Cheesecake

Does anybody know if the French have an equivalent to our Cheesecake and what it would be called. I know they do savoury types, with goats cheese etc, but what about the sweet variety.

I am sure that Gateau a la Fromage would not be what they would call it.

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Hi, I love cheesecake, and do not know the proper name for it either, but, when in Paris I always try to pick what I think looks like cheesecake from the bakeries, they have never yet tasted like what I think of as cheesecake, so I don%26#39;t know if it is that they just don%26#39;t make it , or I am just always ordering the wrong thing! LOL

Good luck on your search.

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I suspect part of the problem is that they don%26#39;t seem to have anything that%26#39;s really comparable to our cream cheese (which is, of course, the main ingredient, LOL). Same is true of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting - the carrot cake can be reasonably close, but the frosting really isn%26#39;t the same.

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Is Aussie cheesecake is the same as American cheesecake (?)... then no, the french do not have a cheesecake equivalent. But a custardy clafouti can taste relatively similar... it%26#39;s certainly worth a taste test. In fact, I can visualize a whole dessert oriented trip to france for you! And if you like pavlova, order ile flotante if you see it on the menu...

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I%26#39;ve lived in France for over 21 years and never found a decent cheesecake. %26quot;Gâteau à la fromage%26quot; is certainly not the name because fromage is masculine, hence %26quot;gâteau au fromage%26quot;. As far as ingredients are concerned I%26#39;ve never been able to find fresh cream in France. What is labelled %26quot;crème fraîche%26quot; is in fact sour cream.

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Look out for %26quot;creme fraiche epaise%26quot; which is not actually sour, and is equivalent to fresh cream and can be used for cooking.

For the equivalent of fresh cream for a dessert, the French use %26quot;creme fleurette%26quot; which you can whisk up to make it thicker. It takes a bit longer to beat up then English fresh cream, but the result is the same.

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I have not found a sweet cheese cake that is typically American anywhere in France.

I did buy a cheese cake in Amboise at a market but it was not like you expect. It was a very light cake with the top blackened. It was so light.

They do have a very nice %26quot;Fountainebleau%26quot; cheese.

It is an artisanal blend of whipped cream anf frommage frais.

The flavor is mild,sweet, and light, more like a creamcake than a cheese. Most eat it with crystallized fruit.

I am sure a fabulous cheese cake could be made with a Normandie cheese called Neufchatel.

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Look for a patissier of Alsatian background like Patisserie Lerch.

Their Tarte au Fromage -Blanc is as close as I have found to what you are looking for.

The cheese cake in NA is of German patrimony and the Alsatians have such a Germanic background. The German version that is closest to what I make at home is Kasse Kuchen. I use a shortbread type crust rather than the cookie crumb crust that is so popular here.

As I remember, Lerch use a Pate Brisee crust rather like a NA short crust but slightly sweeter.

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What an interesting question!

It has never occured to me that there are no cheese-based sweet cakes in classic French cuisine, which has a strong Italian influence. Sicilians have used sweetened Ricotta cheese in desserts ever since the Sarasens invaded at the end of the first millenium.

I guess because the French serve cheese *and* dessert at the end of a formal meal, they expect a contrast in savoury/sweetness and textures.

Anyway, you need to look out for a %26quot;gâteau/tarte/flan au fromage blanc%26quot;, %26quot;quiche sucré%26quot; or even %26quot;cheesecake%26quot;.

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As an American chef I can tell you No, they simply do not make Cheesecake like we do. You can stop looking and sampleing you will not find it. Another interesting fact thay you may not be aware of is CheeseCake is the number one most ordered dessert in the US. So have it while your in the States and enjoy the Amazing array of French desserts that you can only get in France.

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French don%26#39;t make cheesecakes, neither New York style (very sticky !) or english style. That is why we like yours so much, and this is precisely the fun in travelling (that would be horrible to find cheesecakes everywhere, don%26#39;t you think ?).

The equivalent could be our %26quot;gateau de flan%26quot;, but no cheese in it, it is a custard tart. You can find it in almost every bakery, but the best one in Paris is at Poilâne, rue du cherche midi.