17th-Century Cheesecake
Ingredients
MAKES: 12 TO 16 SERVINGS
Crust
- ⅔ cup unbleached flour plus 3 tablespoons for rolling the crust
- ⅔ cup whole wheat flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter chilled
- 1 large egg white
- ¼ to ⅓ cup very cold water
Filling
- ¼ cup whole almonds finely ground (to yield ⅓ cup)
- ¼ cup 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 pound ricotta cheese
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup currants
Instructions
- For the crust, place the flours and salt in a large bowl and stir to combine.
- Cut the butter into tablespoon-size pieces and distribute on top of the flours.
- With a pastry blender or two sharp paring knives, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture is the size of small peas.
- Add the egg white and the ¼ cup cold water, and stir with a fork until the dough comes together.
- Add more water if needed.
- The dough will be wet.
- Wrap the dough in parchment paper and chill for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the filling.
- Place the almonds on a large cutting board, and with a large, heavy knife, chop the nuts into tiny pieces until they resemble fine meal.
- Set aside.
- Place the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl, and cream with a wooden spoon for 60 strokes.
- Work in the nutmeg, salt, egg yolk, ricotta, and cream, and blend until smooth.
- Fold in the ground almonds and currants.
- Set aside.
- Place a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Set aside an ungreased 9″ springform pan or deep pie plate.
- Scatter the 3 tablespoons flour over a work surface and rolling pin, and remove the dough from the refrigerator.
- Roll out the dough to about ¼” thickness in a 12″ circle.
- Slide a thin metal spatula under the dough and wrap it onto the rolling pin, using the rolling pin to transfer the dough to the prepared pan.
- Press the dough into the pan and up the edges about 1½”.
- Pour the filling into the crust, and spread to smooth the top.
- Place the pan in the oven.
- Bake the cake until the filling is just set but a little jiggly in the center, 1 hour 5 to 10 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven to a wire rack to cool 1 hour.
- Unfasten the collar of the springform pan, if using, and transfer the cake to a serving plate.
- Or, if using a pie pan, slice the cake from the pan while still a little warm.
Notes / Tips / Wine Advice:
A NOTE TO THE MODERN COOK:
The crust and filling can be made in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Place the flours and salt in the processor and pulse. Cut the cold butter into tablespoons and distribute around the processor. Process until the mixture is the size of small peas, 10 to 15 seconds. Add the egg white and ¼ cup cold water. Pulse until the dough holds together. Add more water if needed. The dough will be wet. Wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. The filling can be made in the same food processor. Wipe it out, add the almonds, and pulse until the nuts are well ground, like fine meal, about 45 seconds. Turn the almonds into a large bowl and set aside. Place the butter, sugar, nutmeg, salt, egg yolk, ricotta, and cream in the processor and blend until smooth. Fold in the almonds and currants to finish the filling and proceed with step 4 of the recipe. Flavor the filling with ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, if desired.The creamy texture of cheesecake is universally loved. That texture is what the colonists came to know as “cheese,” and they gave that name to desserts that might not contain cheese at all—such as a lemon “cheese” cake, also called jelly cake, of Virginia that contained no cheese but had a lemon curd filling between the sponge cake layers.