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CONTESTANT SCORECARD
Elimination Challenge Wins: 2/10
Quick Fire Challenge Wins: 4/10
Status:
WINNER OF TOP CHEF SEASON 3!
File Under:
Desserts, Featured Recipes, Season 4
Gorgonzola Cheesecake
Source: Stephanie Izard, Top Chef Season 4
rate this recipe:
Gorgonzola Cheesecake with Sweet Potato Puree & Concord Grape Sauce
Prep Time: two hours and 45 minutes
Serves: 6
Directions:
Gorgonzola Cheesecake:
Let cream cheese soften and yolks come to room temperature. Add heavy cream and gorgonzola in bowl and melt over water bath; allow to cool a bit.
Mix together cream cheese, yolks, brown sugar and gorgonzola until just combined. Put in ramekins and then in a hotel pan with one-fourth inch of water. Cover hotel pan with foil. Bake 325 degrees for about half an hour. When cool, torch bottom of ramekin to remove.
Sweet Potato Puree:
Place sweet potatoes in baking dish with butter and water. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. Put in blender and blend until smooth. If too thick add more water then season with salt.
Concord Grape Sauce:
Place grapes, balsamic and water in nonreactive pot. Cook until reduced by half. Blend until smooth and pass through a chinois.
Walnut Crumble:
Put sugar and water in pot to make a caramel. Pour on silpat and let cool. Break up sugar and put in robot coup with nuts and butter; pulse until powdery.
Ingredients:
Gorgonzola Cheesecake:
1 1/2 cups cream cheese
2 egg yolks
6 oz heavy cream
12 oz gorgonzola
1T brown sugar
Sweet Potato Puree:
2 sweet potatoes, peeled, large dice
3T butter
1/2 cup water
Salt to taste
Concord Grape Sauce:
1 bunch concord grapes
1T balsamic
Water for cooking
Walnut Crumble:
2 cups sugar
2T water
2 cups walnuts
2T butter
Comments
Jennifer Fields wrote:
WOW, I cannot believe you made a Gorgonzola Cheesecake tonight it is one of my favorite things. I had never heard of them before and one day I was shoping and there was a lady giving out samples of a gorgonzola cheesecake and now I am such a fan. The are availble at the Whole Foods in Nashville, TN.
posted on May 21, 2008 at 8:03 PM
Kevin wrote:
Re: your recipe for the Gorgonzola Cheesecake -- 1 1/2 cream cheese?
Pounds, packages (it comes in 8oz and 4oz sizes), cups, tablespoons?
When was this show taped? Concord (Vitis labrusca) grapes are rather seasonal and, because of their slip-skin quality, do not freeze well.
posted on May 22, 2008 at 1:46 PM
KB wrote:
The receipe above says 1 1/2 "cups" cream cheese...The show was taped in the fall (remember Da Bears)
posted on May 23, 2008 at 9:21 AM
Kelly wrote:
Jennifer : I order Gorgonzola Cheesecakes from NeimanMarcus.com. I am not sure if they are the same company. They are wonderful!
posted on May 23, 2008 at 3:27 PM
Theresa Dunn wrote:
I have a question about cooling the cheesecakes. When I make a "big" cheesecake, in a springform pan, I bake it, then, I turn the oven off and let it sit in the oven for a while. I am assuming that you take these out and let them cool at room temp. Is that correct?
posted on May 24, 2008 at 12:26 PM
tootie wrote:
the recipe makes way more walnut crumble topping than you'll ever really need. any suggestions on a cool recipe to make with all the leftover topping? I have about 1 1/2 cups.
posted on May 25, 2008 at 7:32 PM
marla Bird wrote:
Marla wrote: What do you do with the sweet potatoe puree???
posted on May 26, 2008 at 8:46 PM
Todd wrote:
Dumb question: "When cool, torch bottom of ramekin to remove." How does torching the bottom of the remekin do anything but burn the base of the cake? is it just taht the remekin expands and the cake comes out?
posted on May 29, 2008 at 11:08 AM
readycarnivore wrote:
heating the bottom of the ramekins causes the fats to become liquid so the cheesecake will slip out more easily-- you use the torch to provide the heat required to do this. (i lack a torch, and just heat them for a few moments in either hot water, or the flame of my gas stove after using a knife or thin spatula to separate the sides.)
an alternative use for the excess walnut topping would be to place it in the bottom of the ramekins; i'm going to try this the next time i make this recipe. it will probably make the cakes easier to remove from the ramekins.
posted on June 1, 2008 at 7:40 AM
Charlotte Muia wrote:
Isn't Welsh's concentrated grape juice from the concord grape?? If so, could that be used if fresh grapes were unavailable? Would putting a hot cloth on the ramekin bottoms rather than torching work? Or putting a round parchment paper in the ramekin bottom before pouring the cheese cake filling?? Just a thought and didn't know if any experiments had been done in this vein. Thanks
posted on June 1, 2008 at 11:07 AM