Creating cakes and sweet treats for yourself and others is one of the best and most exhilarating things you can see achieved in a matter of hours. Looking at the wonderful little dish set out before you is absolutely lovely and well worth the effort – especially if it is cheesecake.
Once you’ve had your little slice of heaven as well, you will probably want to save most of it for later or at least a little. However, there is a problem with these types of foods, and that is whether you can freeze them or not.
This is especially true of cheesecake, as it is made of different ingredients and is a different consistency to other cakes. As such, the question becomes can you freeze cheesecake? In this article, we are going to explore this and find out!
What Is Cheesecake?
Cheesecake is a sweet dessert that consists of normally two layers, but can also be just one. It is made out of a mixture of cream or cottage cheese, which is a softer and less crumbly version of regular cheese.
This will be mixed with other ingredients, such as eggs, butter, and sugar, to give it a creamy texture.
The bottom layer – if it has one – is normally made of crumbly or crunchy ingredients to form a base or crust. This crust can be made out of crushed cookies (or biscuits in the UK) pastry, sponge cake, or graham crackers.
Cheesecake comes in two varieties, either baked or unbaked. When it is baked in the oven, it will form a wonderful golden brown and crispy top that has a soft interior of the cheese mixture.
When it is unbaked, the mixture is usually chilled, so the top remains firm and the cheesecake whole and set.
You can get many different flavors of cheesecake, such as chocolate or strawberry, and secondary flavors can be added as well. Traditionally, people will add vanilla to a cheese mixture layer, but spices, lemon, and pumpkin are also popular.
The cake is normally sweetened as well, to give it a delicate boost in appeal, especially when fresh fruits are drizzled over the top.
Can You Freeze Cheesecake?
Yes, you can absolutely freeze cheesecake, and it will be just as tasty when it is fully defrosted. One thing to be aware of when freezing cheesecake is that the fresher the cheesecake is, the better it will freeze, as it will be the most solid at that point.
If you want to make sure that your cheesecake freezes well and doesn’t get damaged, it is best to wrap it up gently but firmly in some secure wrap (like plastic wrap). You should consider putting this in a freezer-safe bag to protect it as well.
Cheesecake is a creamy dessert that can be quite delicate. As such, it isn’t the easiest thing to freeze. Another thing you might want to try is to cut the cheesecake into even slices, that way there is less surface area to hold together.
The soft and creamy texture plays a part in why it is a little more difficult to freeze than regular cakes. This is different to a crumblier cake like a lemon drizzle, which freezes far more easily.
When you freeze cheesecake, the water crystals in the cream cheese have a hard time forming. This means that they take a lot longer to form, and so it stays softer for longer in the freezer.
It is worth noting that the easiest cheesecakes to freeze are denser cheesecakes. When they are frozen, their density means that they are less prone to separating during the freezing process, like a lighter cheesecake might be.
Think of a New York cheesecake as the ideal cheesecake to freeze and compare other cakes to its density before freezing.
How To Freeze Cheesecake?
First things first, if you want to freeze your cheesecake, you need to make sure that you do so when it is completely cool.
This is because if you freeze it when it is warm, it will warm up the rest of your freezer, which isn’t good, and it will not set properly, meaning that when you pull out that cheesecake later, it will not look tasty.
You also need to be careful about how you wrap it, as you don’t want it to get damaged. Put it on a tray, wrap the entire thing in a malleable wrap, like plastic wrap, and put that tray inside a freezer-safe bag.
You don’t want to stack it on top of other things, as this could cause it to break and crack, instead put it in its own space until it is fully frozen.
When you freeze it, try to avoid opening and closing the freezer as much as possible until it is fully frozen. This will allow your cheesecake to freeze thoroughly and protect it further.
This will take a few hours, so if you want to eat the cheesecake later, make sure you leave it in the freezer long enough to be thoroughly frozen.
If you are in a rush, you can put it in the fridge, but make sure it is wrapped up, so it doesn’t get damaged. The entire idea behind this procedure is to protect the delicate cake, so take your time and be patient.
How To Defrost Cheesecake?
If you need to defrost your cheesecake, you should do this slowly. You need to defrost it in the fridge overnight, as if you leave it out on the side, it might thaw too quickly and fall apart in the warm temperatures. When it is fully thawed, cut yourself a slice and enjoy.
Conclusion
Cheesecake is not a hard thing to freeze, but it can be quite finicky as the entire construct is quite delicate.
As such, take your time, try and do things with it gently, and remember that doing things right will mean that your cheesecake remains perfect for when you want to eat it later.
Have you ever made something so delicious that you wished you could savor it forever?
Only to find that the recipe has now mysteriously vanished from your phone and the entirety of the internet. Yep, there’s not much more painful than that.
Hi, my name is Mark Williams and I have been infatuated with cooking since I was young. I would beg my mother to pull a chair up to the counter so I could watch what she was doing.
