet, I looked at Paula’s mom and said “here I got these for you!” Paula’s mom quickly responded: “no one ever gets me flowers and cheesecake!” Her dad (retired Army Master Sergeant) just smiled at me and said in his southern drawl: “nice job young man.” I was on a roll with my improvising and I told them that, in my family, it is a custom to give gifts to the mom. So my sage advice to all young suitors out there is take care of the Mom and good things will follow.
Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place. We have an assortment of spring form pans and accessories to assist with your Travers Stakes celebrations. Remember my Food Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”
Take Care,
John & Paula
This is a lush cheesecake lightly flavored with pineapple and topped with gooey, spiced rum enhanced syrup, bright pineapple, pecans, and maraschino cherries and then bruleed for just a minute to create an elegant twist on the iconic Pineapple Upside Down Cake.
