TALL AND CREAMY CHEESECAKE

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Tall and Creamy Cheesecake image

Not really a New York cheesecake - there's no lemon (although there could be) - this is an all-American cheesecake of the big, beautiful, lush and creamy variety, the kind that causes gasps of delight when you bring it to the table and sighs of satisfaction when you and your guests savor bite after bite. It's also a cheesecake you can customize. You can make the cake milder or tangier by using all heavy cream or all sour cream, or a combination of the two. You can add fruits or nuts, swirls of chocolate or drops of extract.

Provided by Emily Weinstein

Categories     dessert

Time 7h30m

Yield 16 servings

Number Of Ingredients 10

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
2 pounds (four 8-ounce boxes) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups sour cream or heavy cream, or a combination of the two

Steps:

  • To make the crust: Butter a 9-inch springform pan - choose one that has sides that are 2 3/4 inches high (if the sides are lower, you will have cheesecake batter left over) - and wrap the bottom of the pan in a double layer of aluminum foil.
  • Stir the crumbs, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. (I do this with my fingers.) Turn the ingredients into the springform pan and use your fingers to pat an even layer of crumbs along the bottom of the pan and about halfway up the sides. Don't worry if the sides are not perfectly even or if the crumbs reach above or below the midway point on the sides. Put the pan in the freezer while you preheat the over. (The crust can be covered and frozen for up to 2 months.)
  • Center a rack in the over, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place the springform on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack while you make the cheesecake.
  • Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
  • To make the cheesecake: Put a kettle of water on to boil.
  • Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until it is soft and creamy, about 4 minutes. With the mixer running, add the sugar and salt and continue to beat for another 4 minutes or so, until the cream cheese is light. Beat in the vanilla. Add the eggs, one by one, beating for 1 full minute after each addition - you want a well-aerated batter. Reduce the mixer speed to low and stir in the sour cream and/or heavy cream.
  • Put the foil-wrapped springform pan in a roasting pan that is large enough to hold the pan with some space around it.
  • Give the batter a few stirs with a rubber spatula, just to make sure that nothing has been left unmixed at the bottom of the bowl, and scrape the batter into the springform pan. The batter will reach the rim of the pan. (If you have a pan with lower sides and have leftover batter, you can bake the batter in a buttered ramekin or small soufflĂ© mold.) Put the roasting pan in the oven and pour enough boiling water into the roaster to come halfway up the sides of the springform pan.
  • Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour 30 minutes, at which point the top will be browned (and perhaps cracked) and may have risen just a little above the rim of the pan. Turn off the oven's heat and prop the oven door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecake to luxuriate in its water bath for another hour.
  • After 1 hour, carefully pull the setup out of the oven, lift the springform pan out of the roaster - be careful, there may be some hot water in the aluminum foil - and remove the foil. Let the cheesecake come to room temperature on a cooling rack.
  • When the cake is cool, cover the top lightly and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, although overnight is better.
  • At serving time, remove the sides of the springform pan - you can use a hairdryer to do this - and set the cake on a serving platter.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 378, UnsaturatedFat 10 grams, Carbohydrate 26 grams, Fat 29 grams, Fiber 0 grams, Protein 6 grams, SaturatedFat 16 grams, Sodium 276 milligrams, Sugar 22 grams, TransFat 0 grams

uttam paudel
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This cheesecake was a bit too sweet for my taste, but the texture was perfect. I would recommend using less sugar next time.


izi king
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This cheesecake was a bit too dense for my taste, but the flavor was good. I would recommend using a different crust next time.


Shuraim Yaseen
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I'm not a big fan of cheesecake, but this one was really good. It was light and fluffy, and the flavor was perfect. I would definitely recommend this cheesecake to anyone.


Zulfiqur Ali
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This was the best cheesecake I have ever had! It was so creamy and flavorful. I used a blueberry graham cracker crust and it was the perfect combination. I will definitely be making this again and again.


Mian Anus
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This cheesecake was amazing! I made it for a party and it was a huge hit. Everyone loved it. I used a vanilla wafer crust and it was the perfect complement to the cheesecake. I will definitely be making this again.


Md Toufik Islam
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I made this cheesecake for my family and they loved it! It was so creamy and delicious. I used a chocolate graham cracker crust and it was the perfect combination. I will definitely be making this again.


Christian Hooper
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This cheesecake was so delicious and easy to make! I used a graham cracker crust and it turned out perfect. The cheesecake was creamy and had a great flavor. I will definitely be making this again.