The major ingredients in almost all plain cheesecakes are cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, egg yolks, whole eggs, and either heavy cream or sour cream. The ratios of these ingredients determine the final taste (tangy or sweet) and texture (dense or fluffy).
My recipe starts with a quick preparation of the crust. Assemble 4 ounces of graham crackers, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, and 4 tablespoons of melted butter. 
Break the graham crackers into small pieces and place into a food processor.
Pulse the food processor until the graham crackers have been reduced to fine pieces (about 10 one second pulses). (The crackers can also be broken by placing them into a large resealable plastic bag and crushed by rolling a pin over the bag.) Then, in a medium bowl, mix the sugar and butter with the crackers until all the crackers take on a wet appearance.
Melt one tablespoon of butter and use half of it to butter the bottom of a 10 in. springform pan. Then, pour the graham cracker mixture into the pan. Use a flat bottomed cup to press the cracker crumbs down into an even layer.
Use a flatware teaspoon to press in the outer circumference of the crust.
Bake the crust for about twelve minutes at 325°F.
Once the crust has become fragrant and turned a golden brown, remove it from the oven to cool on a wire rack. When the crust has cooled, use the remaining half tablespoon of butter to butter the sides.
While baking the crust and letting it cool, assemble and prepare the filling: 2-1/2 pounds cream cheese (at room temperature), 1/2 cup heavy cream, 1-3/4 cup sugar, 1/8 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. lemon juice, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 2 large egg yolks, and 6 large eggs.
Cut the cream cheese into small chunks and place the pieces into work bowl of a standing mixer. Beat the cheese on low until smooth, about two or three minutes. It may be easier to beat half the cream cheese first, followed by the second half. Once the cheese is smooth, add the salt and about a third of the sugar. Beat until integrated and scrape down the sides. Add another third of the sugar and continue to mix until the sugar is mixed in. Then add the final third of sugar and mix in. Optionally, three tablespoons of flour can be added with the sugar to help add a bit of stability to the cake. Adding flour will not affect the taste or texture of the cake, but will reduce the likelihood of a cracked cake. Add the lemon juice and vanilla extract and mix.
Scrape the sides down and add the heavy cream. The cheese should be much easier to work with at this point.
Add the egg yolks and mix until they are blended in.
Now add three whole eggs and mix until the eggs have been completely mixed into the filling. Scrape down the sides and beat in the final three eggs. Now, pour the filling into the springform pan onto the cooled crust. A 10-inch pan should fill up to almost its rim with this filling. Lift the pan an inch or two above your counter or cutting board and drop it to bring any bubbles trapped inside to the surface. Place the springform pan onto a sheetpan (for easy handling and safety), and slide into the middle of an oven preheated to 500°F.
After ten minutes, reduce the temperature to 200°F and allow the cheesecake to bake as the oven gradually reduces temperature (do not open the oven door). Bake the cheesecake until the center of the cake registers as 150°F (making sure it does not exceed 160°F), about 1 hour and 40 minutes. Feel free to use an instant read thermometer in the center of the cake - a slight blemish is worth a perfect cake. Note: When baking the example cheesecake, I kept the cake at 500°F for only five minutes (thinking that the pizza stone would keep the temperature higher for longer). Notice that the edges of the cake had begun to brown, but the whole surface of the cake is still a light shade. This cake resulted in the texture of a New York style cheesecake, but failed to achieve the look. Remember to keep baking at 500°F for the full ten minutes. (Some recipes even call for fifteen minutes, but I generally use ten.)Related Articles
Remove the cake from the refrigerator about thirty minutes before serving and slice with a sharp knife. Use a tall glass of warm water to dunk the knife into between cuts to make slicing easier. The strawberry glaze from the Strawberry Glazed Angel Food Cake works well with this cheesecake.Plain New York Style Cheesecake (serves twelve)
Graham cracker crust
| Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C) | ||||
| 4 oz. (110 g) graham crackers | process to crumbs | mix | form in 10-in. springform pan | bake 325°F (160°C) 12 min. |
| 4 Tbs. (55 g) butter | melt | |||
| 1 Tbs. (12 g) sugar | ||||
Cheesecake
| Preheat oven to 500°F (260°C) | |||||||||
| 2-1/2 lb. (1.1 kg) cream cheese | mix until smooth | mix | mix in thirds | mix | mix | mix | mix in halves | bake 500°F (260°C) 10 min. | bake 200°F (93°C) 100 min. until 150°F (65°C) |
| 1/8 tsp. (1 g) salt | |||||||||
| 1-3/4 cup (350 g) sugar | |||||||||
| 3 Tbs. (23 g) all-purpose flour (optional) | |||||||||
| 2 tsp. (10 mL) lemon juice | |||||||||
| 1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla extract | |||||||||
| 1/2 cup (120 mL) heavy cream | |||||||||
| 2 large (34 g) egg yolks | |||||||||
| 6 large (300 g) eggs | |||||||||
| 1 graham cracker crust | |||||||||
Related Articles
I have read in numerous places that you need to be careful not to overbeat a cheesecake batter. I've never had a problem with the top cracking, so I suppose I must not be overbeating it. Or is there actually no basis in that advice? If there is, what is it? Why would overbeating cause the top to crack?
As I understand the potential problems while making a cheesecake, overbeating does not contribute directly to a cracks forming on the surface of the cheesecake. However, overbeating could introduce air bubbles into the batter. If these air bubbles are around while baking, then the bubbles could expand causing the cheesecake to rise. Then, the bubbles will burst (because a cheesecake has very little in terms of structural support - no flour) and the cake will fall. The solution? Use low speeds on your mixer and help the air bubbles rise by lightly dropping the cake before baking. A popular "trick" is to run a knife in a multiple 'S' pattern through the batter after it's been poured to help release air bubbles.
Cracking occurs for a variety of reasons. The three most likely reasons on a cake this size is rapid cooling and under or overcooking of the filling. A cracked cheesecake does not affect taste, but it might be an indicator of texture. The cheesecake shrinks a little when cooled. When cooled rapidly, the cake may not change shape uniformly resulting in a fissure forming through the middle of the top of the cake. It's best to cool it slowly in a warm, moist place. Some recipes suggest cooling in the oven (after it's been turned off), but this takes a really long time and may not be perfectly safe since the cake is kept in the bacterial danger zone for many hours.
If the middle of the cake is not fully cooked, then it might also crack during cooling. Using an instant read thermometer ensures the center of the cake will cook enough to coagulate the eggs while not overcooking. In addition, adding 3 Tbs. all-purpose flour to the recipe (mix in with the sugar) will help bind the cake without a noticable change in texture or flavor. In fact, now that I'm thinking about it, we should include this 3 Tbs. flour whenever we can. I'll add it to the recipe.
The last way I'd expect cracks to form is in the oven. If the center of the cake completely solidifies, the surface will start to crack as more and more liquid evaporates. This used to be a sign that the cheesecake was done, but in fact the interior is a bit overdone. Also, you'll have an unsightly top to your cheesecake. Many of these cracking issues can be avoided by baking in a water bath, but then it wouldn't be New York style anymore.
The table is correct. Please bake the cheesecake at 200°F for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
There's no such thing outside the US, at least not where I live. From the image I'd say they look more like biscuits than regular crackers (as in cheese & crackers). What would you advise as a substitute?
If graham crackers are unavailable, you can try:
vanilla or chocolate wafers
amaretti biscuits
ginger snaps
zwieback
Don't forgot to make crumbs out of these cookies and crackers... Have fun.
In my experience, cracking occurs when the cake spends too much time baking at too high a temperature, but that doesn't necessarily mean the interior is overdone. I've done tests keeping the oven at an even 300-350 for the whole baking time, and the cakes cracked like the devil even though the final color and texture were good. The problem lies in the fact that the filling doesn't cook uniformly.
Solidity starts at the outer surfaces, then works its way in. Cracks occur when the solid layer at the top is about 1cm thick and the filling has puffed enough that the surface is fully domed. Basically, the custard can't stretch enough to take the stress (custards are notorious for low tensile strength), so it breaks and you get a panful of tasty fault lines.
Puffing does *not* occcur uniformly, though. It starts as a ring around the edge of the pan and then moves in to the center. The trick to getting a good, light cheesecake is to have the puffing stop just as it reaches the center, then maintain that level of puff while the rest of the filling solidifies. Give the cake too much heat, and it will crack. Give it too little, and it will collapse.. you'll end up with a bowl-shaped, crumpled top.
The key to controlling puff is knowing when to switch the oven from 500 down to 200. You don't want to wait until the top is fully domed, because the filling will continue to puff while the oven temperature falls, and you'll get cracks. Nor do you want to drop the temperature too early, because the center won't puff and you'll end up with a bowl. 10 minutes is a decent rule of thumb, but really, you have to watch the cake.
I personally drop to to 200 when the un-puffed zone at the center is about 4-5cm in diameter. That happens to be the sweet spot for the cakes I usually make. Your mileage will vary based on the diameter of your pan, the depth of the filling, the amount of air you've whipped into the filling, humidity, your oven, the phase of the moon, and who knows what else. Just assume that your first two or three cakes will be ranging shots, and figure out what works best for you.
That bit of timing is the 'secret' of cheesecake, though.
mike stone
.
This recipe sounded so good, I made it yesterday. We had a small slice with breakfast this morning and my wife declared it the "best cheesecake ever!" It was delicious. Light and fluffy inside and a little denser on the edges.
A few comments/questions:
1. The post says to cook the crust at 350, but the listing at the bottom says 325.
2. I didn't fully understand the part about the tablespoon of melted butter on the bottom of the pan. Are you saying to use 1/2 tablespoon of melted butter? It was confusing because you never mention what to do with the other half.
3. My cake developed a large crack around the other edge after only 20 min. I thought most cheesecakes cracked during the cooling, not the coking. I will mention that mine didn't turn brown after the 10 min at 500. so I gave it another 2 min. Maybe that had something to do with it.
Nonetheless, it was a delicious cake. Thanks for the great recipe and site.
Peter
Whoops. I made a mistake. The crust should be baked at 325°F for about 12 min. I don't think baking at 350&176;F would hurt anything.
re: 1/2 tablespoon butter
Ah, yes. I left out the all important line: "When the crust has cooled, use the remaining half tablespoon of butter to butter the sides." So, yes, use half a tablespoon for the bottom and half for the sides. Sorry.
re: browning and cracking
Although, many consider a "perfect" cheesecake to be a uniformly colored one without blemish, I think the most important aspect is probably taste. You can always top a cracked cheesecake or hide it with clever cutting. In this case, I'm not sure why the cheesecake cracked (often it's hard to tell). There are a few things you might want to try - although, you may be eaten many cheesecakes through this experimental process. (1) Use a water bath to introduce more moisture in the oven. I use a gas oven, sot here is some inherent moisture. An electric may be too dry for a cheesecake (pure conjecture on my part). Try placing a large pan of hot water in the oven on a rack positioned below the cheesecake. (2) If, you kept the door closed the entire time of the bake, then maybe try reducing the temperature a bit faster by cracking the oven door during the transition between 500°F and 200#176;F. Or, perhaps your oven's 200°F isn't 200°F (often the case). (3) If you opened the oven door while baking to peek, try not doing that. :)
Cheesecakes are finicky things and require a bunch of patience to get "perfect". (As you can see with the cheesecake I baked as an example, it did not come out perfectly because I was in a bit of a rush. This just goes to show that perhaps cheesecakes shouldn't be baked on weekday evenings after a long days work and when you have an early morning meeting so you need to get to bed and the cake is still cooling at 1:00 am.)
Good luck!
You really had your work cut out with the responses from this recipe!
One comment - the term 'graham crackers' is confusing. Are they like ritz or jatz (i.e. flaky) or are they like biscuits (i.e. crumbly)?
To overcome the language barrier, perhaps you could describe what they are made of in order for us to work out what they are. I think they are actually available here (in Australia) under a different generic name.
Nabisco is the maker. Here is manufacture's website. http://www.nabiscoworld.com/honeymaid/
BTW, you've probably heard it a hundred times before, but I think your cooking instruction graphs are excellent and a very good idea.
I've had terrible cracks from time to time--mostly they occur because I forget to run a knife around the edge immedimately after taking it out of the oven, and then again before tossing it into the fridge.
When I remove it from the oven, I cover it with loosely with a paper towel and then again with plastic wrap--the paper towel becomes very moist and droops onto the cheesecake, but comes off easily. I'm not sure if it helps keep the moisture in while letting the heat out, but I haven't had a crack when doing this as well as remembering to run a knife around the edges.
For cutting, I've been told the best way to cut it is to take dental floss and press it through the cheesecake, and then pull it out.
I'll definitely have to put this one on the todo queue though =)
-Jefferson
a teaspoon of ground ginger in the crumb base is not a bad addition to the recipe, it a adds a certain something.
I hope this response isn't too late (it probably is), but you can try freezing the cheesecake. In general, fully cooked cheese cakes freeze really well. To thaw, just place them in the refrigerator over night and they should be ready to eat the next day. This freezing, may help to set the center of your cheesecake a bit more.
That helps with the what to do, but why did it happen? I'm not sure. It could be that your instant read thermometer needs recalibrating or the combination of humidity, atmospheric conditions, cooling properties of your pan and environment, who knows causes the cake not to properly set. I would suggest to bake the next cheesecake a little bit longer or try leaving it in the oven with the door cracked open for ten to twenty minutes after you've reached 150°F. Ideally, we want the temperature over 150° but as close to 160°F as possible - but going over 160°F almost always results in cracking.
One of the difficulties of cheesecakes is that you need to make them a few times to get the recipe just right for your ingredients, oven, and location. After investing the time and money, you've got a dessert that everyone will be fighting to get their hands on.
I ended up with some gooeyness at the center of the cheesecake as well, but not too much. I actually cut the cooking time a little short, so it didn't surprise me. I didn't remember to look for a thermometer while looking for a new mixer, so it was mostly guesswork.
Thanks for this article, I'm sure I'll end up experimenting more with it in the future.
and easy. My questions is
Can I use other biscuits like digestive biscuit to subsitute with graham crackers and American cream cheese with Philadelphia Cream Cheese since it is hard to get the same ingredients in South East Asia . To bake the crust,
I would like to mix the butter and crackers only without adding the sugar. Any comments ?
Those substitutions will work just fine. It seems that digestive biscuits are the same thing as graham crackers. In the U.S. graham crackers are made sweet, so the addition of the sugar may not be necessary for those who don't like strongly flavored sweets.
Philadelphia cream cheese is a brand of American cream cheese, so that will work well. In fact, Philidelphia cream cheese is the most popular cream cheese in the United States - so no worries there!
Good luck.
I used the flat beater (not whisk) to beat the cream cheese. I started on low and moved up in speed as the cream cheese began to become smooth - then I slowly stepped up to a low-medium speed (about a 4 on my mixer). When adding ingredients, I moved it back down to low to reduce the possibility of splatter.
One thing I dont get--and this is probably from an inexpert understanding of physics--is how if the cheesecakes are in the oven for an hour and forty minutes the center never reaches the same temperature as the oven. Shouldn't they be reading 200 degrees as well? (Well, obviously they don't since there was a 100-degree difference in mine.) Why is it that the heat doesn't permeate that far?
My thermodynamics is a bit rusty, but a few estimates can be made if we make some simple assumptions.
A 10" cheese cake has a volume of approximately 2600 cm^3 (mL). If we approximate that cheesecake has the density of water and the specific heat of water, then it takes about 10.9 kJ to raise its temperature by 1°C (4186 J/kgC° * 2.6 kg). Starting at 20°C and ending up at 100°C, the water needs to gain about 870 kJ of energy.
Using Stefan's Law, we can approximate roughly how fast energy entered the water with an oven set to 200°C (through radiation):
P = (5.67*10^-8 W/m^2*K^4)(surfacearea)(0.95)(T^4-T0^4)
P = 5.67*10^-8 W/m^2*K^4*(0.14m^2)(0.95)(((373 K)^4-(293 K)^4)
Thus P is about 90 W
This means it takes about 9600 seconds or 2 hour 40 minutes for a body of water the size and shape of cheesecake to reach an average temperature of 200°C.
Likewise a calculation based on 90 W entering the water/cheesecake approximation, shows that after 1 hr. 40 min, 540 kJ of energy has been added to the cheesecake shaped water, raising it's temperature by 49.5 C° to a final average temperature of 69.5°C or 157°F.
Of course all of these calculations are real crude especially since a cheesecake is a bit more complicated than a fat cylinder of water, the specific heat and emissivity of water is not constant (varies a little by temperature), and we don't take into account the pan or conductive heat. (I did quickly glance at how much heat would be conducted from the air to the cake, but it looks like it would be less than a watt, so I ignored it.) Otherwise, this is probably a pretty good estimate.
My oven here in UK has GAS MARK 1, 2, 3,4 etc. Therefore i'm not sure which mark should i put in order to bake this cheesecake. I really wanted to try your recipe. Hope u could help me in this matter.
Many thanx..
I think 500°F is around 10 Gas Mark while 200°F is a little lower than 1/4 Gas Mark.
I suggest using an oven thermometer to see what setting on your oven equates to 200°F since you're going to need to set it lower than the lowest marked value (usually 1 Gas Mark - some ovens go down to 1/4 Gas Mark but we need a bit lower).
For the record, I use the following for rough Gas Mark conversion:
1/4 Gas Mark = 225°F
1/2 Gas Mark = 250°F
1 Gas Mark = 275°F
Each additional Gas Mark is another 25F°.
I must say this is one of the best basic cheesecake recipes I've found. I use it quite often by itself, or as a base for flavored cheesecakes. I've had zero problems with the recipe. In terms of the "gooyness" in the middle that some have reported I recommend this. When removing the cake from the oven, after running a paring knife around the edge-cover the cake with a larger pan and let it cool to room temperature. This will take along time but will set the cake nicely with no sudden drop in temperature. I then refrigerate until cold and then freeze. Freezing the cake is the easiest way I've found to get the cake out of my expensive pans. All in all I don't think you can go wrong with this recipe. Thumbs Up to Michael!
I don't have an electric mixer... do I HAVE to use an electric mixer for mixing the cream cheese and stuff? Would it be a nightmare to mix those ingredients just by simple tools such as... spoons?
I don't have an electric mixer... do I HAVE to use an electric mixer for mixing the cream cheese and stuff? Would it be a nightmare to mix those ingredients just by simple tools such as... spoons?
Seems like a legitimate question to me... and yes, I would say it would be a nightmare to muscle through the cream cheese by hand - but it can be done. Let the cream cheese warm up to room temperature before trying to work with it or you might pull a muscle. If you're using spoons make sure it's nice and sturdy. I'd probably recommend a large spatula (like the ones with silicon spoon ends) or a wooden spoon so you can push your way through the cheese effectively.
It's going to be a lot of work and you probably won't end up with the same texture when compared to using a stand mixer, but with a bit of perserverance and some muscle, you should be able to pull it off.
And what ratio of ingredients help make a cheesecake fluffy?
thanks! - Stacey
Digestive biscuits are suggested as a suitable alternative for British cooks trying to follow American recipes, but they are not exactly the same thing.
P = 5.67*10^-8 W/m^2*K^4*(0.14m^2)(0.95)(((373 K)^4-(293 K)^4)
Since the temp of the oven is 200C, shouldn't your first T read 473K instead?
Secondly, the second T term is not a constant of 293K. Wouldn't it be better to integrate the formula with respect to time as T goes from 293K to Tf (final temperature).
Note: You need to express the T in terms of time and combine the equations.
In Australia, you can use Arnotts Milk Arrowroot biscuits (or a generic brand alternative) to achieve the same result.
This has been a fairly standard recipie for biscuit bases in my family for as long as I can remember.
I served the cheesecakes at a party that my fraternity was having and the females said that the cheesecake was "orgasmic." Thanks to you, i got a few numbers that night, lol. I also used the strwaberry topping from the angel food cake recipe and that also turned out lovely.
My one question would be, coul I possibly replace the heavy cream with egg nog for the holiday season? It was something that came to my mind while making the cheesecake.
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Substituing the heavy cream with egg nog is an intriguing idea. My guess is that it will work, but you may need to adjust the baking time a little.
i would love to try your receipe of the New york style cheese cake but i live in france and don't know what would be equivalent to cream cheese ? Would ricotta be ok ? I read a receipe that mentionned neufchatel but find it very surprising...
thank you, el.
I can't wait to try this recipe!
One question though, I have a fan-assisted oven and was was wondering how this will affect the cooking times?
M
A convection oven will decrease the cooking time. How much time does it decrease by? I don't know. Anyone with a convenction oven that can give advice?
I'd usually suggest dropping the temperature a bit, but since we're baking at 200°F for most of this, You'll just have to check for doneness earlier. I'd start at least 30 min. earlier in checking the temperature.
I had one possible problem, though. When I took the cake out of the oven to check its temperature it was slightly over 160°F (about 170-180°F). With having no previous experience with cheesecakes I did not know what to do so I just ignored the high temperature and carried on with the rest of the recipe. I followed your directions exactly, what could I have done wrong and if I were to try again what should I do differently?
Not much else to do except carry on with the recipe. The only danger with a high temperature is cracking. Too low and the cake may not set. Next time, shave off a little time from the recipe and check earlier. Baking times are always approximate due to all the possible variables (actual oven temperature, humidity, altitude/air pressure, cleanliness of oven, heating element cycling algorithm, etc.). Now that we know your cheesecakes bake faster than mine, just cut off fifteen minutes and check. If it's still too hot, then next time cut off some more time.
To remove the entrained air after mixing it, I thumped the (plastic) bowl on the counter a number of times, and let it sit for a while before pouring it into the pan. There were a few small imperfections on the finished cheesecake after baking it, where a few small bubbles rose to the surface and popped. They could have been eliminated by letting it sit for longer. There was no problem with cracking.
It was quite brown on the surface when I took it out of the oven, something I wasn't prepared for with your photos. But the texture and flavor were perfect, so I assume that's how it's supposed to be. I expected a more "golden" brown.
Everyone loved the cheesecake who tried it. Next year I'll be making two, so that I can take one to the extended family gathering.
This also minimizes waste. You're going to need that mixing bowl anyway, to add the sugar and butter. This way, there's no wasted bag and no dirtied food processor bowl/blade. And you can reuse the glass when it comes time to press the crumbs into the pan.
Hopefully it's not necessary to say this, but don't put all your weight onto the glass. You're just crushing graham crackers. You don't need too much force, and no one wants to break a glass (possibly casuing injury). You'd have to press pretty hard to break a pint glass that way, but it is possible. So basically, don't be stupid.
i would love to try your receipe of the New york style cheese cake but i live in france and don't know what would be equivalent to cream cheese ? Would ricotta be ok ? I read a receipe that mentionned neufchatel but find it very surprising...
thank you, el.
Can you not get cream cheese in France? In Germany it's available. Italy, too, apparently, though the Italians I knew referred to it by the brand name "Philadelphia" and had no clue what I was talking about when I said "cream cheese". Perhaps it's the same in France? Perhaps you can get "Philadelphia" cheese, but it's just not called cream cheese?
But from what I've read, yes, neufchâtel is an acceptable substitute, but it's less moist and lower-fat. Maybe you might want to add a bit of extra cream (and use a bit less cheese) if you make this substitution. According to this page, cheesecakes made with neufchâtel cook faster and are more prone to cracking, so keep a close eye on it.
I am going to try this recipe to see about the texture especially. I tend to make flavored cheesecakes which are usually quite dense, and use a lower egg/creamcheese ratio.
If your oven is giving you problems, I'd get an oven thermometer to see if the oven is hitting the correct temperature. If your consistently undercooking the food, then the solution is to simply either increase the temperature or cook it longer. If you don't have an oven thermometer, then I would probably suggest simply cooking your food longer instead of trying a higher temperature. Some baked goods don't work out well if you bake at too high a temperature and it's impossible to accurately gauge an oven's temperature without a thermometer.
I baked a 9" and also used the remaining batter on smaller cake pans (perfect for gifts). I did the 500 degrees for 10 minutes and then 200 for 1 hour and 30 mins. When testing the temperature, my thermometer registered 170+!!! I was so worried but the cake looks fine. It appears as it should, but perhaps overbaking it just results in a stiffer cake? Again, I haven't actually tasted the finish product so I can't say for sure how the texture is. I did remove the smaller cake pans much earlier and they are rather good.
I do have a question though. Can the ingredients be combined all at once? rather than doing thirds and halves? What is the purpose of that?
I will attempt your other recipes next. Thank you again.
We add sugar to the cheese in thirds to help ensure an even distribution of sugar throughout the mix without mixing for a long time. Adding all the sugar at once makes it more likely for clumps of sugar to be deposited in the thick cheese.
Let the cream cheese set for several hours until it is soft at room temp. You can even cut it up and throw it in the microwave for a short 10-20 sec.
Then just use a stout whisk and a large bowl. Mixing this will take a little muscle work at first, but by the time you add the eggs and cream the batter will loosen up enough to mix more easily. Don't leave any lumps of cream cheese. You may have to do several bursts of elbow grease to prevent lumps, but if the cheese was soft to start with you'l be OK.
You can also use a big food processor with the chopping blade. Mix in batches if needed, then use a decent whisk and a big bowl to combine batches.
Ours is very dark brown around the edges (but still moist - not burnt) and when I took it out it was registering around 160 F, so I think I may have left it a little long. It cracked somewhere in the last forty minutes of cooking so maybe that's related. Fortunately the crack's pretty much right down the middle!
I also opened the oven door a couple times during the first ten minutes of cooking at 500 F to check on how much of the cake was rising (a previous poster suggested waiting until the diameter of the un-risen section was 4-5 cm), but almost none of mine noticeably rose more than the rest so after thirteen or fourteen minutes I decided just to bring it down--perhaps that had something to do with it too.
Thanks for this amazing recipe! And thanks for making all the recipes so readable. I never "get" the cooking websites, but this site actually makes cooking enjoyable because I know what I'm doing and why.
i have a 30 quart hobart type...and i'd like to start making cheesecake in quanity. :shock:
A brown "skin" at the top of your cheesecake is actually a desired appearance for New York-style Cheesecake. It sounds like your oven is still too hot though because your cake cracked. Either lower your temperature a but more (try 200°F) or remove the cake earlier from the oven before it gets a chance to over cook.
A water bath does cook a cheesecake more gently and provides a larger window where pulling it out of the oven will result in a non crack cheesecake, but then the cheesecake wouldn't be New York style. New York style cheesecakes do not employ water baths. I have to get around to making more types of cheesecake, so my readers will have more versions to choose from.
Oh... and to Stacey [August 15th], for a fluffy-type cheesecake, you use a lot less cream cheese (about 200gm or 1 tub of Philly's) and yes, you do beat the egg whites... There should be some recipes on the Net that can be of help. ^_^
Michelle
I use Petite Beurre for the crust...
A guest, Stacy, asked on Aug 15, 2005, what ratios would make it more fluffy. I saw no reply.
I have been trying to figure out how to make it less fluffy, very creamy, yet firm enough to cut and stay on a fork.
Well, I sorta know why your question has been ignored.
I have tryed a few "lower fat" cheese cakes in the past (cooked by me and prefessional chefs) and I can tell you, the best you will get is a dense, tastless, dry cardboard texture and it aint nice!
The best you can do is have a smaller serving or just let your self splurge and have a nice scoop of home made white chocolate ice cream a strawberry compot and a big slice of cheese cake!
Gradually decrease from 500F to 200F?
No, a smoking oven is probably not a good thing. It sounds like you either need to clean the oven (use the self cleaning option if you have it; if not, do it manually) or get it checked out. Most likely it's a cleaning issue - the smoke is from food particles or ingredients that have fallen into the oven from previous baking endevours. As increase in temperature, they start to burn, giving off the smoke.
I was wondering whether the smoke could have been a result of the oven temp surpasses the smoke point of the butter used in the cheesecake.
And yes, you are correct, my oven needs a major neat scrub.
That is unlikely unless you baked the cheesecake for a whole day. The temperature your butter (in the batter) is at when you slide it into the oven is probably a bit less than room temperature - say 65-70 degrees F. By the time you remove it, it'll only have reached 150 degrees. Far lower than the smoking point. What is causing the smoke, is any other material that may be in your oven. Since this material is fairly small, it heats up quickly as the oven heats up and then begins to smoke and burn.
Very nicely explained. This is the single best NY cheesecake recipe I've seen, and I've seen (and cooked) many. In fact I was googling for a better one because I was dissatisfied with most of the ones I've seen over the years.
I love this recipe, but I am trying to find information on size variations. I want to make an 8 in, a 9in, and a 10 in cheesecake. Would I just use the recipe you have and fill the forms until full??? How would this effect baking times and temps???What do you suggest to make this cheesecake without a crust. Some of my family love cheesecake, but without a crust.
Thanks so much
Graham crackers: I'm in Germany. You can't (easily) get digestive biscuits or Graham crackers here, but taking normal "butterkeks" worked out fine. By the time it's all baked, you'd never be able to tell butterkeks had played a rôle in the base.
Density: goodtogoth, it's definitely dense (at least, mine is).
Heavy cream is cream with more fat than normal - about 40%. You can use normal Schlagsahne. In the supermarkets in NRW, you can also get "Schlagsahne wie damals" or something - which doesn't have 40% fat, but does have 35% or something - at least closer to 40% than normal Schlagsahne (about 30% as far as I remember). I used this for my cheesecake, all went well. It's a normal 200ml pot of cream with a cream-coloured lid and brown writing.
For other (savoury) recipes where Michael used heavy cream, I've sometimes used Creme Frâiche, though I don't think that would apply here.
Good luck with the cheesecake.
[Added later]
I forgot to mention - especially if you're stirring by hand, you won't want to worry too much about the consistency of the cream - the stuff'll be thick enough from the cream cheese. Your arm will thank you for the thinner consistency from adding the cream...
I really recommend letting the cream cheese get to room temperature before mixing. My small mixer almost bit the dust.
Thanks for your great page!
Thanks for all your help...my email is: carolina_dimas@yahoo.com
:)
Try just using normal whipping cream (with about 30% fat). For this recipe, I don't think it will end up making too much difference.
Thanks in advance for your help. My family REALLY will appreciate it!
I've never made a 4-in. cheesecake. I would suggest a trial run first - bake for 10 min. at 500°F and then lower the temperature to 200°F just like the original recipe. Instead of baking for over 1-1/2 hour, bake for 30 minutes and then check on doneness every 5 minutes. That will give you a ballpark figure for how long it will take to bake the rest of the cheesecakes. (I'm guessing it will take 40 min. at 200°F.)
In a springform pan, graham cracker crusts are generally formed on the bottom only. If a side crust is desired, that is often pressed onto the sides by hand.
I'm not sure, but giving it an extra 5 minutes before turning it down should be fine.
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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/NashvilleSinger/IMG_0003-1.jpg
Hope everyone enjoys this recipie!
Would I need to change any ingredients? Baking time and temp is what I really need. It has taken me forever to find a great recipe.
I live at high altitude ~ 4100
Thank you! Please help ASAP, I need this help before Friday. :unsure:
Would I need to change any ingredients? Baking time and temp is what I really need. It has taken me forever to find a great recipe.
I live at high altitude ~ 4100
You can try the baking times for the Cheesecake Cupcakes recipe. Presumably you'll be making multiple batches taking only about 15 min. each, so you can adjust your baking time for the next batch as each batch comes out to figure out the precise time you need for your oven and pans.
Making a cheesecake in a cake round is a problem when it's time to extract the cake from the pan without marring the cake. I think there might be an elobarate way to line the pan with parchment paper (along the sides and covering the bottom with extra pieces acting as flaps of a sling to life the cake out of the pan) but you'll probably end up deforming the cheesecake as you remove it. I recommend putting $10 into a springform.
Do you have any great recipes for wild mushrooms? I am always looking for good ones to post on my site. (oregonmushrooms)
:)
It would be interesting to hear people's ideas and recipes for flavoured varieations.
Run the knife along the edge after about ten minutes of resting. Release it from the springform after it has fully cooled and chilled. The cake should have shrunk a little, pulling away fromt eh sides that you released it from in the previous step.
Middle is where the rack should be, but since you're burning the top of the cheesecake, I'd either reduce the time or lower the heat a little (the oven is probably running hot).
As far as I know, this would be the "normal" ingridient in germany.
H Greene
Heavy cream and heavy whipping cream are the same product. In some areas, double cream is available and heavy whipping is not. Double cream has about the same fat percecntage of heavy cream, so it will work too.
But l'll have to take her word for it, because I'm vegan. Seriously reconsidering that right now, as the smells waft across the house. As for my mom's recipe, it came from a Spadina Ave, Toronto, Jewish delicatessen she worked in circa 1962. Wonder if Lottman's Deli is still there. See, this is why, the mom approving of this here cake, well, it's like... praise from Caesar. And I "can't" eat it. Not in a box, not with a fox. Any tips for the tofutti crowd would be appreciated. I once had a vegan cheese cake made from pearl barley. It was very nice, and I hadn't even been a veggie for that many years at the time, at the time I still ate "real" cheese cake, all the same the pearl barley version was very good. Authentic. Baked. Better than the whipped up soft serve version most people are serving nowadays.
Well I am baking two cakes tonight, one for the kids' french class pot-luck, and one for my sweet-heart's graduating high school students (Disadvantaged teens and young adults, many of whom live at the shelter and some of whom have literally no food to eat at home most days. Oh, and one who is finishing high school so that his employer, the Canadian military, can send him to Afghanistan right after his 18th birthday. I figure, if you have to graduate high school without having your mother do your laundry for you, let alone that kind of adversity, all the while making it to class during another city transit workers' strike, then I will personally bake you a cake. And grade four is no fun either.)
They are both instructed to introduce the cakes as my own special casserole. Later we will compare notes as to whether the grade four crowd or the grade fourteen crowd is more appreciative of free cheese casserole.
Thank you for the help with the baking time and proportions. Even if you left out a few vital ingredients. Twenty bucks worth of dairy certainly warrants another couple bucks for a vanilla bean. And you don't need a mixer. I did it by hand, and I'm a gimp cripple. The kid mixed a bowl up, and she weighs like, fifty pounds. Be a man about it. Or a woman, or a human, about it. Mix it by hand = mix it with love. Baking is a sacrament. Don't knock it together with power tools.
-SoyBoySigh.
Eleni from Greece
I am willing to try again - and was wondering if I should increase the temperature as well as adding a couple of Tablespoons of flour.
Any comments and ideas? Thank you.
- 1 package (8 oz.) graham crackers
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp. butter, melted
Regarding high altitude: I live in Utah at about 5000 feet and the recipe works perfectly for me. I use 2 Tbsp. of flour in the batter and cook it for an extra 2 - 3 minutes at 500 degrees.Ive made this cake a few times, and believe me you, its the REAL thing!! i live in Finland and use digestive cookies for the crust. Lucky for us, we can get philly here too...
just wanted to compliment on the recipe and the instructions, this is one hell of a cake!
thanks, Jouna
in ml and gr or oz please
Also, if you will run a very sharp thin blade (a filet knife works great) around the edges of the cake after baking, the sides will break away from the pan easier, resulting in less tension and less chance of cracking. No matter what you do, the filling will cool faster in some areas, slower in others, and if there is tension pulling it in any direction, a crack will result at place where the most drastic temperature change takes place, usually slightly off center of the cake.
There are other factors, but I saw those omitted from the above posts.
Very cool 110 225 1/4
120 250 1/2
Cool 140 275 1
150 300 2
Moderate 160 324 3
180 350 4
Mod-Hot 190 375 5
200 400 6
Hot 220 425 7
230 450 8
Very Hot 240 475 9
My suggestion is that you press the cream cheese through a sieve before you start mixing it.
You can also use a big food processor with the chopping blade. Mix in batches if needed, then use a decent whisk and a big bowl to combine batches.
I am renting an apartment and I have a very small oven that heats up fast. Should I still put the cheesecake on at 500 degrees in the beginning?
Thanks.
Since the 500 degrees is the preheated temperature, it doesn't matter if your oven preheats quickly. I recommend starting at 500 degrees.
Great cheesecake recipe! I got one problem, after I cut the cheesecake, I put the leftover in a plate and I got some liquid and the crust is not dry anymore, anyone have an idea why I got this problem?
Best regards,
Charles
Great cheesecake recipe! I got one problem, after I cut the cheesecake, I put the leftover in a plate and I got some liquid and the crust is not dry anymore, anyone have an idea why I got this problem?
Best regards,
Charles
Hi Charles,
Did you use a waterbath anyway? Don't use next time and see how it goes. :unsure:
Good luck.
I use a waterbath but with a real pan not a spring pan so no chance to have water in the pan. Maybe it's because I don't let cool enough! How long do you let cool the cake? I wait one hour before putting in the fridge!
It's look like the butter dissolve with the crust (yellow liquid)
Best regards,
Charles
Thank you!
I am using a recipe that uses 5eggs/ 4pkg 8oz cream cheese/ 1 can pumpkin, brown sugar and 1/4c of flour, and general spices.
Any suggestions or ideas that you could provide would be greatly appreciated
thank you, nancy
For something like cheesecake which contains a significant amount of dairy, we usually say three days. But, they can last much longer - it's up to your own judgment whether or not it is safe to eat. If it has been under consistent refrigeration, doesn't smell, look, taste, or feel funny and it hasn't been longer than a week or so, then you can make your own judgment call. I'm not going to tell you it's okay to eat, because I haven't seen it, but if you're a hardy individual, go for it. If you're prone to illness, elderly, have weak immune system, have a propensity for diarrhea, then maybe you should skip.
Sounds like massive overcooking. Your cheesecake is cooking much faster than the recipe, so heat is entering rapidly. This means the sides of teh cheesecake will be much hotter than the interior, so if the center is over 160, then over the next 20-30 minutes, it will continue to rise as the heat from the sides transmit into the interior. The overcooking would cause the cracking when it cools and the size of the crack will be proportional to the amount of overcooking that occurred.
Check your oven and see if it's a convection oven. If it is, turn off the convection - we want to slowly bring the temperature up. You can also try turning down the heat (and introducing a water bath to even out the temperature a little) if that doesn't help.
Cheesecake is not something you want to cook rapidly. The key is evenly bringing up the temperature of the cheesecake, so lower heat for longer time is what you want. Turning the circulation fans on your convection oven will heat up the outside of the cheesecake way too fast. You can use the convection oven for the first few minutes, but once you lower the temperature, put it on conventional mode and let it cook for the hour and a half or so needed.
thank for the recipe
http://dessert-recipes.webs.com/index.htm
As an Ex-pat living in the Philippines, still liking my home style treats, I do baking on the side as a hobby. Some of the things that I have learned are" no two ovens are the same, you need a thermometer.
If using convection oven (counter top) lower temperature 25 degrees and cook following directions.
My oven in PI uses the top and bottom element to bake, where in the US only the bottom element is used, so I have to tent my cheese cake to prevent browning or I get that burned look.
Here I use "all purpose cream (UHT)" for the heavy cream. (for sour cream I add lemon juice)
For the crust try different things, a mixture of ground nuts, cookies, any sweet baked confection. Sandwich cookies (biscuits) are good and require no added sugar, or butter. For non-filling cookies (biscuits) Just add about 4 Tbls. butter to the crumbs. I freeze my pans with crust before I fill it to cook, holds crust in perfect position, and retards cooking on the edge for a short time.
As a word of help, don't be afraid to add or try something different, use recipe as a guide, not as a law.
Happy cooking from the land of smiles. :D
Nenetheless the cake is delicious and I served it with a raspberry sauce which complemented it perfectly
1 1/2" to 2" not done. The third time I let it cook for about 3 and half hours (maybe more, I lost track) and it came out perfect. I love this recipe, the taste is amazing, but should it take that long?!?!?!?
A couple things to check:
1. What diameter springform pan are you using (and what is it made of, aluminum, steel, glass bottom, etc.)
2. Do you have an oven thermometer in the oven to verify that it reaches 500F and ends up at 200F? Ovens are notoriously inaccurate and their accuracy can change over time also.
It seems to me that 3.5 hours is a LONG time for this recipe.
.......The third time I
First: going out on a limb here....but I am assuming the third time for the cheese cake was not for your third wedding, so I salute your foresight in trying stuff before hanging the proverbial hat on it.
or veil, as the case may be.....
...should it take that long?...
no
but
(your knew that was coming, eh?)
'home oven' temperatures are not the Acme Best Certified in temperature accuracy. plus or minus fifty Fahrenheit degrees is not unheard of - actually more common than un-<anything>
water boils at 212'F - looking at the baking temps, 300, 200 - thats dag'gum close to 'water not going to go away anytime soon' - hence if the oven is off in temperature, 'that long' may be 'right'
so by all means, if you have future plans that include 'that oven' get a thermometer and double check it's dials . . . .
lie in the new oven.... yes its new... hey what a way to test it, huh?
Thanks a lot for posting this recipe!
Just one question, does different types of oven cause the cake to bake differently. I use a water-based oven, the kind that uses water to heat the oven up..some new techie...and my cake appears to be brown very quickly and makes it unsightly. The taste is still great though. But I would appreciate it if someone could tell me how do I prevent the cake from browning in the middle too quickly.
over browning can be reduced by covering the c-cake with aluminum foil for portions of the bake cycle. do double check the accuracy of the oven temp control - "too hot" is the usual culprit for "too brown"
Roni -
crust on the bottom is just a tradition for some styles - particularly vertical straight sides which then in cases get fancied up with sliced almonds, other chopped nuts, chocolate cookie crumbs, etc....
in a spring form pan, the c-cake will shrink just a bit - making for easy removal of the ring - that could be a little trickier with a crust up the sides - but heh, give it a go!
I have experienced the same problem as you - on an unbaked cheesecake.
I believe that as your cream mix thickens, it is obviously losing water content (liquid content) and this goes onto the base. It then "washes" the butter out of the base as it goes through - this happens since the biscuits get soaked and oil/butter cannot mix with water and therefore the butter abondons the biscuit. Since the liquid is not pure water but whey - the end result is a yellow liquid.
I hope this helps!
:)
A few comments: I did bring all of my ingredients to temperature. And I did whip all of my ingredients together for a long time, to allow the cream cheese mixture to become nice and creamy. To make sure I didn't have any bubbles I just put the spring form ontop of my oven burner and shook the sides. I also used the "S" technique, of "cutting" the cheesecake to make sure all the bubbles had surfaced. I cooked as you guys said and did end up putting a damp paper towel over my cheesecake as it cooled. I definitely think that helped.
Fantastic recipe. Thanks for all of the help! I intend to use it again soon!
This recipe as a whole is good, but the 500 degree oven browned my cheesecake and crust too much. I did not like this at all. My oven is accurate on temperature--it is new and has been checked. I was really dissappointed that it turned out this way---it's expensive to make and I really wanted it to be prettier.--PJ
Thanks in advance!
Wanda
You don't. Serve it on the bottom of the springform pan. Just remember to take the bottom back home after the party/work snack time.
Guess I'll have to do the best I can on his and hope I don't tear it up too much. I wonder if lining the bottom with parchment paper would make the bottom easy to remove.
Thanks
Wanda
you don't get cream cheese in india. so i was just thi nking about using cheese spread ....... is it possible.
Michael, there was a question above that was not answered, and since I have the same question, I'll ask again.
I am planning on doing this recipe again, however this time with a 9 inch springform pan (shown here, http://www1.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=107646&CategoryID=32748). Should this be handled any different? I imagine there might be too much batter so how much should I use to compensate for the rise in the cheesecake while cooking in the oven (should I fill to the top)? Should the oven temp. be any different? Should I keep it in the oven a little longer? Thanks for the help and best wishes to you and your family.[/url]
it tasted so gooood and it was the perfect recipe for a cheesecake!
you're the man!
For those who question how browned the top of this cheesecake should be: it should be a rich almond color (the color of whole almonds). Yes, that's brown! However, that's a main characteristic of this cheesecake--and the cheesecake is not over baked if you do not let it rise above 155 (the temperature of the cake will rise about another 7-10 degrees as it cools). People outside of New York are not used to seeing a cheesecake like this, but this is exactly what it should look like.
A well baked New York cheesecake should have an nut brown top, and the texture should be cool and creamy in the center and then feather out to velvet and suede at the outer edges (i.e. the outer edges will be slightly drier than the center). If this isn't the type of cheesecake you want (this happens to be my favorite style of cheesecake--anything else seems lackluster), then bake it in a water bath or find another recipe to use.
If you're open to a different cheesecake experience, then this is definitely a recipe to try.
Oh, for anyone who is looking for a low-fat version of New York cheesecake, go check out the recipe for Low-Fat Cheesecake at America's Test Kitchen. It's almost as good as the full fat version and uses a combination of reduced-fat cream cheese, strained yogurt, and cottage cheese. The calories are reduced by almost half and the fat is reduced by a third (if a remember correctly).
marie biscuits or tea biscuits work, but not quite as well since they are really light.
cheers.
And, really thanks Michael for this great website =)
Eng. Magnolia
Fresh strawberries should be no problem.
I tried the cheese-cake, it came out wonderful, thanks really!
I just wanna ask what if I used 1/2 portion of the ingredients, with a 8.5 or 9 inch springform pan. because last time I used 10 inches springform pan but it came out too high. How long should I keep it in the oven in both tempretures? btw I don't have a thermometer. And will anything else be affected?
Thanks,
Eng. Magnolia
I add 3 eggs only though and I add the whites after beating them till stiff with caster sugar.
any evaporated milk on hand? that might work better in cheesecake.
plain ole milk would work, use slightly less, won't be quite as rich.
Shay
might be a smidgen difference in consistency but basics should be ok!
I have no idea how to adjust the time or the temperature and I'm obligated to make 10 of them on Friday and Saturday for a fundraiser. I'd rather not be in my kitchen for 8 hours--it's getting hot here in Las Vegas already! :)
I'm grateful for your replies!!!
Good idea, I added it to the table summary for the crust.
In a springform pan, the sides come off of the pan by expanding away from the cake. As long as you remember to run a knife around the circumference before cooling, you'll be fine when you remove the side of the pan.
thanks
When I make this cheesecake, it comes out more dry than wet. The wet stuff that I've had is usually Jell-O instant cheesecake...
I finished with a fig sauce. I warmed up a small jar of fig preserves and strained the chunks out, then added some gelatin to the syrup that was left. I poured it over the top of the cake while it was still in the springform and let it chill and set up.
It was a big hit.
-- Thaddaeus A. Vick, Speaker for the Coyote
I followed your instructions and ingredients precisely. A few other things I did were to put the eggs out for about an hour prior to cooking to reduce the chill. I did include 3 Tsp of flour and I used the first or 2nd speed on the mixer and only as needed to thoroughly blend, careful not to overbeat. The batter sat on the counter for approximately 15 minutes while waiting for the crust to completely cool. I "dropped" as you described a few times using the back of a spoon to smooth the few air bubbles that came to the surface.
The cheesecake fluffed about 3/4" above the springform pan somewhat like a custard (which I didn't expect) and browned a beautiful flat consistant golden brown color all across the top and not a single crack in site! It's absolutely beautiful! After cooling under a large stainless steel bowl (tipped on the cookie sheet allowing some air flow) for about 2 hours I released the springform, placed the cheesecake on a cakeplate with a glass top and refrigerated. This morning, still gorgeous and no cracks and it's all I can do to not have cheesecake for breakfast!
Thank you so much for the detail, the photos and great instructions/insighth in your recipe. I don't think I would have been brave enough to try it otherwise. :)
I will write more tonight and let you know how the consistency and taste turned out.
This cheesecake is not overly rich to where you can only eat two bites then you feel icky... It is perfectly balanced between rich and light... smooth but dense and not too moist, not too dry....
I will never buy cheesecake again!!! To all my relatives... guess what you're getting for Christmas. :)
I used 1lb cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, 3 eggs, 2 egg yolks, 1/4 cup cream, 2tbs flour, 1tsp lemon juice, and 1tsp vanilla. This greatly shifts ratio of eggs to cream cheese. I filled the 6"pan nearly to the top (2-1/4"). I mixed ingredients very thoroughly and baked 8min @500 and 1hour @200 with no cracking. The result was smooth and light and very tasty with a little crumble when forked. I'm in heaven!
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hmm, a bit too much Bailey's methinks . . .
Does anyone know how long a cheesecake lasts in the frig until it goes bad? Can you freeze one until ready to serve ? If so how long can it be frozen before it goes bad. If anyone can help me with either questions i would greatly appriciate it !! Hope everyone has a Happy Holiday !! Thanks any info. will be great....
time in the fridge depends on fridge temp, covering, how many bugs are floating around in the fridge - perhaps a week - fuzzies will grow on the surface - then you know it's a goner.
Well, after several "perfect" single 10 inch pan results in the past, tonight's cheesecakes were full of large cracks. The 9 inch cracked right away during the 500 degree stage. I was relieved with the 11 inch holding strong. But, it cracked almost as soon as I took it out of the oven.
New pans, new oven... forgot the extra pan of water, and didn't cover it during cooling.
Next time I will pay more attention and follow the recipe.
Regarding comments about splitting the cheesecake top--does anyone REALLY care?? If this is a concern, cover the thing with strawberries or chocolate sauce. Whoever gets the piece(s) with the cracks will have some extra topping. Consider it a plus.
All in all, an excellent recipe, easy to make.
Question-- has anybody tried this recipe in the cupcake form? I know there's a cheese/cup/cake recipe on site but I seem to like this one quite a bit.
if using a spring form, you probably want to give a look at the bottom-to-side junction to be sure it won't leak.
I made this cheesecake twice and both times it came out cracked. The first time I followed the recipe for time as state and my internal temperature reached over 170 degree. The cake still tasted amazing and set up really well. The second time I made this was last night. Left cake in oven for one hour only and internal temperature tested 160 F. Top cracked like crazy though. :shock: :angry:
Things I may have done wrong: Did not have any moisture in oven, may have overbeaten slightly but not sure since I was aware to not overbeat, my ingredients may have been to cool and not completely at room temperature, and I substituted sour cream for the heavy cream.
Question: can I substitute sour cream for heavy cream???? :huh:
I used sour cream twice in each cheese cake and maybe that is what caused the cracking? Would anyone happen to know what proportion of sour cream I really needed to replace the heavy cream I did not use?
Any ideas are appreciated. This is the best cheese cake I have ever made.
I only have an old-fashioned meat thermometer. Will it give me an accurate reading and how far into the cake should the point be?
Avoiding cracks... and bubble blemishes!
Because I have an electric oven, I placed a rectangle cake pan, half full of water, on a shelf just under the cheesecake. I unintentionally used cool water in the cakepan, not warm as suggested, and worried if the temperature of the oven would drop too much,yet the cake turned out great, flat across and no cracks or bubble blemishes. All ingredients were roughly room temperature before starting. I used a hand mixer for everything but the eggs which I incorporated by hand,one at a time, to avoid overbeating and getting air bubbles with the mixer. I bumped the bowl of mixture on the counter before putting it into a pan. Also, I bumped it some more , dropping the pan on the counter! And finally,I ran a knife in figure eights through the mixture,to break up trapped bubbles,before placing the pan into the oven.
During the last 40 minutes of baking I set the oven to about 205 or 210 because my oven light was going off and on when it was set at 200. This spooked me as I thought maybe the oven was not warm enough. The light seemed to stay on when I raised the tempurature a little. It was the fist time I used the oven at such a low setting so I did not know if the gauge was faulty or not. I never opened the oven durng the entire process. After the 100 minutes I tested the center and it was at 160. I moved it from the oven and quickly ran a knife around the edge. Then I placed a large pot over the cheesecake as it sat on a cooling rack to cool for two hours. Then to the fridge. The taste and texture were divine! No cracks! The slight lemon flavor-- especially appeciated. Oh, yea,the cheescake was not brown on top, just golden, my partner said it looked like sunshine. It was a pleaser. Thank you! Thank you!
do not fill it to the brim - it puffs up a bit as it bakes / sets. if you wind up with extra batter toss it or put it in a smaller ramekin & bake a little chef's treat . . .
Other wonderment........the Lindy's recipe calls for 5 eggs and 2 yolks, and 1/4 cup cream, whereas this one calls for 6 eggs and 2 yolks, and 1/2 cup cream. I guess my biggest question would be...............with the egg amount, cream amount, and the type of crust being pretty much the only differences, could I bake the Lindy's recipe exactly like this recipe? Sorry if this is unintelligible, I'm trying to sort out my questions as I ask them. :) Thanks so much!
Oh, and all my springform pans are (I think) dark non-stick pans. How should I adjust the baking temp/time? Also, I don't have a thermometer. Any suggestions as to how to tell if it's done?
you want to use a different crust and a different recipe for the filling, and the question is "does anything change?"
yes.
the basics are all the same - kill the clock and go by feel.
a cheese cake filling is essentially a custard - when it sets up to a firm point in the middle, it's done.
the best tip I've seen/learned to avoid cracking is: when done, turn off oven, leave oven door cracked/propped open; allow cheese cake to cool slowly in the oven.
good luck!
Re: the above, I forget to mention, the reason why I even bothered to make a second attempt, was because the kids so enjoyed the first disaster, they kept hassling me to do it again.
(Your confirmation code is a bit of a bummer for the dyslexic)
I've tried doing this cheesecake twice and I always have the same issue. First of all let me tell you what I changed. It's impossible to find heavy cream here so I used evaporated milk instead (as recommended earlier in the posts and throughout the internet). I start at 260 ºC. My oven has ºC degrees instead of ºF, but it still won't go as low as 96 ºC so after 10 minutes I leave it at about 110 ºC or 120º, after 45 minutes I check the center of the cheesecake with a toothpick and I turn the oven off until no food comes out on the toothpick. The oven uses gas not electricity, and if I try to lower the temp. from 260 to 120 it will go off and its dangerous so I have to start lowering the temperature gradually until it gets to the lower temp. When the toothpick comes out clean, I leave the door closed until it cools down.
The cake tastes great, but the problem is that it kind of rises a little bit on the edges then it goes down so the sides of the cake are taller than the center, and after I chill it on the fridge, it comes out even lower in the center. No one that I've seen here has noticed that problem since they don't really know how a New York style cheescake ( not even me ) and I use the "basket" kind of shape to fill it out with fresh strawberries to hide my bad looking cake, which happens to make peolple here like it better.
Can anyone give me advice on what I'm doing wrong or what would be a best way to bake this cake?
Thanks in advance for any help.
one is very dense
one is more fluffy
the fluffy bit is usually beaten more vigorously to introduce air into the filling 'batter'
the air heats, expands, things puff up.
puffing up more at the edges is indicative of too high a bake temp - the 'outside' of the cake is heating up faster than the 'middle'
the difficulties controlling the low bake temps you mention could be the basis of the problem.
'fixing' the oven could be a bit on the tricky side.
one classic approach to creating an even bake is a bain-marie - the water bath helps even out the temps of the baking pan.
just be sure the pan does not let water from the bain-marie seep into the cheese cake crust . . .
Thanks
I love cheesecake but rarely find one worth eating. it is funny how hard it is to find a good cheesecake. I thought from the comments this might be it, but this first experience was a real turnoff.
If your oven was able to burn the top of your cheesecake in 7 minutes, I would highly suggest getting an oven thermometer from your local kitchen supply store or online.
Here is an example of one that works and sells for less than $5: Taylor Oven Thermometer
I hope someone can help me with this -- I want to make this cheesecake next week, but preferably with raspberries (as you understand) because plain style is not really to my taste.
And if I wanted to make a lemon-cheesecake, I guess I would have to add lemon-juice but leave some other juice/moist out of it, in order to keep the moist/dry-balance perfect. And would I have to compensate for the acidity with extra sugar?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks so much!
I think I will add the sourcream to it, as someone suggested from the Cook's Illustrated recipe. I do notice though that that recipe also calls for much less eggs than this one (and someone above complains that it tasted 'eggy'). Well, we'll see. I just make the CfE-recipe (I'm even going to try to get some heavy cream and graham crackers from the local British store, since normal stores don't sell that here) and maybe later I will adjust. The thing is: I'm a bit nervous making the cake. Yesterday I had cheesecake at the local 'Bakkerswinkel' here in Utrecht, and it was just heavenly. Best cheesecake I ever had. And I have had cheesecake in the Cheesecake Factory. So there you go.
yup. there are two sections in the chart. the top section refers to making and baking the crust - the bottom section is the 'whole thing' - crust and filling.
heavy cream is just that used for whipped cream / schlagtsahne - methinks there's plenty available around Utrecht (g) - all that fluffy white stuff I ate had to come from somewhere . . .
Thanks for the quick answer, but when I look at the second chart (the one I was talking about), and you look at the bottom ingredient, which is the crust, then the thing saying that it should bake at a temperature of 500degreesF comes from that ingredient. The one after it, baking it at 200F, talks about all the ingredients. There the line is vertical all the way.
Otherwise the lay-out is confusing indeed. Look at the ingredient before the crust, which are the 6 large eggs. The task to mix it in in halves only refers to the eggs, right? Not to all the ingredients.
I'm really pretty sure (saying 'or am I mistaken' was just to come across as modest) that the line before the task to bake at a temperature of 500F should be vertical all the way. That's all.
In the end I bought the Dutch 'slagroom', which has 30% fat, but there is a difference with heavy cream if I can trust Wikipedia which says that heavy cream has a percentage of at least 36%.
but the bottom line to the recipe is the crust is made and baked "empty" - then the filling is added for the final baking - which of course would include both the crust and the filling....
The cake turned out lovely. It looked lovely (I made pictures - I wish I could add them here) and so it tasted.
And so I ate my first self-made cheesecake ever along the route of the Amsterdam marathon while all the marathoners looked on jealously. The taste of the raspberries I can recommend to everyone who likes them as much as I do and the cake absolutely didn't taste too lemony from the extra juice. Thanks very much for this great recipe!
And with a slightly salty kick from the biscuit base - which wasn't just like dry and crumbly digestive and neither like spongecake, but something inbetween - quite moist. Maybe just wellprepared digestive/biscuits.
Anyyway; I can not hope for you to identify this particular readymade cake, which I am almost sure must have been some recipe sourced globally in a larger chain and put under some brand towards UK/Europe. But what style of cheesecake might it have been?
I am not sure if my vague description is of any use, but who knows. Maybe some idea of where to start? There were no signs of it being baked, no crust. Just yellow-white cheesecake.
Per
I used half of the ingredient in a 9" spring pan, with glass bottom and steel side. I preheated it to 500F then baked for 8 minutes without fan since I since my cake is half your size and maybe half of your height. The cake looked brown on the edge, and the top looked really puffy but no crack at this point, and it looked white still. Then I reduced it to 200F cracked the door open (I know you said don't do it, but I thought it would help the temp to come down) for a few seconds, then kept the cake there for 1 hour without fan (convection). I think about 30 minutes into the cook I found a huge crack in the middle of the cake, but I kept cooking. Then I took it out and did all the steps you suggested without any problem, the cake didn't further crack during the cooking process and it tasted really really good. The top layer of the cake still looks white, like the original color before I baked it, with just a little dark brown on the edge.
From all the cracking post I read, it sounded like I baked too much in the 500F environment, so that the top solidified too long which caused the top to crack, right? So instead of 500F for 8 minutes, should I reduce to 5 minutes? Or you think it has more to do with I left the door open during the temp transaction from 500F to 200F?
Thank you so much for your post. I love cheesecake and finally found a recipe that makes sense.
Emma
A few things. I have used the ingredients exactly as listed in the original recipe except I've used jumbo eggs instead of large. Don't know if this matters but it works. The optional flour has always gone in and cracking has been held to a minimum. I have cheated on the graham cracker crust by buying a preformed graham cracker pie shell and breaking it up into small pieces before putting it in the springform pan. Crust prebake step is eliminated and it does work.
My changes have been in procedure. First, the order of ingredients doesn't seem to make any difference. The key seems to be time and speed. The mixer should be set at the lowest possible speed to keep air entrainment to a minimum. Bowl scraping is mandatory as, at low speed, much of the cheese will stick to the bowl sides. When baking, resist the temptation to open the oven door for a peek. The full size cheesecake recipe works very well with the times given. PREHEAT to 500 F. BAKE for 10 minutes at 500 F. DECREASE setpoint to 200 F for 100 minutes. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN TO DROP TEMPERATURE QUICKLY. After the 100 minutes, remove and cover with an INVERTED plate for the first cooling. The inverted plate collects condensate and routes it to the outside of the pan rather than dripping onto the cake. Avoid the temptation to put the cake in the refrigerator for speedier cooling. In fact, leave the cake alone until it's at room temperature, about 4 hours, before refrigeration. Remember that the cake is still cooking for a while while it's cooling, as eggs solidify at 158 F.
With regards to the previous posters-- a TRUE New York JEWISH STYLE cheesecake uses cream cheese and eggs. The original Arnold Reuben recipe (Turf Restaurant) used animal cracker crumbs for the base. A New York ITALIAN STYLE cheesecake uses ricotta cheeses instead of cream cheese. Junior's cheesecake, arguably the best in New York, uses either shortbread or brownie crumbs for the base, depending on if it's a traditional or chocolate cheesecake.
As far as using half the recipe ingredients for a smaller cake, DON'T DO IT as you're changing the thermodynamic properties of the final mass. The smaller cake will cool faster, not allowing the eggs to solidify completely and contracting faster, thereby causing increased cracking. You could probably do it by controlled cooling, dropping the 500 F bake time slightly, then decreasing to 200 F gradually over one hour. I think the cracking was the result of thermal shock with the outside contracting much faster than the inside.
If you're truly concerned about the cracks, make a strawberry or raspberry cheesecake. Follow the recipe, let everything refrigerate, then top with sliced strawberries or raspberries (the frozen ones in sugar syrup), still slightly frozen. The berries will cover the cracks and everyone will love it.
I would like to make this cheesecake, but would like to half the recipe. I have an 8-inch spring-form pan; should I use this? Or would a different size work better?
Also, all my spring-form pans are dark non-stick. Is there a limit to how high temperatures these types of pans can go?
if you go with 8" you'll need more than half the crust - 10" is 78+ sq inches, 8" 50 sq inches.
also be aware it will bake faster - so keep an eye on on it - do not go blindly by a timer.
the black non-stick pans will handle any temp your oven can generate (well, except for the self-cleaning cycle, if you've got that...)
I think your pans are just taller. The one in the photo is 2-in from base plate to rim (2.5-in if you measure the width of the band from the outside).
After 45 minutes into baking it cracked a little on a 1/4 of the cake, about 4 to 5 inches from the edge. I didn't realize until I took it out to run a knife around the edge that I forgot to grease the sides!! I am staying optimistic that that is the reason it cracked. Either way your cook times are on point.
I have a question. I was reading that a good time to take it out is when a portion of the center hasn't domed yet. Only three or so inches from the edges had domed by the time I took it out at 1 hr and 35 minutes. The thermometer literally crawled from 120 to 150. Should I have left it in for the extra 5 minutes?
Thanks.
"crunchy" is a good description - but not so hard as to be "crisp"
>>inch thick cake pan instead.
a pan three inches deep?
or is the question
cake pan vs spring form?
#1) Have ALL ingredients at room temp before starting.
#2) I use a "water bath" for my cheesecake, and the only 1 that ever broke/split on me was my very first one that I did NOT use a water bath for,,, hmmm.
*** I take a LARGE broiler pan, like the one you use to cook a turkey in, and fill it full of hot water.
Then I put it on the bottom shelf inside my oven, and let it reach the 500 degree temperature.
Then I take the ready to bake/prepared cheesecake and put in on the baking sheet and on the middle shelf in the oven.
DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR ONCE YOU BEGIN BAKING, AND DO NOT REMOVE THE WATER BATH FROM THE OVEN UNTIL THE 1 HOUR 40 MINUTE COOKING TIME HAS FINISHED.
Thanks!
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
First set oven at 350° grease a spring form pan (10 inch pan 3 inches deep) blend graham crackers melted Butter and sugar then press firmly into the bottom of the pan. Bake at 350° for 6 minutes-remove from oven and cool-Raise temperature to 425°
Cake-Ingredients and Directions
3 lbs cream cheese2
¾ cup of granulated sugar
3 tablespoons of cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
6 eggs
6 egg yolks
¾ cup light cream
1 lemon rind grated
Juice of 1 lemon
¼ teaspoon of vanilla
In a large deep bowl cream cheese until smooth, add sugar, cornstarch and salt mix until smooth. Gradually add the eggs and egg yolks (2 at a time) mixing well and scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition. Stir in the remaining ingredients And blend to a smooth batter. Pour filling into prepared pan and place this in a larger pan filled with water to the depth of approximately 1 inch. Bake at 425° for about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool while reducing oven temperature To 325° when the oven has cooled down return cake to cooled oven and add more cold water to the pan, let bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until point of knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool and chill in pan for about 2 hours before removing sides of pan –then chill.
The cake is cooling now, and apart from having a really brown crust and reaching an internal temperature of 185, all seems well with no cracking so far. I did use a walnut crust from another recipe, and I will post more details if it turns out well. Pecans would be better, but the nut selection at my local supermarket varies.
! Is it supposed to be that way? It appears to be rather liquid inside. Will it solidify more when it completely cools?
oven temperature dials & indicators are frequently off - so you need to go by how it cooking than just the clock.
I also would like to know if using the flour would result in a more firm, dense texture...............this is not what I would like! As the flour is optional, are most people just opting out (as in, not using it)?
As far as pans, I have only dark, non-stick spring-form pans...........generally, I am directed by recipes to reduce the temp by 25 degrees F if using dark non-stick. Should I do that with this recipe as well? Further more, I have read that dark non-stick pans have a heat limit, which if passed will cause smoke and other such "fun". Does anyone know if 500 degrees F is doable using dark non-stick pans?
If anyone can answer these questions, I would be most grateful. Thank you in advance!
the flour will stiffen the mix - it's likely you'd not know if it was made with or without the flour.
cheesecake is best done a lower temps - the initial 500'F temp is not maintained.
the 500'F is safe for non-stick pans for a short period.
keep the 200'F baking temp even with the dark pans.
Teflon aka PTFE starts to off-gas at about 400'F - but in 10 minutes, the pans won't get there.
For those of you who want to do cheesecake by hand, I have some suggestions:
1. Be very careful of the order in which things are mixed. The cheesecake layer in my family's concoction uses only four ingredients (cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla) but they definitely need to be mixed in the right order. Mix cream cheese with the sugar first, and the more you can beat it together, the better. The sugar crystals cut up the cream cheese so you don't have solid lumps of cream cheese in your final batter. Then add the rest, a little bit at a time. If you are careful at the first (and mix with a spoon in each hand to squash out any unmixed lumps between the spoons) it isn't that bad. At each stage of addition, make sure that you have your batter as smooth as possible.
2. The softer the cream cheese is, the easier. You can plow through cold cream cheese by dumping the sugar on top of it and scraping down the sides, but yes, your muscles will definitely tell you you've been working the next day.
3. Don't worry about "beating air in" by overmixing. I've never had this problem. Just make sure any lumps left in are only a few millimeters across (they will melt in during baking.)
A long while back there were posts asking about making this without a mixer: I can tell you it's really not a problem at all. The secret is to make sure your cream cheese is room temperature (this can take a few hours, and I've never had it spoil on me) and then to use a fork to cream it. A potato masher could also work. Hope this is helpful to someone! :)
seen and I have been cooking for 47 years.THANK YOU!!!!!
A cheesecake I've just baked, developed a medium-sized crack around the center, as it was cooling.
My first thought was "overbaked". I took it out of the oven when the thermometer read 71° C, so maybe I should have taken it out a few minutes earlier.
But after cooling and chilling it, when I finally cut into it, I was surprised to see that the filling was very soft, almost mousse-like, particularly in the center, where apparently it has not fully set and was liquidy, even.
I can't figure it out. If it hasn't fully set when the temperature reached 71° C, should I have baked it longer?
And then why did it crack while it was cooling?
(I do have an oven thermometer, and try to keep the temperature as accurate as possible).
I hope you can help me understand what went wrong, and thank you in advance!
my mum says to never cook higher than gas mark 2 because it burns everything so I wasn't sure about cooking it at gas 9(highest setting) for 10minutes while I also seen that cooking high temps is can be bad for the cheesecake
my mum says to never cook higher than gas mark 2 because it burns everything so I wasn't sure about cooking it at gas 9(highest setting) for 10minutes while I also seen that cooking high temps is can be bad for the cheesecake
So, what was the question?
I'm going to assume you are asking whether or not the instructions written in this recipe are correct and the answer is yes.
If the real question is how do you reconcile your mum's instructions vs the instructions here on this site, then there's no real answer. Perhaps your oven runs hot and gas mark 2 (normally around 325F or 165C) is actually higher than normal so anything above that burns food that is kept in there too long. There are oven thermometers that are able to handle the high heat of an oven and can give you an idea of whether or not your oven runs hot. They cost about $3-4 here in the US and I can only assume they would be a similar price if available in your country. If your oven does operate in the expected temperature ranges, then simply bake at Gas Mark 9 for ten minutes, and then lower to Gas Mark 3 for the rest of the baking process.
I'm going to assume you are asking whether or not the instructions written in this recipe are correct and the answer is yes.
If the real question is how do you reconcile your mum's instructions vs the instructions here on this site, then there's no real answer. Perhaps your oven runs hot and gas mark 2 (normally around 325F or 165C) is actually higher than normal so anything above that burns food that is kept in there too long. There are oven thermometers that are able to handle the high heat of an oven and can give you an idea of whether or not your oven runs hot. They cost about $3-4 here in the US and I can only assume they would be a similar price if available in your country. If your oven does operate in the expected temperature ranges, then simply bake at Gas Mark 9 for ten minutes, and then lower to Gas Mark 3 for the rest of the baking process.
So I made the cheesecake it wasn't bad since I had to compromise on the temperature it could be the reason I had faults but its wasn't that bad the cheesecake collapsed in towards the middle and one side didn't look right.
definitely had the right texture though
Great original recipe to start with & very easy to alter or experiment with to make something truly special. Thanks!
They crack because they have cooled too quickly or stuck to sides of your pan.
To prevent:
Tip 1 - Turn the oven off 5 minutes prior till done & let your cake cool in there for a couple hours before refrigerating.
Tip 2 - Line you pan with lightly greased wax paper to prevent it from sticking to pan. This will also make cleanup easier and should you need to move the cake to a new serving tray the wax paper will slide right off the pan without fear of losing any portion it or causing it to fall.
My dad loved this recipe, his name was also Michael and he was a pilot for Scandinavian Airlines. He planned to open a B&B and wanted to sell authentic American cheesecakes to his guests. To know how much it would cost to sell them and to know how he would bake a cheesecake so it would be perfect, he started baking cheesecakes from your recipe (when he was a pilot and divorced, he had a lot of free time, it should be added).
Dad bought special baking molds from the U.S. (because he was a pilot, he went there often) and he baked many chesecakes ... so many that he began to give them away to the nearest pub (where they were given away as a dessert for their VIP guests) so he did not have to throw them away. These cheesecakes became really popular in our family and among our friends. People who said they did not like cheesecakes, loved them. He was sadly concluded that it would be too expensive to sell cheesecakes for his potential B&B so he ended up baking them. Around the same time he received a terrible news, he had cancer, and my father passed away in June 2011.
One time he showed me the website that he found the recipe. "Chesecakes for engineers," he said proudly, and he showed me the recipe and told me how much he struggled to make it as perfect as possible. I googled my way to this page and found the recipe and now, I am going to give it a try and bake a perfect cheesecake. I just wanted to tell you one of my memories that I have left, of my fun (and restless) dad, and tell you how your recipe has become a fond memory for my family.
/Maria
My dad also had cancer, and passed away just now.
I hadn't made NY cheesecake in awhile, but just made one. After which it delved me back into deep research about NY cheesecake, and it brought me back to this site, reading the whole thread again and seeing how it has slowly grown.
I grabbed the idea from two separate recipes and now have an awesome White Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberry Swirl.
Now want to land the perfrect ten and make three smaller cheesecakes.
Anyone try this yet and have success. Temperatures and Times?
Thanks,
Steve
If so to what?
Do you run a knife around the edge of the springform pan or is it ok without that?
I tried these temperatures in this sort of oven and by the time I got to 7 minutes at 500 deg F (250 C) the top of the cake had burned even though the cake was placed on the middle-bottom rack of the oven.
:angry:
So, after 10 minutes I turned it down to 200 degrees and never opened the door (that was torture while I watched it burn)
It was still gooey and 130 degrees at 1 hour and 40 minutes. I had to test the temp several times so I didn't overcook (did it anyways, the temp went from 140 up to 160 degrees in probably 5 minutes. Grrr.
I haven't tasted it, but I am really worried. I don't have time to make another one. I used an amazing recipe for my first one, and messed it up, so I decided to try yours. I had to substitute lemon peel for the lemon juice because I didn't expect to make another cheesecake
I increased the vanilla to 2 tbsp and our business has huckleberries, so either I will make my own sauce, or use our Huckleberry syrup or preserves on it.
I will let you know how it tastes tomorrow. Crossing my fingers for it to taste as amazing as everyone else's. I also scraped vanilla seeds into it for the flecks because we can't sell the drier vanilla. I make my own vanilla extract to use these pods we cannot sell anymore. I use distilled vodka and make everlasting vanilla extract. It is thick and very flavorful. Anyways, I put my own twist on it, because I LOVE my vanilla extract so anytime I bake, I have to use the vanilla seeds and/or the seeds. I hope that didn't ruin the cheesecake flavor.
Out of curiousity, can any of these changes ruin the cheesecake? I am not a scientist. Did I mess up the cheesecake by tweeking the recipe? Like the cracking and burning?
Sorry for the lengthy post. I wish you would make a 2nd recipe for high altitude. No one has any high altitude recipes.
PS, if it turns out really good, can I post this recipe on my website? I would need to tweek the recipe, to add the vanilla. Always looking for recipes using our products! Even if the huckleberry syrup or preserves taste good.
Do you have a great recipe for candy cap mushrooms? Or using vanilla that I can use on - Or any other products that would work with our products? How to make a sauce with huckleberries? Huckleberries are sweet and tart! So a recipe that would cut some of the tart and bring out the sweet?
I wish there was more information on line that was the same. Some say that we increase this and decrease that, and then ones that say not to change anything and bake longer. I wish more people that would post recipes that are good, such as the New York Style cheesecake. I would like to know that exact baking time that you would need to make it work. Cheesecake is very time consuming and not cheap to ruin. The first one I made, I made the mistake of putting very little sugar because of the way it is written. Imagine using 3/4 cup of sugar when it calls for 1 3/4 Cups! It is very very dense, you cannot cut the crust, and okay tasting, just not as strong.
Looking forward to drizzlingover it, it may make it perfect since I didn't put enough sugar over it.
I've been looking for a good cheesecake recipe and I found this one in January 2015, and it came out amazing. I couldn't be more pleased and all of the comments from other bakers has helped. I lost this recipe until just today I finally found it by Googling 'cheesecake recipe that starts at 500°' and I cried when I found it because I've read other recipes and just didn't even care to trY. My husband loves this cake and his birthday is tomorrow. thank you thank you thank you for sharing this wonderfully delicious recipe and your skills on how to get it perfect. If I could I'd hug you! Thanks again.....Sarah.
Can you help? THANKS!
here's one that promises density
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/8229/new-york-cheesecake-iii/
(you can make the crust to your preference, use the filling for dense)
I make about 5 or 6 of these things every year for various family shindigs and here's what I've found, mostly thru trial and error.
Run your mixer at the lowest possible speed. Running too fast will incorporate air into the mix and fluff it up. If your mixer stalls at low speed, get a better mixer. Oh, yeah, don't try to hurry the mixing. I usually run the mix cycle for at least 15 minutes.
Scrape the bowl while mixing. Otherwise, you're guaranteed to have cream cheese globs in the cake.
I always use jumbo eggs for everything I make. Works great in this recipe.
Experiment with the vanilla. I always double up and everyone loves it. Don't use the imitation stuff. The flavor WILL be different.
Head for your local Goodwill or Salvation Army store and pick up one of those tiny food processors that were such a fad a few years ago (grind fresh spices, grind fresh coffee and so on). The size of those bowls is perfect for one wrapped pack of graham crackers. That processor will grind it up to powder.
While we're on the mini processor kick, ignore the melted butter. Once the crackers are powdered, add the unmelted butter to the processor and run it until the butter's "distributed". It will act as a binder for the powder. Coat the pan with some baking spray.
Since the butter acts as a binder, don't worry about pressing the base with a flat bottomed whatever. I still can't find one. Just pour the batter out slowly.
The first cake I made, I pre-baked the crust per instructions. The second, I didn't. No discernible difference.
I've tried to incorporate things like strawberries, raspberries, chocolate and so on with no success. Maybe someone can give me a hint. I have spread the crust with M&M's before pouring in the batter. That one worked very well.
Follow the times exactly. This is another thing you can't rush. Fight the urge to open the oven door to check things out.
Once the cake is out of the oven, let it rest. On the counter until room temperature, then into the refrigerator. Putting it in the fridge immediately is guaranteed to crack the top.
I slice up 3 granny smith apples, lightly saute them with a very small amount of brown sugar, then put the apple mixture in the bottom of the springform on top of the graham crackers. Then pour in the cheesecake mixture. Bake as normal. Just don't use too juicy an apple pie filling as it tends to want to then overcook the graham crackers.
Granny Smith Apple Pie Cheesecake!
It's a HUGE hit at the holidays...
I Made this €heesecake &
let me tell ya.., the fact that it's SUPER EASY & pretty much "foolproof", STILL blows me away! And Mmm'an, did it taste soo. . ,"Dangerously Delicious"!! Just thinking about it makes my mouth water! (Nxt time I make one, I'm TOTALLY gonna DOUBLE UP the ingredients! Lol.
*IF you or someone you care about likes cheesecake, Oh "mmm"y goshhh!... THIS RECEIPE IS A MUST !! :) (satisfaction guarenteed!)
Each cheesecake 2000g.
Baking top and bottom - why the difference in temperature and consistency.
The top two takes longer to reach 150f but firmer. The bottom two quicker to reach temp but more jiggly.
Thank you
a really small oven could take a bit longer - nothing like 2x the time tho.
start checking at the predicted time and adjust as needed.
if the cheesecakes are on two different rack - for example one high and one low in the oven - that can throw the timing off. I'd probably swap their positions midway through the bake time.
not sure I understand the question of "baking top & bottom"
if you mean the top of the cheesecake vs. the bottom, the tops "air dry" a bit while baking.
gas burners requires a minimum amount of gas and air to remain lit - it may be the case on your model that produces enough heat to make 300'
if it is supposed to go lower, but does not - you should have a professional look at it - fooling with gas is not a good DIY project.
Nabisco is the maker. Here is manufacture's website. http://www.nabiscoworld.com/honeymaid/
Hello.
To overcome the language barrier, perhaps you could understand what they were made of, so that we can understand what they made of themselves.
thanks for your links.
Ben