Originally posted by: destrekor
Originally posted by: sandorski
Originally posted by: Inspector Jihad
Originally posted by: Crono
Originally posted by: loki8481
Originally posted by: Crono
IF it has a crust, it is a pie. That, sir, is a cake. This (delicious) dessert should switch designations with the cheescake.
Henceforth, cheesecake is cheesepie (or full name of Cheese Custard Pie)
and
Boston cream pie is Boston cream cake
Thus declares the Royal Dessert Magistrate.
cheesecake doesn't necessarily have a crust, though
A cheesecake without crust is just custard. I don't consider no-crust cheesecake to be true cheesecake.
wtf?
Welcome to the warped mind of the "Cheesecake is Pie" horde! This kind of thinking will be the Doom of us all!
?
Boston Creme Pie, as made according to the images in the OP, is a cake, for it uses light, airy flour-based cakes with filling. Numerous cakes use this exact same style, just the difference is Boston Creme Pies tend to be smaller than similar cakes.
Cheesecake, is a pie by all definitions as it is a pie-style tart. While not technically a custard, it is basically a custard filling, an egg and dairy mixture. Custard by definition is with milk, though cheese is a milk-product so you can give a little leeway here. I technically wouldn't consider it custard, but custard-like.
So, we have defined it is a cheese-based product, with a custard-like filling. Most cheesecake varieties, specifically most of the traditional American and European recipes, are flour-less. Also, they are open-topped, and use a pastry/pastry-like 'crust', which is the definition of a tart.
Cliffs for the lazy:
Cheesecake is a tart
Custard-LIKE filling
Traditional American and European recipes are flour-less
For the point:
Cheesecake is a pie.
Debate over. All you people clamoring to the cheesecake is a cake argument are stubborn just because the name has the word 'cake' in it. Boohoo. As a dessert, it is a pie. When it was invented, the word cake was probably used for everything of the sort, and they probably didn't think there would be definition nazis in the future crying over it being a cake or a pie.
Shut up, it's over, cheesecake is a pie.

Boston Creme Pie would technically be a cake if made the way shown in the OP, although I thought it could be made like tart-style as well. Hmm.