How to make a very good cheesecake:
For the batter:
4 bricks of cream cheese, room temperature
4 eggs, also room temperature
From here, all measurements are approximate and to taste~
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup whole plain Greek yogurt
2 tsp lemon (or lime) juice
2 tsp ginger juice (not crucial, but makes a good secret ingredient)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
For the crust:
1 sleeve of cinnamon graham crackers
Approximately the same amount of vanilla wafers
(crumbs can be substituted with pretty much any kind of dry cookie, per taste)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 stick of butter (possibly the whole stick, as needed)
- You need a springform pan, as well as a cake pan big enough for it to fit inside with some water. I also recommend parchment paper. Cut a square of it big enough to cover the bottom of the springform pan, then open it up and pinch it in there so that the paper is taut along the bottom of the pan and the corners stick out from the sides. Don't trim them off, as you will need those later for grabbing purposes. I also take cold butter and run it around the inside of the pan, then cut strips of parchment paper to fit. The butter helps hold it in place. I then spray the parchment paper lightly with cooking spray, although this may or may not be necessary. I think it mostly just adds to the color, but it might also help with the crust...
- Prepare the crust: grind up a sleeve of cinnamon graham crackers plus roughly the same volume of vanilla wafers, then add about a teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Mix the dry ingredients in a metal or glass bowl. Melt 2/3 stick (give or take) of butter in the microwave. Cover with a coffee filter in case of explosions. Add a teaspoon or so of vanilla extract to the melted butter. I like the Mexican stuff for things like this. It's got a buttery flavor of its own. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Mix with a fork until it is all the same color, darkened by the liquid. If you didn't start with the whole stick of melted butter at the beginning, this might be where you add the rest. It should form clumps, absent of loose crumbs...
- Empty the contents of the bowl into the springform pan. Use a silicone spatula to scrape the bowl and press down on the crust until it is solid. Wrap the outside bottom of the pan in aluminum foil, then put in the fridge until everything else is ready...
- Add about an inch of water to the rectangular cake pan. Put it in the oven. Preheat it to 450 degrees Fahrenheit...
- Batter up. In a stand mixer (or similar means - a big enough food processor also works), whip the bricks of cream cheese until it is no longer chunky, then gradually add the sugar. Once the sugar is incorporated, add the yogurt. Then add the vanilla extract, followed by the lemon/lime juice and the ginger juice. Blend until fluffy. Stop the mixer. Taste test. Does it need more of any of those things? Now is the time to figure that out, before you add the eggs...
- The eggs should be beaten in a metal or glass bowl until uniform in color and slightly increased in volume. Taste the batter one more time before you add the eggs, as that is officially the point of no return (unless you want to risk salmonella). Take the bowl out of the stand mixer, then gradually fold in the eggs with the spatula. The key is to not lose any of the air that is trapped in the batter. Keep doing this until you no longer see yellow (otherwise it might taste like scrambled eggs). Be sure to scrape the bowl as you slowly stir it in. Once it is all even and smooth, take the crust out of the fridge and pour the batter on top of it. Scrape the last of the batter out of the bowl and then use the spatula to even out the top of the cheesecake, if necessary...
- Inside the oven, the water in the pan should be boiling. As such, when you are ready to open the oven door, watch out for the steam. It could burn you if you are not careful. In my experience, it is also a little tricky to pull out the oven rack without making the water splash everywhere. Meanwhile, you don't want to lose a lot of heat by having the oven door open. On the bright side, this is probably the only dangerous step in making cheesecake. Once the springform pan is gently placed in the water bath, close the oven and set a timer for 12 minutes...
- At 12 minutes, do not open the oven. Turn it down to 350 and set another timer for 45 minutes. Walk away. Do something that you enjoy, but don't forget about the timer...
- At 45 minutes, the top should be starting to get some color. If so, then you can finally open the oven. As delicately as possible, take the cheesecake out of the water bath and unwrap the foil. Remove the water bath from the oven as well, then put the cheesecake back into the oven without the foil for another ten minutes or so. If you think the top is starting to get too dark, you can always turn it down to 325 or so for this last bit...
- When that last ten minutes is up, shut off the oven. Open the oven door a crack, but leave the cheesecake there for now. In five minutes, you might want to open the door a little wider, then take it out in another five. The idea is for it to cool off gradually. It is going to deflate somewhat, but if it does so slowly, then it is less likely to crack. Once it is out of the oven, put it on a cooling rack. Do not open the springform pan. This is very important. Leave it on the cooling rack until the pan is room temperature. At that point, again, without opening the pan, move it to a cake holder that will fit in the refrigerator. Basically, it needs to be left in the pan until it has completely cooled and set. I recommend putting it in the refrigerator (always covered, unless you want it to absorb other random flavors from the depths of your fridge) for between 12-24 hours before taking the next step...
- Good news: you finally get to open the springform pan and see if the dessert maintains its shape. If you were patient enough and followed directions, it should be good. Otherwise I blame witchcraft. Slowly and carefully remove the expanded outside ring of the pan. Take off the parchment paper on the sides as well...
- This next step requires some rudimentary ninja skills. At the very least, you should have cold, dry hands and be able to do it relatively quickly. This is where you take the cheesecake out of the bottom of the pan and remove the parchment paper. First, you grab it by opposite corners and lift it out of the pan and into the cake holder. Then you roll the parchment paper from under it until you can quickly but delicately lift the cheesecake with your (cold, dry) hand to remove the rest...
- Then put it back in the fridge until you are ready to eat it or add a topping. Go back to that activity that you enjoy for a little while. The thing about cheesecake is that it actually tastes better on day three or four than it would have on those first couple of days, as the flavors continue to meld. So if you've got time, then you might as well wait. Baking cheesecake can be an exercise in patience...
- If you are making a fruit topping, here is a bonus recipe: take some fresh or frozen berries (if fresh, you may want to set some aside to be added later), cook them over low to medium heat in a saucepan with about 1/4 cup of water. Once they start to soften, mash it with a fork. Stir. Add some white sugar, between 1/3-1/2 cup. Add about 2 tsp of lime juice and 2 tsp of vanilla. Ginger juice can be a good secret ingredient here, too. A little bit of honey and cinnamon can also add a nice touch. In a small bowl, take about 2 tsp of corn starch and mix it with about 1/4 cup of of cold water to make a slurry. Mix with a fork until the consistency is uniform, then dump it into the berry mixture. Stir constantly as it thickens. You may also want to add a few drops of food coloring, but this is entirely optional. Remove from heat. You may need to stir occasionally as it continues to cool and thicken. After a few minutes, transfer to a container that seals. If using sliced/fresh berries, you probably want to add them to the topping now, unless you want them on top of the glaze. Store topping in refrigerator until it has cooled completely, at which point it might be added to the cheesecake...
- You may also want to add whipped cream, which is just heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract...
Enjoy and share.
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