New York Cheesecake

This goes great with berry sauce.

Ingredients

CRUST

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter for the pan
• 8 whole graham crackers (4 oz), broken into rough pieces and processed to fine, even crumbs (in food processor or blender)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

FILLING

• 5 8oz packages cream cheese at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice (or lime juice is fine)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 large egg yolks, plus 4 large eggs, at room temperature and lightly beaten

Directions

CRUST

1. Put oven rack in the lower-middle position and preheat oven to 325
2. Brush bottom and sides of 9-inch, non-stick springform pan with 1/2 tablespoons of the melted butter
3. Combine the graham cracker crumbs and sugar in bowl
4. add 5 tablespoons melted butter and toss w/fork until evenly moistened (save just 1/2 tablespoon of the butter for later)
5. Empty the crumbs into the springform pan and press evenly into pan bottom (a little thicker at the edges)
6. Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around the edges, 10 to 13 minutes
7. Cool on a wire rack while making the filling

FILLING

NOTE: Do NOT mix this at speeds over medium. You don't want any air bubbles in the mix or your final product will be mushy.

1. Increase oven temp to 500 degrees
2. In a mixer, beat the cream cheese at medium-low to break up and soften slightly, about 1 minute; you'll need to scrape off the beater and bowl once or twice to get it all soft
3. Careful: Before each of the next 6 steps, you need to scrape the beater and the bottom and sides of bowl well to ensure you end up with a smooth mixture
-scrape-
4. Add the salt and half the sugar; beat at medium-low until combined, about 1 minute
-scrape-
5. Beat in the remaining sugar until well combined, about 1 minute
-scrape-
6. Add the sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla, and beat at low speed until combined, about 1 minute
-scrape-
7. Add half the beaten eggs and mix at medium-low until combined, about 1 minute
-scrape-
8. Add the remaining eggs until combined, about 1 minute
9. Scrape down the bown and beater and look for any unmixed bits, and beat a little more if needed on low for 30 seconds

BUILDING THE CAKE

1. Brush the sides of the springform pan with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon melted butter
2. Set the springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet
3. Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake 10 minutes
4. Without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 200 degrees and continue to bake until the cake's internal temperature reaches 150 degrees (can check with an instant-read thermometer); about 1½ hours
5. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and run a paring knive between the cake and the pan sides; come back and do it again in 30 minutes - this ensures that the cooling process doesn't cause large cracks in the center of the cake
6. cool until barely warm, about 2 more hours
7. Run a paring knife between the cake and the pan sides once more
8. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours
9. Serve slices at room temperature

If you find your cake is cracking badly in the middle, try cooling on the counter longer before refridgeration. Also make sure to remember to butter the sides of your pan before adding the cheese mixture.

[back to recipes]