Dee’s Cheesecake | My Paris Kitchen

Dee’s cheesecake from David Lebovitz’s My Paris Kitchen is a cake with all cheese. I mean, there is fromage blanc, a fresh cheese in France that is sold in most supermarkets. Of course, there is the quintessential Philadelphia cream cheese and sour cream, all in almost equal weights (8 oz. for a half recipe).

You cream together the cheeses with sugar, eggs, flour and cornstarch in a stand mixer until they become cohesive. Finally, add in some melted butter and the sour cream, mix until smooth. Everything happens in a single mixing bowl. So far so good.

This is the same process like mixing any cake batter. Then I look further in the recipe for instructions for the crust. I couldn’t find it; there is no crust. That’s a surprise. We’ve made the French cheesecake with David before with goat cheese. Remember that one with an almost burnt blackened top! That one has a lovely short-crust pastry for the shell. However, the Dee’s cheesecake is naked: no shell, no crust and no toppings. Texture-wise, it’s light, creamy, but wobbly.

Nevermind the fact that I like to tinker. So, I make a cherry compote for the naked cheesecake. Furthermore, there is something to hide. There was a visible crack when the cheesecake was baked. Then the crack turned into a crater in the center of the cake after it spent some time in the refrigerator. (I have either overmixed or overbaked the cheesecake batter!) Hence, the cherry compote comes to the rescue.

Now the Dee’s cheesecake has morphed into my unique creation. The burst of creative energy makes this a really fun exercise. I’d make the cherry compote again.

Stir together frozen cherries, sugar and orange juice in a medium bowl. Place on medium-low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Gently boil the mixture for 8 to 10 minutes, until thickened. Stir in some cherry purée (puréed cherries in a food processor) and cherry liquor to attain a sauce-like consistency. Set aside to cool.