Caerthe's Cooks Guild

Cheesecake recipes to be re-created at the July 26th Cooks Guild

From Cheesecake Madness; John J. Segreto: The first written cheesecake recipe was by a Greek writer, Athenaeus, 230 A.D.: Take cheese and pound it till smooth and pasty; put cheese in a brazen sieve; add honey and spring wheat flour. Heat in one mass, cool and serve. Here's the cheesecake recipe redaction as per Caerthe's Cooks Guild, July 2000. Ancient Greek Cheesecake: 1 cup (8 oz) soft cheese (cream cheese) (home made version at end of this page) 1/4 cup honey 3/8 cup flour Mix well and put in 9" pie pan with holes (put a slightly smaller pan underneath to catch drips) in a 350 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes. Let cool, drizzle with honey, and serve. Since there are so few ingredients, quality will make a big difference. We used home-made cheese and good Colorado honey. I'd suggest getting a good-quality spring wheat flour from Alfalfa's or King Arther's Flour.

A 17th Century Cheesecake Recipe, from Pepys at Table; Christopher Driver and Michelle Berriedale-Johnson: from The Court & Kitchen of Elizabeth commonly called Joan Cromwell, 1664: To Make Cheesecakes the Best Way Take two gallons of new milk and put into it 2 spoonfuls and a half of runnet, heat the milk a little less than blood warm, cover it close with a cloth until you see the cheese be gathered, then with a scumming dish gently take out the whey, so when you have drained the curd as clean as you can, put the curd in a sieve and let it drain very well there; then to two quarts of curd take 1 quart of thick cream, 1 pound of butter, 12 eggs, 1 1/2 pounds of currants and with cloves, nutmeg and mace beaten, 1/2 pound of good sugar, 1/4 pint of rosewater, so mingle it well together and put it in puff paste. Here's the cheesecake recipe redaction as per Caerthe's Cooks Guild, July 2000. A 17th Century Cheesecake Recipe from Joan Cromwell (This would be good for all your Cavalier friends) 3 cups (24 oz) soft cheese (cream cheese) (home made version at end of this page) 5 eggs* 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter* 1 1/2 cup thick cream 1/2 tsp fresh grated nutmeg 1/8 to 1/4 tsp mace 1/8 clove 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup white sugar 1/2 cup currants (add more if you wish) 1/4 cup rosewater 1 pkg frozen puff pastry, thawed Mix all ingedients together except puff pastry (our soft cheese was very moist, so you may need more cream if using bought cream cheese). Line a 8" x 8" square pan and two 8" pie pans (or one 9" x 12" rectangular pan) with the puff pastry. Cut off any extra pieces of pastry and bake for decorations. Bake in 350 degree oven for 15 minutes, then decrease temperature to 325 degrees for about 45 minuts. Cheesecake should be golden and puffy. Let cool before slicing. *We used 4 eggs and 1 1/2 sticks butter, which was good, but too oily and not quite solid enough for the custard. **We had lots of custard, so I am experimenting with the last 8" pie pan by pouring the custard into thawed puff paste and freezing unbaked. I will update this recipe with the results in the future.

Soft "Green" Cheese 1 gallon milk (whole or low fat) 1 drop cheese rennet *** Cheesecloth Clean all utensils and work area thoroughly. Warm milk to 72 degrees (carefully, milk will suddenly jump several degrees in temperature). When milk is warm but not hot, mix 1 drop rennet into 1/2 cup of warm milk and add to rest of milk. Thoroughly mix together. Cover and place in warm (75 degrees) place for a day, until curds form. Curds will look like a solid white mass on top of clearish liquid (whey). Whey is filled with nutrients, and can be used in cooking or baking, or made into a cold middle-eastern drink spiked with mint, which some people find delightfully refreshing in the summer. I think it's nasty, so I don't have that recipe - sorry! Line a colander with 2 or 3 thick nesses of cheesecloth and pour curds into it. Let drain for 12 (to 24) hours. If weather is hot, after 2-3 hours, place in refrigerator (with shallow bowl under colander to catch drips). If curds are refrigerated while draining, add another day or two. When cheese is at desired consistency, scrape off cheesecloth into bowl and add about 1 or 2 tsp salt. Mix and cover. Will keep 2 weeks in refrigerated. This amount of cheese was enough to make both cheesecake recipes above. If you only make one, season the remaining cheese with your favorite herbs, spices, chopped onion, garlic or other favorite seasonings. This makes a wonderful soft cheese spread. ***Do not use dessert (junket) rennet. The best source I have found for rennet, and other cheesemaking supplies and books is The New England Cheesemaking Supply Co., www.cheesemaking.com. I highly recommend them if you have any interest in cheesemaking at all.

E-mail may be sent to THLady Gwen at: grasse@mscd.edu

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Last updated 8/14/00