Today my very patient spouse turns 32. Young'un.

As I do every year, I'm trying a new cheesecake recipe in his honor. This year I've made one from Junior's Cheesecake Cookbook. Having never been to NYC and not really hanging out with lots of people in the know, I've never heard of Junior's but I snagged the cookbook off the new books shelf at the library and immediately fell in love.

I only make a few cheesecakes a year, but I definitely would love to own this book. Of course, I am a cookbook junkie, so I want to own almost every cookbook I get my hands on. The recipes in this cookbook are fairly easy to follow, which is not the same as easy or short. The instructions are well written and the variety of yummy cakes makes my mouth water.

I'm trying out their vanilla bean cake, which is a pretty standard cheesecake, judging by the recipe. The main difference is that it has a sponge cake crust, instead of the more typical kinds of cheesecake crusts. Thanks to the water bath, it did not crack while baking, which is something most of my cheesecakes do. It looks about as perfect as a cheesecake can get. The cake is aging in the refrigerator now. I hope it tastes as good as it looks.

By the way, use the "Look Inside" option on Amazon, to get a better feel for the cookbook and recipes, or go check it out from your library.