I had my first Cheesecake Factory dining experience yesterday. It was wonderful!
I could not make up my mind about what kind of cheesecake I wanted, so my friend suggested that I get a piece of each of the three that I was torn between, and take them all with me.
Oh my......... This cheesecake experience has been a delight for the taste buds. I was in complete heaven having a piece of pineapple upside down cheesecake, total decadence! I am now going off to try the Kaluah and chocolate one.
The Cheesecake Factory is 56 miles from my house, but that is really nothing, when these types of delights are at the end of the drive
Oh, man, I LOVE the Cheesecake Factory! My first experience was about a year ago, and everything was good -- and not JUST the cheesecake!
My lifelong best girlfriend -- someone I've known since I was 3-1/2 -- took me to lunch for my birthday. I can't remember what I had now, but whatever it was, it was delicious...
I need to go back there!
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"It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities"
(Dumbledore to Harry Potter)
I looked up the Cheesecake Factory on-line, and I found out that you can order the cheesecakes and have them sent to your house!!!!!
I am going to order a pineapple upside down one, and bring it over to my parents house the next time they have all of us kids over.
The meal was tremendous also. I started out with a cream of chicken soup that had veggies and aritchoke hearts in it. It was dreamy. I then had chicken picatta, which was wonderful. The angel hair pasta was great, and well worth the stomach pains that I suffered from later on, because of my allergy.
It was definitely well worth being a bad celiac person.
I believe that when Shelly and Joleen venture up here, I may need to convince them to head down to Providence with me, there is a Cheesecake Factory in the Providence Place Mall. A great place to stop after spending a day in Newport exploring...... That's about an hour drive from here, and they really should check out some of New England.....
Im seriously going to look into coming up for a visit. My house doesnt have any AC which makes the weekends with jo extra long. So a road trip in an air conditioned car would be a great way to take up time. I am looking into finances and maybe next weekend even. The hubby will be back the weekend after so that wont work. Let me know what you think
Don't worry about the finances, there are alot of things that can be done around here that really do not cost anything, and this section of the country in the summer is really spectacular.
I am thinking one weekend with a trip to Newport Rhode Island, one day, and Boston the next. Then you will really need to come up for another weekend, and we can hit Cape Cod. I have a sister who lives down there, and we could take the ferry over to Martha's Vineyard for a day trip. That is one spectacular place to visit. There is one town, Edgartown, which has restaurants on the ocean, where you just sit back, have a bite to eat, and watch the yachts sail by.
well, I am actually going to try and plan it for this weekend. If I can get enough done around the house then I will give it a shot. After this weekend I am going to be kind of busy for a little while.\
Though my husband plans on reenlisting on the Constitution the Friday before Labor Day. You should come, that wuold be fun
i won't buy cheesecake factory at the restaurant....too expensive for my pocketbook. however sam's club carries them...the plain cheese only i think so we sometimes buy one there. that being said, there's a restaurant in brooklyn NY named Juniors. now that is one AMAZING cheesecake. i found the recipe online & will make that for b/days & hols. i make it crust less tho.
now i want to make a juniors cheesecake, you troublemaker!
kris
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an ABC soap fan since i was a teen. favorte hobby is reading mysteries & legal or medical procedural mysteries
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Junior's Famous No. 1 Cheesecake From the cookbook Welcome to Junior's! Remembering Brooklyn With Recipes and Memories from Its Favorite Restaurant
One of the most famous, and best tasting, cheesecakes ever!
Ingredients for One 9-inch Sponge Cake Layer
1/2 cup sifted cake flour 1 teaspoon baking powder Pinch of salt 3 extra-large eggs separated 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 drops pure lemon extract 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar Directions for the Thin Sponge Cake Layer for Cheesecake
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and generously butter a 9-inch springform pan. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.
2. Beat the egg yolks together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high for 3 minutes. Then, with the mixer still running, gradually add the 1/3 cup of sugar and continue beating until thick light-yellow ribbons form in the bowl, about 5 minutes more. Beat in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
3. Sift the flour mixture over the batter and stir it in by hand until no more white flecks appear. Then blend in the butter.
4. In a clean bowl, using clean dry beaters, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar together on high until frothy. Gradually add the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form (the whites should stand up in stiff peaks, but not be dry).
5. Stir about 1/3 cup of the whites into the batter, then gently fold in the remaining whites (don't worry if a few white specks remain).
6. Gently spoon the batter into the pan. Bake the cake just until the center of the cake springs back when lightly touched, only about 10 minutes (watch carefully!). Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack while you continue making the cheesecake filling. Do not remove the cake from the pan.
Makes Enough for One Cheesecake
Ingredients for Cream Cheese Filling
4 unce packages cream cheese (the regular variety not light Neufchatel cream cheese), at room temperature 1 2/3 cups sugar 1/4 cup cornstarch 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract 2 extra-large eggs 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream Directions for the Cream Cheese Filling
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and generously butter a 9-inch springform pan. Make the batter for the sponge cake as the recipe directs Evenly spread the batter on the bottom of the pan, and bake just until set and golden, about 10 minutes. Place the cake on a wire rack to cool (do not remove it from the pan).
2. While the cake cools, make the cream cheese filling: Place one unce package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the sugar, and the cornstarch in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low until creamy, about 3 mintues, then beat in the remaining 3 packages of cream cheese.
3. Increase the mixer speed to high and beat in the remaining 1 1/2 cups of the sugar, then beat in the vanilla and heavy cream. Blend in the eggs, one at a time, beating the bating only until completely blended (just like they do at Junior's). Be careful not to overmix the batter.
4. Gently spoon the cheese filling on top of the baked sponge cake layer. Place the springform pan in a large shallow pan containing hot water that comes about 1 inch up the sides of the pan. Bake the cheesecake until the center barely jiggles when you shake the pan, about 1 hour.
5. Cool the cake on a wire rack for 1 hour. Then cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it's completely cold, at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the sides of the springform pan.
6. Slide the cake off of the bottom of the pan onto a serving plate. Or if you wish, simply leave the cake on the removable bottom of the pan and place it on a serving plate. If any cake is left over, cover it with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
Makes Enough for One 8-Inch Cake, About 2 1/2 Inches High
Ingredients for the Macaroon Crunch
1/2 cup chopped mixed nuts (almonds, peacans, and/or walnuts) 1/2 cup angel flake coconut
Ingredients for the Strawberry Topping
1 quart large ripe strawberries 1 cup strawberry jelly 1/2 cup apricot preserves
Directions for the Fresh Strawberry Cheesecake
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and butter a 9-inch springform pan. Make and bake the sponge cake layer. Make the cheesecake filling and bake the cake as for Junior's Famous No. 1 Pure Cream Cheesecake. Transfer the baked cake to a wire rack to cool, about 1 hour.
2. While the cake is baking and cooling, make the macaroon crunch: Spread the nuts and coconut on a baking sheet and toast in a 350 F oven until golden and crunchy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Set the crunch aside to cool.
3. To prepare the strawberries: Wash, hull, and sort through the strawberries, then pat them dry with paper towels. Starting at the outside edge of the cheesecake, arrange the berries on their sides, in rows, with ends pointing toward the edge of the cake. Continue until the top of the cake is completely covered by strawberries.
4. Now make the strawberry topping: Melt the strawberry jelly and apricot preserves together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Strain and drizzle the warm jelly over the berries.
5. Sprinkle the macaroon crunch ina 1 1/2-inch border around the edge of the cheesecake, covering the berries around the outside edge. Loosely cover the entire cake with plastic wrap, being careful not to let the glaze stick to the wrap.
6. Refrigerate the cake until it's completely cold, at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the cake from the pan and serve it chilled. Wrap any leftover cake in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ don't let the length of the recipe daunt you. it's well worth it.
we don't make the crust as i prefer the pure cheese approach. i also don't use the strawberry topping as my son doesn't like it. since i used to work down the street from this restaurant i can attest that the topping is well worth the effort lol.
enjoy.
kris
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an ABC soap fan since i was a teen. favorte hobby is reading mysteries & legal or medical procedural mysteries