Cheesecake is one of the most common desserts in the world and perhaps one of the oldest involving dairy other than milk. The first recorded mention of cheesecake was during the ancient Grecian Olympic games in the occidental world. Marcus Porcius Cato (Cato the Elder) wrote of cheesecake preparation in his farming manual 'De agri cultura'.



Cheesecakes can be made of ricotta cheese, havarti, quark, twar'g, or, more usually, cream cheese. Other ingredients such as sugar, eggs, cream and fruit are often mixed in as well. Flavorings such as vanilla or chocolate may be added, and a fruit topping, like strawberry is frequently added. Typically, the cheese filling or topping covers a crust, which may be pastry, cookie or graham cracker-crumb. Sometimes the base is a layer of cake.

Contrary to what its name suggests, cheesecakes are actually more like custards and are required to be baked at lower temperatures. A common difficulty with baking cheesecakes is its tendency to "crack" when cooled. This is due to the coagulation of the beaten eggs in its batter. There are various methods to prevent this. One method is to bake the cake in a hot water bath to ensure even heating . Alternatively, a little cornstarch blended into the batter prevents the coagulation of eggs.

The word cheesecake is also used to describe the creamy, cheesy flavor of the cake. In this usage, there are cheesecake yogurts, ice creams, brownies, and cookies.

There are also savory cheesecakes, often flavored with blue cheese and served as hors d'oeuvres or accompanying salads.

Styles of Cheesecake

American cheesecakes generally rely on cream cheese, invented in 1872 as an alternative to French Neufch?tel. After James L. Kraft invented pasteurized Philadelphia cream cheese in 1912, it became the top product for making cheesecakes.

New York-style cheesecake, made famous by Lindy's and Junior's Deli, relies upon heavy cream, cream cheese, eggs and egg yolks to add a richness and a smooth consistency. Also called Jewish-style, it's baked in a special 5- to 6-inch tall springform pan in many restaurants. Some recipes use cottage cheese and lemon for distinct texture and flavor or add chocolate or strawberry to the basic recipe.

Chicago-style cheesecake, typified by Eli's Cheesecake, is a baked cream-cheese version that's firm outside and creamy inside.

Pennsylvania Dutch-style cheesecake uses a slightly tangy type of cottage cheese with larger curds and less water content, called pot or farmer's cheese.

Farmer's cheese cheesecake is the contemporary implementation for the traditional use of baking to preserve fresh cheese and often is baked in a pie shell along with fresh fruit like a tart.

Sour cream cheesecake is thought to have originated in the mid-20th century in the United States after the mass homogenization of milk and the loss of cream as a widely available ingredient. It still uses cream cheese but has no heavy cream. It is the most widely used recipe for cheesecake outside New York-style in the United States. It can be frozen for short periods of time without ruining the texture. Many factory-made cheesecakes use this method because of this trait.

Roman-style cheesecake uses honey and a ricotta-like cheese along with flour and is traditionally shaped into loaves. Some recipes call for bay leaves, which may have been used as a preservative. It is still baked in areas in Italy that kept culinary traditions alive after the fall of Rome.

Italian-style cheesecake is a modern version of Roman cheesecake. It uses ricotta cheese, replaces the honey with sugar, omits the bay leaves, and adds other modern ingredients such as vanilla extract. This type of cheesecake is typically drier than American styles. Often, small bits of candied fruit are added.

French-style cheesecakes are very light, feature gelatin as a binding ingredient and are typically only 1 to 2 inches tall. This variety gets its light texture and flavor from Neufch?tel cheese and is found in outdoor markets in the South of France and fine pastry shops in Paris.

Greek-style cheesecake commonly uses Mizithra cheese and Mascarpone cheese.

German-style cheesecake (K'sekuchen) uses quark cheese. The K'sesahnetorte (cheese cream tart) adds cream and doesn't get baked.

Dutch-style cheesecakes are typically flavored with melted bittersweet chocolate.

Brazilian-style cheesecake usually has a layer of goiabada (guava marmalade).

Canadian-style cheesecake often uses maple syrup.

Japanese-style cheesecake relies upon the emulsification of cornstarch and eggs to make a smooth flan-like texture and almost plasticine appearance. It is a very popular vending machine food in Japan because it is one of the few milk products that can easily be made shelf stable.

Country-style cheesecake uses buttermilk to produce a firm texture while decreasing the pH (increasing acidity) to extend shelf life.

Vegan cheesecakes with substitutions such as silken tofu for cream cheese.

Cottage cheese and lemon versions.