Time for Your Just Desserts

Signature dishes are not to be taken lightly. This one comes from a good friend of mine whose handle is nearly impossible to pronounce unless you're Welsh, ddeuddeg. He brought this cheesecake when he came to visit, and it was an instant success. Weighing in at a hefty 6 pounds (though it felt more like 63), this dessert delighted us and tantalized us with its richness and sweetness. It was agreed at the time that a moscato d'asti that we'd had that evening made a fantastic pairing, and I had saved a bottle just for an occasion like this on which to have it again.

Unfortunately, that bottle decided it wanted to spew forth sugary syrupy stuff on my cellar floor and I can no longer trust it. After some discussion with others and with ddeuddeg, we decided a good alternative would be a dry bubbly. After some further discussion with ddeuddeg, I decided I was ill qualified to attempt to actually create this confection, as it does require some skill in baking which I lack horrifically. So there's no pictures of the cheesecake.

However, wine.woot recently put out its first sparkling wine in time for the New Year festivities, and I was fortunate enough to receive this to sample. Upon reviewing it, we decided it would work well with the now-famous White Chocolate Ginger Cheesecake. And so that is the pairing I present to you today.

Wine: 2001 Woot Cellars Reboot
Meal: White Chocolate Ginger Cheesecake

Color: (5/5)
Good clarity, pale yellow in color, like wheat. A good number of smallish bubbles floated eagerly upwards from the bottom of the glass to the top. Pretty.

Nose: (11/15)
Pleasant but on the plain side. Granny smith apples were the first thing to come to mind. Friend agreed and said like very new granny smiths. Other friend waxed poetic about honeysuckle and pears. I eventually could see the honeysuckle, but not sure I would've gotten there without the suggestion. I also pulled out some wheat toast.

Taste: (6/10)
Again, pleasant but plain. Predominantly pears and sour apples. Friend added really early season white grapes. It was tart, for sure.

Finish: (6/10)
Meh. Salty. Like rock salt. Very minerally finish, and it lasted forever. Not unpleasant, but not really the kind of finish I like to have.

Aging: (2/5)
It's probably peaking now, so I would definitely have these soon.

Overall: (3/5)
I didn't dislike it. It didn't rock my socks, either. But we did finish the bottle in one night. It drinks very easily, and will be just perfect for a party when you have food floating around and everyone's in good spirits. We broke out some Brandini Toffee to have with it, and they complemented really well. Could also see having this with a rich cheesecake, soft sweet creamy cheeses, desserts, strawberries.

Total: 83pts

Want to make this meal?

White Chocolate Ginger Cheesecake

CRUST
13 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 50 cookies)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tsp. ground ginger
6 1/2 T. unsalted butter, melted, cooled

FILLING
1 pound good-quality white chocolate, such as Lindt or
Baker's (I use Callebaut), finely chopped
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 c. sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 T. vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
2/3 c. minced crystallized ginger
1 tsp. ground ginger
White chocolate curls

FOR CRUST: Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Wrap outside of pan with 2 layers of heavy-duty foil. Finely grind cookies, sugar and ginger in processor. Add
butter; blend until moist clumps form. Press onto bottom and up sides of pan. Chill while preparing filling.

FOR FILLING: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 300°F. Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler set over hot water until chocolate melts. Cool to lukewarm, stirring occasionally.
Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and yolk 1 at a time, beating just until combined after each addition. Beat in vanilla and
ground ginger. Gradually beat in melted white chocolate. Stir in crystallized ginger.

Transfer filling to prepared crust. Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Pour enough hot
water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of springform pan. Bake until cheesecake puffs
and edges crack slightly, about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours.

Transfer cake to rack. Run small knife around sides of cake to loosen. Cool completely. Remove
foil from pan sides. Chill cake overnight. (Can be prepared 3 days ahead. Cover and keep chilled.)
Release pan sides. Transfer cake to platter. Top with chocolate curls.

Serves 12 to 14.

Tips for Cheesecake Success
MIXING:
1. Have all the ingredients at room temperature before beginning.
2. Blend cream cheese and sugars at medium speed until smooth and creamy before adding eggs.
Then use the lowest speed of your electric mixer for the rest of the mixing, and mix only as
long as necessary to get everything well mixed.
3. Avoid using the balloon whip on a KitchenAid mixer. It introduces an excessive amount of
air, which tends to cause cracks in the surface.

BAKING:
1. Use a pan of water on the bottom of the oven to add moisture to the oven. (I use an old rusty
13x9 roasting pan. It's ugly, but eventually, every springform pan will leak, and this way I
don't need to clean up the oven.)
2. NEVER open the oven during the first 75% of the baking time. And even after that, don't
open it any more or any longer than necessary.
3. Make sure the oven temperature is correct (Use an oven thermometer), and don't overbake. If the edges are set, even if the center still jiggles a bit, it's probably done. It will firm up as it
cools.

COOLING:
1. As soon as the cheesecake is out of the oven, run a knife around the inside edge of the pan.
This allows the cake to contract properly as it cools.
2. Leave it on a wire rack at least until you can handle the pan with bare hands before refrig-
erating it. Do not cover it until it has thoroughly chilled, at least a few hours. Then cover it
tightly to keep it from drying out.
3. Any garnishes should be added shortly before serving.

Enjoy!