Chef in Town: The recipe of the original American cheesecake

The New York cheesecake is one of the most loved cold desserts. It is made with a base of butter biscuits and a filling of cream with fresh cheese. It can be decorated and embellished with different ingredients such as berries – for the classic version – but also chocolate, caramel, grain, coconut flour, and much more. 

How to make the original American cheesecake: the recipe 

Ingredients: 

  • 300g of Digestive biscuits
  • 150g of melted butter
  • 500g of cream cheese 
  • 100g of sugar
  • one egg
  • 150g of low-fat yogurt without sugar
  • 150g of fresh cream 
  • one spoon of lemon juice
  • vanilla extract

For the frosting: 

  • 180g of fresh berries
  • 3 spoons of sugar

Making the American cheesecake

Firstly, you have to make the base of the cheesecake. All you need are Digestive biscuits and melted butter. Optionally, you can even use shortbread biscuits. The procedure to follow is very simple: after crumbling the biscuits, mix them with melted butter in a bowl. The mixture obtained must be soft and compact. Once it reaches the right consistency, you can proceed and spread it over a springform tin, covering both the bottom and the edge. 

How to make the cream 

To make the sour cream, pour fresh cream, yogurt, and well-filtered lemon juice into another bowl and mix everything. 

In another container, mix cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer. Then, add one egg and mix again. When the mixture gets creamy, add 170g of sour cream (keep aside the rest). After mixing the two creams, spread them with a paddle over the base of crumbled biscuits. 

How to cook the cake

Place the cake in a static and preheated oven at 165 degrees and cook it for one hour. Once you take it out of the oven, pour 3 spoons of leftover sour cream on the surface and put the cake in the fridge. After about 3 hours, do that procedure again and pour the rest of the sour cream on the cooled layer. At this point, the cake needs to cool for 10 hours in the fridge. 

How to decorate 

If you want to follow the traditional recipe to the letter, decorate the cake with berries frosting. To make it, you have to put berries with sugar on the fire and heat them for about 5 minutes. Then, blend them and sift the frosting to separate the seeds from the mixture. When the frosting gets cold in the fridge, you can spread it on the surface of the cheesecake and decorate it with fresh wild berries and strawberries. 

However, the decoration is the most creative part, so you can go wild with your favorite tastes and personalize your cheesecake. 

How to keep it

Keep the American cheesecake in the fridge for 3-5 days, but you can also freeze it. In this case, avoid putting the frosting and decorate the cake only when you serve it: in this way, you will keep its freshness. 



Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: Monna Caterina Wine Resort, the perfect place for unique relaxing moments.

Located in a medieval village, Monna Caterina Wine Resort is a place in which to immerse yourself completely and where it is possible to enjoy the beauty of nature, art, and good food. This ancient cottage, close to Vinci, offers a unique view, thanks to its position on the hill that allows you to admire a breathtaking landscape. In the fifteenth century, it was the home of Leonardo da Vinci’s mother, Caterina, and it was surrounded by a landscape of vineyards and olive groves: that same breathtaking scenery which we can see in the background of the famous “Gioconda”. The resort is in Vinci, in the heart of Tuscany, between Florence and Pisa, between the Montalbano hills and the Arno river. 



The rooms have furnishings between design and country style: on the one hand, characteristic features of the rural building, on the other hand, the integration of more contemporary “Leonardesque” furniture, with floating beds, colored and transparent elements, glass windows lighting up spaces, and attention to detail. 



But there’s more: the old resort produces its range of wines on-site in the Monna Caterina winery. The red wine has fruit notes of cherry and violets with a balsamic aftertaste; the white one has a lively taste with citrus notes. For wine lovers, the resort is perfect for walks to discover the flavors of the vineyards. Moreover, there is a tour to discover the olive groves: Monna Caterina also produces its olive oil 100% Made in Italy. 



It is a journey through Italian beauty in a magical place full of history, art, and culture, where it is possible to enjoy a unique experience discovering flavors and scents. 

Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: Simone Rugiati and his factory

Chef, TV host and influencer, Simone Rugiati managed to win us over immediately with his recipes. Lively, charismatic, and enterprising, the chef has created a creative Factory House, Food Loft Milano. We met him to discover the project up close.

How did your passion for food come about?

I have always been a big fan of cooking, ever since I was a child.

When I was young, my parents worked mornings and afternoons, with the consequence that they didn’t have the time to cook for me. My neighbor Gigliola, along with my grandmothers, took care of lunches, and I was always home with them. I remember that we would cook and play, and the fun activities would end by eating the dish we had prepared. I loved this magic of making, transforming, and eating.

I was very messy, curious, and lively, never sitting still, tasting, cooking, preparing, and eating. I was happy to see the main character, my grandmother, at the table. Without her, Sundays didn’t work: her cooking kept the whole family together (I still remember her saying: “buy the good stuff, that comes good”).

When I finished middle school, I enrolled in culinary school for hotel management.

How were you able to turn cooking into work?

After school, I started working around trying to stay in different places for a short time to gain more experience in the shortest time possible. However, I realized that being inside a restaurant was not enough for me: I wanted to invent, but above all, I missed being in contact with the raw material. When you work in a restaurant, you have to adapt: I needed to give space to my creativity. I started reading cookbooks, but even those seemed banal. Later, I went to work in Parma in a publishing house that produced culinary magazines. This editorial group has allowed me to observe starred restaurants and test the cuisine of great chefs.

In the meantime, I started taking pictures and got used to the cameras. At first, I was afraid of being on television because I thought I wasn’t up to it. Then I realized how important the world of communication and media was in my field.

My television career began with “Il Piatto forte” on Canale 5, hosted by Iva Zanicchi. That was followed by <<La Prova del Cuoco>>, with Antonella Clerici, not to forget the twelve years at <<Gambero Rosso>>.  Finally, I moved to <<La 7>> and <<Food Network>>.

Tell us about your project Food Loft Milano.

Food Loft Milano (https://www.foodloft.it/foodloft-milano) is an initiative of mine, a creative laboratory of excellence that makes consultations, catering, events, and productions.

I did not want to open a classic restaurant but a laboratory. This business allows me to provide all-around services that go beyond single dish preparation. In fact, with the studio, we can distribute real content, take photos and produce videos. I am happy with the context I have created: through a trusted videomaker, I have equipped myself with lights, lenses, and everything necessary to produce formats not only for the web but also for companies and television productions.

Our mission is to create an audio-video package for bands. Food loft was born seven years ago when I decided to stop always going around to create content: it was time to have a unique space all my own, with a single professional kitchen, versatile for any situation. That is an easily brandable base of operations, suitable for creating and catering service and all the various productions mentioned above. 

Any plans for the future?

We’re trying to work with increasingly sustainable companies that embrace the principles of the green attitude. These years more than ever have shown how fundamental it’s the environment, even in the kitchen. I continue to specialize in content production: the ultimate goal is to interface directly with clients, providing them with a complete package. Finally, I can’t deny that I would like to spend more time in Kenya, which has become my second home.

Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: MGC, the new lightest Mumm cuvée in the world

Essentiality: this is the aesthetic signature of the MGC cuvée, an acronym for Mumm Grand Cordon.

This is the value that marks our contemporary life.

Maison Mumm reconfirms its role as a pioneer and innovator with MGC, the new cuvée created from a sustainable perspective of 835 grams for a 1 liter of bubbles, the lightest champagne bottle in the world. Ross Lovegrove, an acclaimed and visionary Welsh designer, realizes MGC Mumm in recycled glass, therefore a hand to eco-sustainability. An avant-garde design makes it stylish, essential and expressive, which gives back to the artistic gesture its functional aspiration. No label: logo and gold emblem are directly hot printed on the glass. The unmistakable engraved Cordon Rouge identifies it: it is a red scratch, which instills grit and power telling the strength of pinot noir, Maison’s characteristic grape.

The bottle’s elegance can be noticed thanks to its elongated and slender neck: an aesthetic choice that adapts to the need for accompanying aroma. Finally, the careful passion for quality has determined the use of cork: Mitik Diam, which, among other things, avoids the annoying inconvenience of <>.

A curiosity. Maison Mumm believes so strongly in the urgency of an eco-sustainable perspective and the need to strive for the essential that it invented a new remuage program, adapted to the new MGC cuvée, in both form and content.

Ross Lovegrove

Ross Lovegrove is an artist and industrial designer. His style and designs are instantly recognizable, a mix of technology, material science, and organic intelligence. His work represents the new aesthetic of the 21st century.

Born in 1958 in Cardiff (Wales), Ross Lovegrove graduated with honors in Industrial Design from Manchester Polytechnic in 1980, and in 1983 received his Master of Design from the Royal College of Art in London.

Lovegrove has participated in some projects that have become true icons such as the Walkman for Sony and the Computers for Apple. He has worked on numerous projects for British Airways, Kartell, Cappellini, Hernes; Moroso, Artemide, Driade, Renault, Issey Miyake, Vitra, Tag Heuer, Herman Miller, Japan Airlines, and Toyo Ito Architects in Japan.

His work has been published in numerous magazines and exhibited in prestigious museums worldwide, such as the MOMA and the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Axis Centre in Japan, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, and the Design Museum in London.

MGC Mumm Grand Cordon

Pinot Noir, Maison’s signature grape, defines the personality of Mumm Grand Cordon. Representing 45% of the assemblage, it is the engine that offers power and structure in contrast to the freshness and elegance of the Chardonnay (30%). The softness and fruity notes of Pinot Meunier (25%), and reserve wines from five different vintages (up to 30%) are added to the whole, as a guarantee of consistency of style. 30 months of aging.

Refined bubbles of a brilliant straw yellow testify to the elegance and dynamics of the champagne.

Mumm Grand Cordon reveals aromas of yellow tropical fruits, including pineapple, vanilla, and caramel. The taste is round with a precise freshness which testifies the complexity of the wine. The finish is persistent but never sharp.

Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: “Belvedere Vodka,” the luxury vodka for tastings and star recipes.

Two Cocktails recipes to do at home perfect for Valentine’s Day

The most elegant angel of the cinema used to sip it with boredom, touching it with long satin gloves: yes, we are talking about Audrey Hepburn of <<Breakfast at Tiffany’s>> and the cocktail is the <<White Angel>> a mixture of vodka and gin in equal parts. You need a personality to drink it without hesitation, and the weird Holly had plenty of it to spare!

In <<The Blues Brothers>> during the concert at the Palace Hotel, surrounded by police, the boys perform, and the sheriff, played by John Candy, enjoys the show by ordering an <<Orange Whip>>, a mix of dry vodka, amber rum, orange juice, and cream. A show for the palate!

The <<Blonde Atomic>> played by Charlize Theron has launched the <<Lorraine vodka>> an anarchic drink in which add to the cup vodka and ice to taste! For true rebels!

And in the funniest season of the series of all time, <<Peaky Blinders>> a sparkling countess named Petrovna upsets the balance. She enters forcefully in the life of the protagonist, Thomas Shelby, involving him in parties to the sound of vodka and women of dubious morality.

In short, vodka wants to be heard in the cinema in addition to bars, changing tastes and preferences of lovers of fine drinks. But if until now the collective imagination has always remembered vodka as a distillate useful for mixing other ingredients, there is someone who changes its fate: Belvedere Vodka! The first brand in the world to introduce the concept of “terroir” in the world of vodka! It is a concept that fits well with the history of champagne but is new in the vodka distillate.

Belvedere Vodka has the appellative of <<Polska Vodka>>, similar to the DOC extended to wines. They use rye cultivated exclusively in Poland and spring water owned by Belvedere Vodka. They don’t use added sugars and additives.

What makes Belvedere Vodka, not a distillate like any other, odorless and tasteless, is the rye that gives a natural aroma to the liquid. It gives it an aftertaste of white pepper and vanilla, thanks to which it can be also be used as a tasting alcoholic beverage.

Lastly, the package is an elegant transparent bottle that allows seeing the distillate and the three-dimensional effect of the design: the Royal Palace from which it takes its name. Belvedere Vodka is defined as the luxury vodka to be sipped alone or to make your drinks precious.

1 – Miriam’s Cosmopolitan

It is Carrie Bradshaw’s favorite cocktail. In Sex and the City, she orders it at every party. 

The original recipe includes cranberry juice, the American cranberry, a classic vodka’s base, and lime juice.

Miriam’s Cosmopolitan revisited: 

Belvedere Vodka Pure 50ml 

Orange Liqueur 20ml 

Pink Grapefruit Juice 

Ice

Utensils:

1 Shaker (or jar) 

1 Jigger (or cup)

1 Citrus Squeezer (or hand squeezer)

1 Cutting board 

1 Knife 

1 Strainer

One spoon 

1 Potato peeler

Serving glass: Martini Cup

Procedure:

After arranging the station with all the ingredients, it is time to prepare the pink grapefruit juice: cut the grapefruit in half and, with a citrus squeezer, obtain the juice. 

Pour the ingredients into the shaker: first the fresh pink grapefruit juice, then the orange liqueur, and finally Belvedere Vodka. Now fill the shaker with ice, close it and shake vigorously. Pour the liquid into a martini glass previously cooled with a passage in the freezer and proceed with a double filtration (strainer of the shaker + strainer). As decoration, we can make a peel of pink grapefruit with a potato peeler and knife. 

Belvedere Vodka, made from rye, makes the drink with even more character.

2 – Belvedere Vodka Sour flavored with Basil

In the world of mixing, “sour” alludes to the use of a sweet part (sugar syrup) and an acid part (citrus). 

Curiosity: whisky made this type of drink famous, with the drink whisky sour. Today, any alcoholic base mixed with lime juice and sugar syrup is considered a <<Sour>>.

Here is the Vodka Sour version with Belvedere Vodka. 

Original Recipe: Vodka, lime juice, and sugar syrup.

Basil revisited: 

Belvedere Vodka 50ml 

Lime juice 15ml 

Homemade basil syrup

Fresh Basil

Ice

Utensils:

1 Shaker (or jar) 

1 Jigger (or cup)

1 Citrus squeezer

1 Cutting board 

1 Knife 

1 Colander 

1 Spoon 

Serving glass: Low Tumbler

Procedure:

After setting up the station with all the ingredients, prepare the fresh lime juice. Cut the lime in half, squeeze it and pour the liquid into the shaker together with the basil syrup and Belvedere Vodka. 

Fill the shaker with ice and shake vigorously for at least 10 seconds, then pour the liquid into a low tumbler, making a double filtration with a filter. Fill the glass with ice and garnish with a basil leaf.

Basil Syrup Preparation: 

1KG Sugar

500ml Water 

10/15 basil leaves

Procedure:

In a pot, bring the water to heat. As soon as the water begins to heat, pour in the sugar. Stir continuously to prevent the sugar from sticking to the pan. Bring to a boil. Let it boil for at least 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat. With the heat off, place the basil leaves in the pot and stir well to release all the flavors. Then remove the basil leaves once the syrup has cooled. 

Enjoy!

Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: Healthy Color

Whoever said that fast food is only junk has not yet discovered the revolutionary vision food of Healthy Color: the latest work of the multiplatinum singer Sfera Ebbasta, the footballer Andrea Petagna and the designer Marcelo Burlon.

Italy’s first Fast Healthy Food has been inaugurated in the heart of the capital, precisely in Via Leone IV 64 between the historic Rione Prati and the Vatican Walls. It has also conquered Milan in Via Della Moscova through a concentration of wellness and positive vibes.

The restaurant features bright colors, and the menu offers a wide selection of salmon, tuna, chicken curry, and fassona burgers. We can talk about delicious dishes and at the same time strictly healthy including wraps, salads, tartare and poke, to close with delicious pancakes and ice cream “0″ calories.

With an eye always turned to green and sustainability, the healthy fast food has launched an original line of eco-friendly disposable packaging and Healthy Water that is Healthy Color water packaged in fully recyclable Tetrapak with a high content of vegetable matter.

<<In a continually evolving society, it is never easy and obvious to feed correctly. Healthy Color is born from the desire to propose a valid alternative in the corner food scenario through a proposal that is as balanced and healthy as possible>> declare Sfera Ebbasta, Andrea Petagna, and Marcelo Burlon.

<<Taking care of oneself, of one’s own body, and loving one another are acts of fundamental importance in our daily actions, which also depend on our daily food choices as food is not a secondary element but a source of life and energy>>.

Healthy Color in Rome features pop walls created by street artists Motorefisico and the contemporary eye of architect Antonio Zonfrillo. The venue is open to the public in the afternoon, offers free wi-fi service and specialty drinks, including turmeric, beet, or spirulina colored cappuccinos, herbal teas, and centrifuges.

Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by

Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio

Chef in Town: Lemon Protein Cake recipe.

When talking about keeping in shape, the fork plays a key role. Especially today, in a partial on and off lockdown condition that requires us to stay at home, letting ourselves go in the kitchen is a strong temptation. However, you can indulge in a few whims thanks to a slight revisitation of the recipes more caloric.

It is essential to know the percentage of protein that meals contain. On the other hand, a high protein diet would be harmful to our organism. Food sources of protein come from animal origin’s food (meat, fish, eggs, milk, and dairy products), legumes, nuts, oilseeds, and cereals. Also, proteins with carbohydrates and fats constitute a macronutrient that is a category of substances whose intake must be regular and measured.

Cooking also means being creative and able to change (and in some cases distort) traditional recipes that apparently would seem rich in fat and sugar. The tricks to turn our favorite dish into a light snack are many: sometimes use gluten-free flour and add fresh fruit instead of maple syrup or replace the beef sauce with chicken sauce or classic béchamel sauce with Greek yogurt.



Lemon Protein Cake is a simple recipe made with healthy and natural ingredients; this cake is also perfect as a “hunger-breaker” to keep under control that sudden desire for food that we have, for example, while we enjoy a movie on the sofa.

Lemon Protein Cake

Quantity: 4 persons

Time: 40 minutes

Difficulty: medium/easy

Recommended meal: snack/dessert

Ingredients: 200g of oatmeal, 400g of egg white, 1 squeezed lemon, 100g of hazelnuts, 100g of lemon zest, 2-3 tablespoons of soy, 70g (1 scoop) of protein yogurt taste, 30g of fructose.

Preparation:

Combine half of the oat flakes in a bowl and then blend them to obtain a fine flour.

Squeeze a lemon and grate it (keep the peel). Chop the hazelnuts with a blender until they are crisp, not too thin pieces with a dusty texture. In a bowl, pour the oatmeal and flakes, lemon juice, fructose, lemon zest, proteins and mix all with the egg whites and hazelnuts. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180° C. Once you have a homogeneous mixture, pour it all in a cylindrical container (to give it the shape of a small cake), bake, and cook at 180° C for 30 minutes. Remove the cake and add the lemon peel and chopped hazelnuts to decorate.

LIFESTYLE TIPS

Few suggestions on fashion, food, beauty and music. Let’s discover the tips of Stefano Terzuolo, founder of Gum Salon  Milano.

”At night I often go toApollo Club Milano, cocktail bar, restaurant and discoclub, from the idea of Marcellina and Tiberio founders of “Rollover Milano”, where I feel in one of the famous SoHo house. 1000mq, 4 rooms in which you can live different experiences: Cocktail room to stop by for the happy hour, restaurant, Gaming room ( with ping-pong, flipper and videogames ) and the disco club, obviously.
I enjoy the intimate and private atmosphere, two feauture that you can really feel, even having an international space, thank you also to the classy dishes of the italian brazilian chef Bruno Cassio, that mixes tastes from all over the worl, a fusion kitchen between classical and modern flavors. My favorite dish? Squid and mashed pumpkin.”

” For lunch, anytime a need some exit eay from my usual busy day, I take some free time and go to EXIT.  The new project of Matias Perdomo, Thomas Piras and Simon Press: the very same succesful trio of Contraste. A typical milanese kiosk, that is now a Chiosco Gourmet with thirty seats. Luminous space, simple and chic mise en place,  with a block of Ceppo di Grè ( an ornamental stone used to build numerous palaces in Milan). The must try dish? THE EXIT EGG!

” My favorite stop for shopping, in Milan, is Groupies Vintage, in via Gian Giacomo Mora. Not just a simple vintage shop, but an ever-evolving place that does not follow trends but creates them. Born as a place to recycle old vintage clothing, you will find different items, mostly diveded in three categories:
-Vintage selected: selected clothes from the 50s to the 80s, from London and Berlin.
-Vintage recycled: an innovative line designed by Alice, who gives new life to old clothes, making them modern again.
-Kilo Vintage: a selection of items that you can buy and pay based on their weight.
My obsession? Vintage shirts. “

” My beauty moment has one name: Bahama Mama, few steps away from the Navigli area. A concept store, dedicated enturely to beauty, but also a vintage shop and a bar, a place where you can take care of your self while sipping on a smoothie or a tea. A modern and familiar place, with a vintage touch, given by the decorations and the 40s style uniform of the employess.”

Extra: the soundtrack AS YOU WERE, Liam Gallagher.

Beauty product: PURE-CASTILE LIQUID SOAP.

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