Sous Chef

Last night I experienced a role reversal - sous chef to chef Blake*. I opened and handed and he did the work! He wanted to learn how to make a cheesecake because his coworkers request them so frequently. He said that he feels bad always asking me to make them a cheesecake on nights that I don't get home until eight or nine pm. So he wanted to learn how to make them for me.

This is just one of the many, many ways that my dear husband is going out if his way and out of his norm to pick up the slack from my working more. He amazes me daily with his willingness to take on things he used to avoid. So blessed to be his wife.

So to brag a little on my hubs here is the cheesecake lesson in which I was only a supportive (and photographer) role.

He made Pumpkin Cheesecake and used this recipe, which I've used before.

Here are the steps, tips and tricks to making a cheesecake, as demonstrated by Blake:

Start with room temp cream cheese. If you forgot to take it out soon enough, put it on the range top while the oven is warming and rotate it occasionally. We have a really hot spot that does a nice job if you rotate it well. 

Tip: easiest way to get cream cheese out is to squeeze
it out like you would a tube of toothpaste.

Crank it up and let it whip
to get any lumps out.

While the cream cheese is whipping, work on the crust. This is a gingersnap crust. We put a box of gingersnaps in the food processor, but you could also put them in a large zip top bag and smack the heck out of them. Add the recommended amount of butter and stick it in the microwave.

Tip: save a dirty dish by melting the butter in the
same bowl as the crumbs (before or after adding the
 crumbs if you're forgetful like me).

Mix in the butter and add the sugar.
Blake is too fast for my camera!

Distribute it through the parchment lined springform pan.
(you can also just dump it in and spread it around)

A bottom-only crust is the easiest. Tamp it down with
anything flat and round.

Using heavy duty foil, unroll about two and a half feet and fold it in half. (you want a square that is large enough to come up the sides of the springform pan without any seams, corners or folds.). Heavy duty foil - doubled is the only fool-proof way that I've discovered to keep the water out. A single layer has been known to leak and regular foil isn't thick enough to resist tearing from the pan, nor is it large enough to cover the entire pan.

Trick: make a splash guard with the foil edges.
You can ruin a perfectly good, well protected
cheesecake by splashing water onto it
when taking it out of the oven. 

Tip: add your water to the broiling pan now,
while you aren't leaning over a hot oven
or carrying a full pan. You can also pour it in the
pan once you've placed it in the oven.

Back to the cheesecake: add the ingredients slowly with the mixer running on medium.

After you add the sugar, kick it back
up to high for a few minutes. This
helps to dissolve the sugar, keeping it
from staying grainy and is the same as the
'creaming' process in baking cookies.

Take it off of the mixer and give it a good
stir. Make sure to get all the way to the
bottom, as plain cream cheese likes
to hang out down there.

Add the eggs, one at a time. If the yokes
were on the small side, don't be afraid to
add an extra yoke. This gives it body
and helps it stay firm but creamy.

Don't whip the batter after adding the eggs. Run it
at medium or slower, otherwise you might get too
much air in it and it'll be a little foamy.
Makes for a funny texture.

This recipe calls for flour (many do) make sure you sift it and add it slowly. Also, because it was a pumpkin cheesecake we needed to add spices, which we sifted into the flour.

Nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cinnamon.

Expert sifting  by Blake.

Add slowly, so you don't get lumps of flour or spice.

Mix in the last few ingredients.

Take out the beater, lick it and check for quality (optional).

Pour into prepared pan(s).

Smooth it out.

Place the whole thing on the middle rack of the preheated oven... very, very, carefully so as not to slosh the water.

While the cheesecake is baking, you can whip up some spiced glaze to decorate with later. Start with basic frosting of powdered sugar and milk. Add pumpkin spices and whisk.

Ground: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves

It tastes better if you mix it in advance and let the
flavors meld. This also goes great with pumpkin scones.

Poor it into a zip top bag... or an icing bag if you
have one of those (you'll cut a tiny corner off later).

Take the cheesecake out of the oven when the top has browned nicely, tiny cracks are forming around the outside and when the center doesn't move like a liquid. It will still be a little jiggly, but will jiggle like set up gelatin instead of like a liquid. You'll know it when you see it.

Let it cool in the pan for at least an hour. Run a knife around the edge right when it comes out and again before you put it in the fridge. Covered or uncovered depends on what the recipe calls for.

Would you look at this! Cheesecake perfection!

Add the spiced frosting drizzle..

Spectacular!! 

Real dedication. This chef was up early
before work to put on the finishing touches.

Blake said that this extra-large cheesecake was gone in less than thirty minutes at seven in the morning! Totally impressed with my husband's baking skills!

And since I'm bragging about his new skills in the kitchen.. here is the last cheesecake I made that he garnished for me before bringing to the picnic. If you'd heard my sleeping stupor instructions to him before he left for work, you'd be impressed too that this is what he pulled off!

*Out of respect for those professionals that spend the time and money to become actual chefs.. please know that neither of us hold culinary degrees. The more appropriate titles here would be: sous-home cook and lead home cook.