Patrick Oconnell
Cheesecake is a dessert made with soft, fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. It may also have a crust or base made from crushed cookies or digestive biscuits. Cheesecake can be baked or unbaked and is usually served chilled. In this article, we will explore the different types of cheese used to make cheesecake and how they affect the taste and texture of this popular dessert.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Type of cheese | Soft fresh cheese |
| Examples | Cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark, ricotta, mascarpone, Neufchâtel |
| Texture | Creamy and crumbly |
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What You'll Learn
Cream cheese (New York-style)
Cheesecake is made with a soft fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. Cream cheese is the main ingredient in New York-style cheesecakes. This is the type of cream cheese that you would spread on a bagel. It is mixed with eggs, sugar, and often sour cream or heavy cream, and sometimes a little flour. The cheesecake is then baked in a water bath, in a crust made from crushed cookies, digestive biscuits, graham crackers, pastry, or sponge cake. Vanilla, spices, lemon, chocolate, pumpkin, or other flavours may be added to the main cheese layer. Additional flavours and visual appeal may be added by topping the finished dessert with fruit, whipped cream, nuts, cookies, fruit sauce, chocolate syrup, or other ingredients.
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Ricotta (Italian-style)
Cheesecake is made with a soft fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. The Italian-style cheesecake is made with ricotta, a soft, fresh Italian cheese made from the whey left over from the production of other types of cheese. It is a soft, slightly grainy, unsalted cheese with a mild flavour. It is often used in desserts such as cheesecake and cannoli, as well as in savoury dishes such as lasagne and manicotti. In the US, a cheesecake made with ricotta is referred to as a 'ricotta pie'.
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Mascarpone (Italian-style)
Cheesecake is typically made with a soft, fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. However, Italian-style cheesecakes may use mascarpone, a very soft Italian cheese often used in tiramisu.
Mascarpone is a soft, creamy cheese with a high fat content, which makes it perfect for desserts. It has a mild, slightly sweet flavour and a smooth, spreadable texture. When making a cheesecake with mascarpone, you can follow a traditional recipe that uses eggs, sugar and a biscuit base, or you could try something a little different, such as adding chocolate or fruit.
Mascarpone is a versatile cheese that can be used in both sweet and savoury dishes. It is a key ingredient in tiramisu, but it can also be used in pasta sauces, such as a creamy carbonara, or in stuffed pasta dishes like ravioli or tortellini.
When making a cheesecake with mascarpone, it is important to note that the cheese has a high-fat content, so it may not need to be mixed with additional cream or butter. It is also a very soft cheese, so it may not need to be blended or beaten as much as other cheeses.
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Quark (German-style)
Cheesecake is made with a soft fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. Quark is the go-to ingredient for cheesecake in various parts of Europe. It is made from the fermentation of milk and has a creamy, crumbly texture with curds. It is not made with rennet or salt, unlike cottage cheese. Cheesecake made with quark is often referred to as 'German-style' or 'Bavarian' cheesecake.
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Cottage cheese
Cheesecake is made with a soft, fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta. These are all unaged soft cheeses, which are what cheese-based desserts usually use.
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Frequently asked questions
Cheesecake is made from soft, fresh cheese. This can include cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark, or ricotta.
Italian-style cheesecakes use ricotta. In the United States, this is referred to as 'ricotta pie'.
New York-style cheesecakes use cream cheese.
Cheesecakes made from quark are often termed 'German-style' or 'Bavarian' cheesecake.
Other cheese-based desserts like cannoli use marscapone or Neufchâtel.
