I see you cook your cheesecakes in a water bath. Good on you! My wife is a cheesecake goddess (making them), and that water bath is one of the most important "tricks of the trade." Looks mighty tasty.
2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1 cup and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided 1 stick melted butter 3 8oz packages of cream cheese 5 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 1 tbs lemon juice 1 cup heavy cream Preheat oven to 350 degrees Use an 8" Springform Pan Crust _________ Also ready a pan that the springform pancan sit into. You will use this as a water bath when cooking your cheesecake. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, 2 tbs of sugar, and 1 stick melted butter togther and then press into the bottom and 3/4 up the side of a springform pan. Place this pan into the larger pan and set aside. Cheesecake filling _________________ IN a mixer (I use a kitchen aid on 3/4 speed) Beat the cream cheese for a minimum of 3 minutes; add the 1 cup sugar and beat this mixture until it is light and creamy (stop and scrape sides occasionally). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating at medium speed after each one is added. Increase the speed of the mixer to high and let this mix while you add the lemon juice and vanilla to your cream mixture. On low speed of the mixer, carefully add the 1 cup heavy cream and mix well at medium speed. As before, frequently scrape down the sides so that the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture into the prepared springform pan. Place the 2 pans into the oven on the middle rack, and fill the larger, outside pan with hot water until it is about half way up the sides of your cheesecake pan. Bake this until it is golden brown and the edges are firm to about 1 inch in on the pan, check it at about 40 to 45 minutes, mine took 60 to 65 to fully brown. Turn off the oven, crack the door open, but leave the cheesecake in the two pans inside the oven until they are cool enough to touch. During this time, the remaining part of the cheesecake will firm up so that it does not “jiggle” when the pan is moved. There should be no wet spots or liquid areas in the center of the cheesecake. Remember that a cheesecake continues to cook when it is removed from the oven. Remove from oven and cool completely, at least 2 hours before topping. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Raspberry topping recipe to follow. The Raspberry topping make this go from great to freaking awesome.
1, 8 oz package of frozen Raspberries 3 tbs Sugar 2 tbs cornstarch Put the frozen raspberries in a sauce pan, heat and stir until they are warm and liquid Add the sugar and turn up to about med high and mix thoroughly until you just have the liquid and seeds Take off burner and strain the liquid from the seeds Return to rinsed sauce pan In a separate bowl mix cornstarch thoroughly with 2 tbs of water Turn up the raspberries in pan to med high stirring constantly, once hot add the cornstarch/water mix one tbs at a time while stiring constantly, once the mixture has thickened take it off heat and set it aside until the cheese cake is completely cooled Take cheesecake out of the springform pan but leave it on the bottom piece of the pan Cover the top of the cheesecake with the raspberries.
I actually have a cake in the oven right now, but it's not CHEESECAKE. After yesterday's wind storm, the power was out over 22 hours so I 1) showered, 2) ran dishwasher and 3) baked a cake.