Cheesecake is one of the most common and popular desserts in the world today. It is also one of the oldest made from a dairy product other than milk. Cheesecakes can be made of ricotta cheese, havarti, quark, or more usually, cream cheese. Other ingredients such as sugar, eggs, cream and fruit are often mixed in, too. This is the reason why there are so many types of cheesecakes because the number of recipes you can come up with are virtually unlimited. New York cheesecake is cheesecake that is as pure as it gets with no fancy ingredients added either to the cheesecake or placed on top of it. It is made with pure cream cheese, cream, eggs, and sugar. Everybody has his or her own ideas and visions of New York Style Cheesecake. If you ask New Yorkers, only the great cheesecake makers are located in New York, and the only people who really know what a good cheesecake is are also in New York.

In the 1900s, cheesecakes were all the rage in New York. Every restaurant had their special recipe. The actual name “New York Cheesecake” came from the fact that New Yorkers referred to the cheesecakes made in New York as “New York Cheesecake.” If you’re a New Yorker, your motto is that “If it’s not a cheesecake made in New York, then it’s not a cheesecake.” There are probably many who will disagree with that. In 1929, a gentleman by the name of Arnold Reuben, owner of the legendary Turf Restaurant at 49th and Broadway in New York City, claimed that his family developed the first cream -cheese cake recipe. While there is no actual proof that this is true, nobody has stepped forward as of yet to refute that claim. All the other bakeries used cottage cheese. The legend of cream cheese cake goes something like this.

Reuben was served a cheese pie in a private home and he just fell in love with the dessert. He used the recipe for the pie and some ingredients that he provided and began to work on his own recipe for the perfect cream cheese cake. In time, he began to serve this cake at his restaurant at 49th and Broadway. In no time this cheesecake became popular with everyone who went to his restaurant and eventually word of this wonderful dessert spread all over New York. Well, at least that’s what the legend says. But how is it that we were even able to make a cake out of cream cheese? Well, to answer that question you have to go back to the year 1872. American dairymen made an amazing breakthrough that brought about the Modern Age of cheesecakes. In attempting to duplicate the popular Neufchatel cheese of France, they came up with a formula for an un-ripened cheese that was even richer and creamier. They decided on the name, cream cheese. The method for producing cream cheese was actually discovered by William Lawrence of Chester, New York.

It wasn’t until 1880 however, that the biggest manufacturer of cream cheese ever, Kraft, got into the business of producing what was called Philadelphia Brand Cream Cheese for a distributor in New York by the name of Reynolds. In 1912, James Kraft came up with a method to pasteurize cream cheese and soon after that other manufacturers began to make dairy products with this new kind of cream cheese, including cheesecake. Wherever the New York cheesecake recipe came from, and whatever person or family we have to thank for it, it has become a landmark on our culinary landscape and one of the cornerstones of what we now call American cuisine.

Do you want to make your home beautiful and comfortable? Choosing the right roofing materials for your home will give you the aforesaid dual benefits in terms of appearance and asylum. It is considered that roofing materials are important in energy conversion, comfort, and the appearance of your home. Most people do not  realize that Michigan is one of the most aggressive areas when it comes to roofing technology. Part of the reason may be the temperature and weather extremes in Michigan. If something works in Michigan roofing, it works everywhere else. That may be why Michigan was the site for the first rubber roof installation way back in 1980. That roof is still going strong nearly 30 years later, and rubber roofs are becoming more popular all over the United States.

One of the best sources of information for roofs in Michigan is the MRCA or Michigan Roofing Contractors Association. This groups includes numerous chapters which are the ARCWM, Associated Roofing Contractors of Western Michigan; the Flint PRO, Professional Roofing Organization; JLWRCA, Jackson, Livingston, Washtenaw Roofing Contractors Association; LRCA, Lansing Roofing Contractors Association; RIPF, Roofing Industry Promotion Fund; SVRCA, Saginaw Valley Roofing Contractor Association; and the SMRCA, Southeastern Michigan Roofing Contractors Association. The MRCA lists the relevant contractors and consultants, has information on roofing, and holds yearly meetings to keep its members updated on the latest techniques and technologies.

Michigan is one of the leading areas when it comes to the use of metal roofing materials. This includes not only the older tin barn style, but the newer styles that mimic the look of other materials. Michigan’s cold, snow filled winters and hot summers test not only the shrinking and expanding ability of metal roofs, but their ability to shed water and snow. But never walk barefoot on it. Hansons is a Michigan roofing company that prides itself on treating customers as family. Hansons not only honors the manufacturer warranties on all its product, they add their own additional warranties. Hansons’s extra warranties include a 10 year guarantee all the way up to a 30 year fully transferable guarantee.

Green roofing is becoming a more popular subject, and Michigan State University leads the way in this research. The idea is growing plants on a roof to replace the plants destroyed by the building’s footprint. Soil, plants and even trees are elements of green roofing. Research continues to determine the benefit to the environment, to a roof and a structure, and any negative impact it may have on a structure. When looking for a roofing company, make sure that it is a member of a professional contractors organization. Because such contractors are under a lot of pressure to make their organizations look good, they will most likely have higher standards in terms of work ethics and roofing quality. Make sure that they have a good work history: look at the their websites to access past jobs that they have previously undertaken, or ask for the list by e-mailing for more information.