Cheesecake: A blank canvas

Once a week, James Madison University (JMU) District Executive Chef Jay Vetter serves up 800 portions of cheesecake as part of a decade-long tradition called Cheesy Thursdays. With the dessert on the menu so often, you might think that students would want some variety. But surprisingly, they like to keep it simple. “It’s a plain, New York-style cheesecake. We tried to introduce other things, and they say leave the tradition alone,” Vetter says.

Still, cheesecake is the type of simple, blank-canvas dessert that begs for creative flavor tinkering—which is exactly what Pastry Chef Bobby Paylor does at Pennswood Village, a retirement community in Pennsylvania. “I did a banana split cheesecake with pineapple, strawberry and nuts in the filling, and ganache instead of hot fudge,” he says. And that’s just the beginning. Paylor also serves white chocolate raspberry swirl cheesecake, brownie cheesecake, pumpkin cheesecake and caramel apple cheesecake with a shortbread crust.

The base doesn’t have to be cream cheese. At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Associate Director of Housing for Dining Services Dawn Aubrey serves goat cheese cheesecake with wine-poached pears. At JMU’s catered events, Vetter goes the goat cheese route, too. “We’ll put a spiced honey sauce underneath or a fruit compote,” he adds.

For those who aren’t a fan of sweet endings, there’s the savory cheesecake, something Hallmark Cards Crown Room Catering Culinary Assistant Kristi Winegarner likes to serve as a centerpiece for cheese, fruit and nut displays. Instead of the usual graham cracker crust, she uses breadcrumbs or savory crackers and varies the flavors depending on the season or event. One recent favorite was a Four Cheese and Pesto Cheesecake. “Often our savory cheesecakes will have a slightly less dense texture due to the variety of cheeses and vegetables being used,” Winegarner adds. “It depends on the degree of moisture and fat content in the ingredients.”

Other cheesecake tips include: