FORK, SPOON, LIFE

Grandma inspired Franklin woman's cheesecake business, and it took off quickly

Fork. Spoon. Life. Kay Cronin

Kristine M. Kierzek
Special to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Kay Cronin turned her love of baking cheesecakes into a business.

Kay Cronin grew up baking with her grandmother. Cakes were her grandmother’s specialty, what everyone requested. When she started baking on her own, Cronin became known for her cheesecakes. 

Eventually, she started getting requests from friends and family, and in 2017 she officially started selling as Drizzle Cheesecakes by Kay

Cronin, who lives in Franklin with her husband and works as a speech pathologist at a school in Racine, sells specialty cheesecakes and mini-cakes by special order only, through her Facebook page. Prices start at $12 for a half-dozen mini-cakes (minimum order).

Drizzle Cheesecakes by Kay launched last year.

Baked beginnings

My grandmother was a really, really good baker. She passed away a couple months ago, and that is where my roots were. People would ask my grandmother to bake things, and I’d be in the kitchen with her testing things. 

Once I went away to college, I just kept going with it. She did more cakes and pies, and I broke off with cheesecakes because I love them. It made sense to me. Make what you like, as you like them.

It was probably good that I did, because once I became an adult and we had family gatherings, I had something to bring and nobody could touch it. You can have everything else, but the cheesecake thing is mine. 

Her style

My cheesecakes are all baked and refrigerated. I don’t do the no-bake. They’re all baked from scratch. I play with different kinds of flavors. Most are fruit flavors and sweeter and fruity.

I don’t have as many savory kinds, but people are starting to ask me about chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. The closest I get is a turtle or an Oreo-type of flavor, but I’m starting to play with more than that. 

This Oreo-topped mini cheesecake is artfully presented.

What’s in a name

I’m always working with different kinds of drizzle, the strawberry, lemon and raspberry, then caramel and chocolate, so I thought it was a cool name. I not only do that for the cakes, I can do the drizzles by the bottle. Sometimes we just like to do a plain (cheesecake) and have different types of sauce or drizzle to go on top.

Baking to business

The jump happened really fast. Literally, it was overnight, and it pushed me out of my comfort zone. I was just doing this because it makes me happy, they taste good. Then a friend asked me to make something for a party. Sure. It kind of spiraled from there.

Social media helped boost it. When I got really fancy, I’d take pictures and put it on Instagram. People talking and tasting helps. As it is starting to grow, people are asking me to do more events. I am in the process of getting a commercial kitchen.

Drizzle Cheesecakes come in all shapes and flavors.

The art of cheesecake

I really pride myself on being able to make a flawless cake. I don’t use a water bath. That’s the thing that is pushed so much on cheesecakes if you want them to work. But I don’t use them. I had a terrible experience with that, so I don’t.

I didn’t go to any type of culinary school. I have never taken a decorating class. I am self-taught.

Failures and flops

I am a perfectionist for sure. I want it to be right the first time. I have had instances where I have had to scrap the whole thing. Nope, I baked the crust, and it smells like I left it in there two minutes too long. You learn from failures, because that gets to be expensive.

Signature style

I will do a lot with fresh whip and I like to do rosettes on top of the cake. … But really it depends. My most popular is the strawberry swirl, and what’s becoming really popular are the minis.

Mini cheesecakes are especially popular these days.

People like the minis because they want variety. I can do a box of minis and put three different flavors in there…. Then there is usually some drizzle on it, under it or swirled in the batter. 

Fork. Spoon. Life. explores the everyday relationship that local notables (within the food community and without) have with food. To suggest future personalities to profile, email nstohs@journalsentinel.com.