Carla : I came across the CheeseCake Question; you posted in May, while looking for something and realized I never put in the recipe. I worked on a new one for a few months. It is Fluffy. Thought you might want to give it a try.It is easy to make and has a Great flavor. LOU Fluffy Cheesecake Ingredients: 6 extra large eggs, Separated 1 cup of Vanilla Ice Cream 1 ¼ Cups of Sugar 1 /4 pound of Butter (softened in micro wave and let cool but still soft) 2 packs of Philadelphia Cream Cheese. ( 16 Oz. )At room temp. Sugar ¾ cup for Batter and ½ cup for egg whites 1 tablespoon of Lemon Juice 6 Tablespoons of Orange juice2 teaspoons of Vanilla flavor 2 heaping tablespoons of AP flour Beat the egg whites, until they start to peak. Add the ½ cup of Sugar, A little at a time, at a medium speed for 1 minute. Beat for another 3 minutes, or until they hold stiff peaks. Put aside, until the batter is mixed. In a bowl large enough to hold the batter and beaten egg whites, Add the 6 egg yolks, Cream Cheese, ¾ cup of Sugar, Lemon juice, Orange Juice, Softened butter, Vanilla flavor, Flour and Ice Cream. Beat this for 3 to 4 minutes, until smooth, add Cornstarch and mix on low speed 1 minute. Fold 1/3 of the beaten egg whites into the cake batter, using a rubber spatula. Then fold in the remaining egg whites , very easily but well. Pour this into a 9 x 13 in. SS Pan or your favorite pan, that is oiled and dusted with flour. Or you can use a Graham Cracker crust. Place this Pan into a slightly larger pan, that has about ¾ inches of water. And then place pans into a pre heated 320 degree oven on the middle shelf. Bake for about 50 to 55 minutes or until the top is a Golden tan ( not Dark Tan !!! ) Turn the oven off but leave the cake in, until it cools down. When cooled down, cover the top with Aluminum Foil and refrigerate, for at least 1 hour. You can add a topping of your choice , a Pineapple Sauce, preserves, thickened peach pie filling , etc. Seems to be OK for freezing.

Now that I think of it, I have made this recipe many times and it could probably fit under a broad definition of a cheesecake. I'll include it for your research, Jim. [Sorry these directions are so long but my stepfather used to make this with just a list of ingredients on a scrap of paper. I finally got him to write down the instructions. There are easier versions of this that don't involve cooking the cheese mixture but this one comes out so creamy that it's worth the extra step.] PASKA (Ukrainian Easter Cheese) 1 1/2 cups sugar 7 egg yolks 2 1/4 lb. dry curd cottage cheese 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 cup blanched almonds, chopped fine 1/2 cup chopped candied or dried fruits 1 - 2 Tbs. liqueur Grated rind of 1/2 lemon 15 Tbs. soft butter 2 tsp. vanilla Scrub a 6 inch clay pot (measured across the top) thoroughly with a brush and soap and water. Rinse inside and out with hot running water; wipe dry and bake in a 300 degree oven for an hour or until thoroughly dry. Let the cheese, butter, egg yolks stand covered at room temperature for 2 hours. Mix fruits with liqueur. Place sugar and yolks in a mixing bowl; beat until light and lemon colored. Set aside. Break up cheese. Put half in the container of an electric blender. Add half the yolk mixture; blend at low speed until smooth. Scald the heavy cream; add half to blender. Blend until smooth. Empty into a saucepan. Repeat with the remaining yolk mixture, cheese and cream. Add salt and mix. Heat the mixture over low heat, stirring, until it thickens slightly. Do not allow it to boil. Remove from heat; add fruit, nuts and lemon rind. Put the mixture in a cool spot until it is completely cool. Place butter in a mixing bowl; beat until soft, fluffy and pale. This will take several minutes. Using a rubber spatula, stir and fold this into the cooled mixture. Add vanilla. The mixture should be very well blended. The flower pot must be thoroughly cooled before using. Cut off a large length of cheesecloth, rinse in cold water and squeeze until it is almost dry. Line the flower pot with a double layer of the damp cheesecloth. Allow the cheesecloth to extend way over the edges of the flower pot. Place the pot on a rack over a shallow pan. Pour in the paska mixture. Fold edges of the cheesecloth over top. Cover top with foil. Fit a small saucepan into the top of flower pot and weight down to press on mixture. Place in refrigerator for at least 24 hours. Whey will drain into the shallow pan. Run a knife around between cheesecloth and flower pot to loosen paska; open up cheesecloth to expose the top of the paska. Put serving plate on the top and gently turn over; ease paska out. Carefully remove cheesecloth. Garnish with fresh or glazed fruits. Cut in small wedges. Serves 16.

Topo, I've looked over the link, I think I would try your original recipe w/o the lemon, use the pomegranate liqueur for the flavoring, with the option of the Pomegranate Sauce, it would make a great presentation. I will try that way when I next make it. Totally agree w/you about sharing recipes, can you image if recipes weren't shared, porridge might still be the staple in our daily menus. I know for a fact that someone gave her that tart recipe; I just dont know who. In fact, while out w/friends one evening this topic came up and there was a women in the group knew exactly what I was talking about, she had the recipe but someone stole her personal cookbook with that recipe in it, maybe it was MY COUSIN!!! "You can check the torture newsgroups for techniques" LOL !! I have 3 recipes I want to work with; one w/a small amount of ricotta, another w/a small amount of amaretti cookies crushed in the batter, and the other escapes me right now. Each different, so I will try my hand at breaking down each recipe into 3rds as each recipe makes approx 40 tarts & I basically just want samples. Who knows may end up with something far better. Lucy

kswl2, I made the chocolate peppermint cheesecake today for my bridge group's Christmas luncheon tomorrow. However, since my oven tends to run about 25 degrees too hot, I lowered the temp and watched it carefully. I set the timer for 40 mins first, then added another 5 mins., then another till it was in 50 mins. The center seems "jiggly" like the recipe said it would but the edges started cracking. I took it out and let it set for about 15 min. I was afraid it wasn't done in the center so when I finished my bread for dinner ( had to let the broiler cool down, I put it back in for 7 more min. It looks set now but I am wondering if the cracked part is going to make it fall apart when I take off the sides tomorrow. It is still cooling. I will make the topping tomorrow to add to it. You don't think it ruined it to put it back in the oven, do you?. It was still warm, not cold by any means. Also, what chocolate wafers did you use? I ended up with chocolate graham crackers as I couldn't find anything else but cookies like Oreo's.