Mandee's Cheesecake Fiasco...

Sometimes, it's just good to be reminded you're not alone.  I know that many of you have read some of my kitchen disasters, but sometimes it's just good to know that even people who are good, experienced cooks, can make mistakes... even really messy mistakes!

Enter my friend Mandee.  When we lived in Chicago, she and her husband Kyle lived downstairs from us and would invite us over to play games or to watch "The Office"... Mandee is a good cook... dare I even say, incredibly domestic and talented?  :)  The other day I was on Mandee's facebook page and ran across a  picture she posted of a cheesecake disaster.  I asked her to share her story with me and she did.  Cheesecake is a food that has long intimidated me, and in recent days I have been wanting to try a recipe that I had at a girlfriends house a few weeks ago (chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake - recipe hopefully to come soon!!)

I present to you, Mandee's Cheesecake Fiasco...  :)

For a while now, I’ve prided myself on being a good cook with some talent in the baking arena as well. Which is quite an accomplishment since the only thing I made for my first 6 months of marriage was spaghetti. Now, I’m no Martha Stewart, I know my place, but I thought I had “down-home-cooking” nailed. Even though my husband hates it when I answer, “yes, I followed a recipe … mostly!” I have to say 9 times out of 10 my substitutes and adjustments are pretty good. I even made a quite delicious tiramisu for my mother’s birthday, which is far out of my country-kitchen norm! So when my sister asked for a cheesecake for her birthday I quite pride fully announced that it would be no problem! 

I received a stand mixer for Christmas which as been my favorite toy in the kitchen for the past 5 months, but apparently I should be more cautious with new toys. Ask any close friends of mine and they will tell you with confidence that common sense has eluded me quite often, and the cheesecake batter all over my walls, counter and floor from pouring liquid in the bowl while the mixer was on medium-high will attest to the same. This should have been my first warning that I was headed down disasters trail.

Of course, if I had used common sense from that point on I probably would have ended up with a picturesque cheesecake to present to my sister on her special day but I found myself deficient once again! I finished mixing the batter and poured it into a spring form pan. It filled the pan right up to the top, but I figured cheesecake wasn’t like cake or cookies and wouldn’t expand. Well it does, and it also explodes ….

Mandee, your pictures bring a smile to my face... thanks for sharing your disaster!  I love hearing other people's stories!  And I also intend on learning from your story.  When I do finally try my chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake, I will make sure my springform pan is big enough... and that I've read the recipe carefully!!  :)

What about you, friend?  Do you have any disasters or successes you'd like to share?  I would love to hear your stories, see your pictures, and include them on this blog!  Maybe that'd help me post a bit more often!!