It was my sweet neighbors birthday last week, so naturally I had to make something for her! Since she is my neighbor, she gets to try a lot of things so I had to rack my brain to figure out a dish I have not made for her. While thinking on it, it dawned on me that in the 5 plus years we have been neighbors, I have not made a cheesecake for them to try. Shame on me.
While there are lots of variations I have made and enjoy, there is something just so simple and so amazing about a straight up New York Cheesecake. A buttery graham cracker crust with a thick and rich cream cheese filling. I also prefer a really tall cheesecake. Perhaps I am compensating for my lack of height, or just really love a lot of cheesecake. To be honest, I am not much for the crust on pies or cakes, so I like a lot of the filling.
The great thing about a New York cheesecake, is it really is a blank slate. Perfect on its own, or amazing with fresh berries, chocolate sauce, etc. It really can be fantastic with any topping you choose. For those of you that also don’t love the crust, this recipe can easily be adapted and have the crust completely removed.
Happy Birthday, Hilary. Thank you for having a birthday so I could have a reason to make this cheesecake!
Recipe
10 whole graham crackers
6 tablespoons melted butter
1/3/ cup brown sugar
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4 packages of 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
5 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups sour cream, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 vanilla beans
1 teaspoons lemon juice
Crust
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
In a food processor, blend together your 10 graham crackers. This should come out to be about 1 1/2 cups of graham crackers. Put into a bowl and add the sugar and mix together. Add in your butter and stir until it looks like wet sand.
Pour into the bottom of your springform pan and press in. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Pull out and let cool while you make your filling, but leave your oven on to bake your cheesecake
Cheesecake filling
It is really important to make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature to make a really creamy filling. Otherwise, you will get a little lumpy cheesecake. No good!
In a large mixing bowl with your paddle attachment, blend together your cream cheese. Add one egg at a time, beating well in between each addition. Next, add in your sour cream. Mix in your sugar and cornstarch. You will want to slit your vanilla beans in half and scrape out your seeds. Add these into the mix along with the lemon juice. Mix well for about 2 minutes until everything is blended well.
You will want to wrap foil around the base of your springform pan to prevent any water from getting into your cheesecake. I like to double layer, just to be sure! Once you have done this, set your springform pan into a larger dish with high sides as you are going to add boiling water to bake your cake in a water bath.
Pour your cheesecake filling into your pan. Add boiling water about 1 inch up in your large pan. I find it easiest to put the whole thing in the oven first, then pour in your hot water so that it does not splash into your cheesecake.
Bake for 2 hours on 350 degrees. The cake should be a little jiggly when you pull it out. Immediately remove from the water bath and let cool about 1 hour. You will then want to put it in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours before you enjoy
a goose and a gangster 