SAY CHEESE

It's even difficult to pinpoint a national cheesecake, as, for example, in the United States the type of cheesecake depends predominantly on the region that it has been made. A heavy textured New York cheesecake is a treat served with a drizzle of chocolate or strawberry sauce, yet it doesn't match a Philadelphia-style cheesecake for richness in flavour. A tangier variation with larger curds is the Pennsylvania cheesecake, made more in the Dutch style of farmer's cheese cakes.

British and French cheesecakes have a preference for using gelatine to bind the ingredients together in common, as often the cheese filling isn't baked but instead set. The British model of having a base of crushed biscuits has been copied throughout Australia and New Zealand, however the two latter countries have forged ahead with all sorts of creative additions to the cheese filling, including chocolate or white chocolate (and sometimes a combination of both), coffee, caramel, banoffee, or fruits.

Russian curd pie ( vatrushka ), made from tvorog or what is known throughout a lot of Europe as quark, is a typical element of traditional Russian cooking. Available throughout Russia, the standard of these pies may vary however from a pre-packaged snack available from a grocery store counter, to a sublime fine-dining dessert experience. Created more on a sweet-bread bun base, rather than a hard-packed crumbly biscuit base, these traditional favourites are easy to pack into gift baskets or picnic baskets, and are convenient as they often come in individual serving sizes.

Italian cheesecakes tend to favour the inclusion of ricotta or mascarpone, in a drier-style of cheesecake to the American versions. Honey, nuts, vanilla extract, and candied fruits are added for flavour.