Each year, Eli’s Cheesecake creates a giant cheesecake for the Taste of Chicago food festival. This year, there will be a special twist as the cheesecake will be topped with a massive pie.
The 1,000 pound cheesecake is made from an impressive amount of ingredients. Among those is 450 pounds of cream cheese, 65 pounds of eggs, 2 pounds of vanilla, 70 pounds of sugar, 50 pounds of sour cream, 100 pounds of Eli’s special shortbread cookie crust, 25 pounds of bittersweet chocolate chips, 100 pounds of cookie dough, 100 pounds of buttercream icing, and 25 pounds of cherry glaze.
The special cheesecake will be sliced and served for free to anyone who stops by the Eli’s tent at the festival.
“It generally takes about an hour to serve up the entire big cake,” Maureen Schulman, director of public relations for Eli’s Cheesecake tells The Chicago Sun-Times. “People love having a piece of the big cake. It’s really a special day for us and for everyone who stops by.”
The Taste of Chicago is an outdoor food festival showcasing the diversity of Chicago's dining community. It has taken place every summer since 1980 at Chicago’s Grant Park, and this year takes place July 11-15.