Depending on how you define a cheesecake, it is possibly one of the oldest desserts: the Greeks made a cheesecake-like dessert with honey, cheese and flour more than 2,500 years ago. The Romans were introduced to the sweet treat by the Greeks who, in turn, made it their own.

One of the oldest documented recipes for the dessert dates back to 160 BCE and can be found in De Agri Cultura [On Agriculture] by Cato the Elder, a Roman senator and historian. In his famous treatise on Roman agriculture, the author discusses a recipe for baking placenta, a cake made with dough layered with cheese, honey and bay leaves.

A closer recipe to the cheesecake as we know it — with a separately baked base and creamy filling — can be found in Forme of Cury, a cookbook published in 1309 in England. Around the 18th century, the yeast used in cheesecake was swapped out for eggs. Cream cheese, invented in the US in 1872, was also added to the recipe giving us the creamy, cake-like iteration we are familiar with today.

While the no-bake version of cheesecake, made with cream cheese, eggs and other flavourings frozen on a baked biscuit base, is the most well-known version, there are many interpretations of this sweet treat. From the soft, soufflé-like texture of Japanese cheesecake to the Basque, made of burnt custard and no biscuit base, to ube cheesecake, a Filipino interpretation of the dessert made with cream cheese and ube halaya [a mixture of purple yams, butter and condensed milk], there are as many versions of this dessert as there are cheeses.

There are countless versions of cheesecake but nothing beats the New York iteration

New-York Style Cheesecake

The New York-style cheesecake is my favourite because it isn’t as cloyingly sweet as the frozen versions often are, and the baking accentuates the creaminess and the cheesy-ness of this simple yet decadent dessert.

I’ve made this cheesecake many times over the years — baked in a large ramekin for small servings or a cake-sized portion in the oven. The few ingredients and its low-muss, low-fuss recipe ensure a quick turnaround. For a gluten-free version, take inspiration from Basque cheesecake and forgo the biscuit base.

The cool creaminess of cheesecake also makes it ideal for the summers. Plus, unlike pound or chiffon cakes, cheesecake will stay fresh for a week or more, once stored in the fridge.

Ingredients

10-12 biscuits or about 1½ cup of crushed biscuits
2/3 cup butter, softened
2½ cups cream cheese
½ cup granulated sugar (make it ¾ cup if you want the cheesecake sweeter)
2 eggs, whisked
2 egg yolks, whisked
1 tablespoon vanilla essence
1½ tablespoon lemon juice

Seasonal fruit or nuts to decorate, optional

Method

1. Place the biscuits in a large bowl or a zip-lock bag. Crush the biscuits with a mortar pestle or with the flat part of a spoon.

2. Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. In a separate bowl, add the softened butter and crushed biscuits. Mix together by hand until a thick paste forms. Scoop the paste out in an eight-inch round baking tray, preferably a springform one (which will make it easier to remove the cake once baked). Press down with the back of the spoon or by hand. Bake for 20 minutes or until the base starts browning at the edges.

3. Whisk the cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar followed by the beaten eggs. Mix well by hand or in a blender. Stir in the vanilla essence and the lemon juice.

4. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Pour in the cream cheese mixture on the biscuit base. Bake in oven for 40 to 50 minutes or until done.

5. To avoid cracking the cheesecake, turn off the oven and let it cool in there for 10 minutes or so before taking out. Cool at room temperature for 20 minutes. Leave as is or decorate the top with fruit of your choice or chopped nuts. Chill in fridge and take out 10 minutes before serving.

Published in Dawn, EOS, July 6th, 2025