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ginger cheesecake
Once a year the local SCA group has an informal gathering that includes a pie competition. "Pie" is pretty loosely defined. For today's I set out to make a ginger cheese pie, extrapolated from the cheesecake recipes in Digby and Platina. Basically, I used Digby's proportions for cheese, butter, and eggs, but replaced his cinnamon and nutmeg with Platina's ginger. I didn't just start with Platina because he uses lard. (In the filling! Ick!)
I wanted to make a ginger-lover's pie, though, and the small amount of fresh-grated ginger called for in Platina just would not do. So I expanded on that, but it still wasn't ginger-y enough, so I'll keep tweaking. Mind, it was still good; it was just...understated.
Here's what I did:
First, turn a pound of fresh ginger into crystallized ginger. More on that below. (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
browngirl, I tried again and it worked this time, so with luck my previous venture here was a first-time goof and won't recur.)
Next, take 3 pounds of ricotta cheese, 8 large eggs (beaten), half a pound of softened butter, and a cup of sugar and stir until combined. Add about three-quarters of the ginger, because if you're going to go to the trouble of making crystallized ginger you're going to save some for yourself. Stir until well-distributed.
Fill a 9" shortbread crust (that you bought from the grocery store, because life is too short to spend any of it on pie crust). Spray a 9" cake pan with cooking spray and fill that, for the gluten-free people. This leaves a little bit extra; pour that into a smaller pan and make a note to use 10" pans or a little less filling stuff next time.
Bake at 350 for an hour. At about the 50-minute mark I covered the edges of the crust with foil so the crust wouldn't burn.
While I had the pie out of the oven for the foil operation anyway, I decided to embellish a bit. I took some of the extra ginger and pressed it into the top of the pie (which was firming up but still a little liquidy). The baronial arms feature a comet, so I made a comet-like pattern with the ginger. I also drizzled ginger syrup (ginger-water, sugar, reduced) on top, figuring the water would cook off, the sugar would form a thin crust, and the ginger would add flavor. I'm not convinced that this actually accomplished any of that, but oh well.
To make the ginger: peel the ginger root and then chop into pieces no more than a quarter-inch thick. (They can be longer and wider; we're not aiming for "dice". But don't make thick chunks.) Add water to cover and cook on medium-high heat, covered, for about half an hour until the ginger is tender. Meanwhile, apply cooking spray to a cookie sheet. Strain the ginger (reserving liquid). Put ginger and an equal weight of sugar back into the pot and add about half a cup of the reserved liquid. Stir frequently over medium-high heat until the water evaporates and the ginger is coated. Spread the ginger on the cookie sheet, breaking up clumps, and let it cool. (I probably had the heat too high as the sugar also started to carmelize. That still tastes good, but it makes the pot harder to clean.)
Meanwhile, if you have other uses for ginger syrup, take the rest of the reserved water, add some sugar (I totally winged this, but maybe half as much as the water by volume), and cook it over medium heat, stirring often, until it reduces to a syrup.
I wanted to make a ginger-lover's pie, though, and the small amount of fresh-grated ginger called for in Platina just would not do. So I expanded on that, but it still wasn't ginger-y enough, so I'll keep tweaking. Mind, it was still good; it was just...understated.
Here's what I did:
First, turn a pound of fresh ginger into crystallized ginger. More on that below. (
browngirl, I tried again and it worked this time, so with luck my previous venture here was a first-time goof and won't recur.)Next, take 3 pounds of ricotta cheese, 8 large eggs (beaten), half a pound of softened butter, and a cup of sugar and stir until combined. Add about three-quarters of the ginger, because if you're going to go to the trouble of making crystallized ginger you're going to save some for yourself. Stir until well-distributed.
Fill a 9" shortbread crust (that you bought from the grocery store, because life is too short to spend any of it on pie crust). Spray a 9" cake pan with cooking spray and fill that, for the gluten-free people. This leaves a little bit extra; pour that into a smaller pan and make a note to use 10" pans or a little less filling stuff next time.
Bake at 350 for an hour. At about the 50-minute mark I covered the edges of the crust with foil so the crust wouldn't burn.
While I had the pie out of the oven for the foil operation anyway, I decided to embellish a bit. I took some of the extra ginger and pressed it into the top of the pie (which was firming up but still a little liquidy). The baronial arms feature a comet, so I made a comet-like pattern with the ginger. I also drizzled ginger syrup (ginger-water, sugar, reduced) on top, figuring the water would cook off, the sugar would form a thin crust, and the ginger would add flavor. I'm not convinced that this actually accomplished any of that, but oh well.
To make the ginger: peel the ginger root and then chop into pieces no more than a quarter-inch thick. (They can be longer and wider; we're not aiming for "dice". But don't make thick chunks.) Add water to cover and cook on medium-high heat, covered, for about half an hour until the ginger is tender. Meanwhile, apply cooking spray to a cookie sheet. Strain the ginger (reserving liquid). Put ginger and an equal weight of sugar back into the pot and add about half a cup of the reserved liquid. Stir frequently over medium-high heat until the water evaporates and the ginger is coated. Spread the ginger on the cookie sheet, breaking up clumps, and let it cool. (I probably had the heat too high as the sugar also started to carmelize. That still tastes good, but it makes the pot harder to clean.)
Meanwhile, if you have other uses for ginger syrup, take the rest of the reserved water, add some sugar (I totally winged this, but maybe half as much as the water by volume), and cook it over medium heat, stirring often, until it reduces to a syrup.
no subject
And yeah, what's up with that Platina torta? Misha didn't use the lard either.
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One thing I should have mentioned is that, unlike modern cheesecake, this was not super-sweet.