Day #23--Adventures in the Kitchen

Caramel Pumpkin Gingersnap Cheesecake.

Caramel Pumpkin Gingersnap Cheesecake.

Caramel Pumpkin Gingersnap Cheesecake.

Say it three times, really fast.

Now:

“Let me ask you a question. Everyone at this table. Did he just say the word pumpkin to me?”
(Tracy Jordan, 30 Rock pilot episode)

But I digress.

Today, in order to get a jump start on tomorrow, for which I am actually doing very little cooking, I went ahead and made a Caramel Pumpkin Gingersnap Cheesecake. No one else at our Thanksgiving likes pumpkin pie, but it seems like there should be something pumpkin-y on the table.

(Did he just say the word pumpkin to me?")

I also made a crust for the French Silk pie I'll be attempting tomorrow. Hope that works out.

Back to the CPGC. I have a few extra tips for you, should you wish to try it. For example, when the recipe calls for softened cream cheese, it actually means softened...not just that you wish it was softened because you're pretty sure your microwave is on the cusp of melting it. Softened does not mean that you can stick a finger in it. You can actually do that to un-softened cream cheese. Should you rush the softening process, you'll likely end up with this:


A big glob of cream cheese thwapping around the side of the bowl as it mixes. And two pounds of thwapping is a lot. However, as my friend M. explained just last week, something about mechanical something speeding up chemical something (science smart paid attention in science .)

So I knew from that little lesson about ice melting (which she gave to our daughters) that if I just let 'er rip it would eventually soften. Which it did.


However, this is not what it is supposed to look like when it comes out of the oven:


This is what Brinsons back in the day would have called a "3-pointer."

Does that look like any cheesecake you've ever seen? This vision means cheesecake batter all over the bottom of the oven and smokiness drifting through the house. Ech. Apparently I was overzealous about the "light and fluffy" part of "beat until light and fluffy," and made a POOFY Caramel Pumpkin Gingersnap Cheesecake.

(Did he just say the word pumpkin to me??!?")

I really must recommend watching the first half of the 30 Rock pilot if you haven't seen it. If for no other reason, it'll open worlds of funny quotables packed with meaning:

"Isn't he...crazy?"
"I am a Jedi!" and
"Nor should it be," come to mind.

The pumpkin question, on the other hand, is random...if subtle.

Happy Thanksgiving!