My basic New York cheesecake recipe makes a wealthy and creamy cheesecake with a easy bitter cream topping. There may be NO water bathtub wanted for my recipe! Recipe features a how-to video!
Cheesecake With Bitter Cream Topping
A must have to your vacation dessert desk, this New York cheesecake is straight from my grandmother’s recipe e book. She’s been making it for many years, and it’s been a beloved household staple for generations. Everybody in my household appears to be like ahead to it throughout the vacation season (amongst a lot of her different recipes, like sand tarts, apple dumplings, and coconut cake)!
In comparison with my basic cheesecake, that is fairly a bit completely different, however it’s so good. It has a wealthy custardy filling and crumbly crust (each of that are completely different from my different recipe), however the actual star right here is the bitter cream topping. It’s easy and candy, and it simply so occurs to cover any cracks which may occur throughout baking–it’s magic ✨
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- NO FUSSY WATER BATH NEEDED! Identical to the remainder of my cheesecake recipes, we’re skipping the water bathtub immediately. I hardly ever have points with my cheesecakes cracking, and that’s as a result of I observe my fundamental cheesecake suggestions talked about all through this put up (and even when it does crack, you’re going to be masking it anyway!).
- Might be baked in a 9 or 10″ springform pan. My grandmother at all times made this in a ten″ pan, however I often keep on with my 9″ pan. Word that should you do use a ten″ pan, your bake time will probably be nearer to 60 minutes.
- Excellent for making forward of time, because it wants to sit back for a number of hours (or ideally, in a single day!).
- Stands by itself fantastically, however may also be dressed up along with your favourite fruit or different topping (we adore it plain, however wish to get fancy with strawberry sauce or raspberry sauce, whipped cream, scorching fudge sauce or salted caramel sauce.
Additionally, whereas my household calls this a New York type cheesecake, I do know there are various completely different opinions on what New York cheesecake actually is. I discuss extra about this beneath and would like to know should you agree!
Elements
Earlier than we start, let’s discuss a number of of the necessary substances in my recipe. Don’t skip this part in case you are a newbie cheesecake baker!
- Bitter cream. You will have a pint of full-fat bitter cream for the topping. I haven’t tried this recipe with full-fat plain Greek yogurt, however I’ve sturdy suspicions it will work.
- Cream cheese. We’re utilizing three bricks of cream cheese for this recipe. Identical to when making my turtle cheesecake or blueberry cheesecake, it’s SO necessary that you just don’t use low-fat or spreadable cream cheese! Make certain this has softened to room temperature earlier than starting; I discuss why that is so necessary beneath.
- Vanilla extract. Common vanilla will work, however I particularly love my home made vanilla extract on this recipe–the little flecks of vanilla beans are so fairly!
- Eggs. I like to recommend ensuring that your eggs are at room temperature earlier than starting, and be very light when including them to the batter. Over-mixing the eggs could be so detrimental to cheesecake!
- Butter. Right this moment’s crust makes use of much less butter than my customary cheesecake crust. This explicit cheesecake filling could be very liquidy, so utilizing a extra dry crust minimizes the probabilities of leaking and having a soggy backside.
SAM’S TIP: It’s so necessary for all your chilly substances to be at room temperature. Chilly cream cheese will probably be tough to combine and virtually at all times leads to a lumpy texture. Chilly eggs are a good greater drawback and would require way more effort to include them into the batter. This could trigger all kinds of points, from a sunken cheesecake to a mealy texture.
That is simply an summary of the substances I used and why. For the complete recipe please scroll all the way down to the underside of the put up!
Make New York Cheesecake
Make the crust
Stir collectively the graham cracker crumbs and sugar till mixed, then stir within the melted butter (ensure that it’s cooled down first!). When every thing is correctly mixed, the crumbs will probably be calmly moistened and the combination will appear sandy.
This explicit crust is a little more crumbly than my different cheesecake crusts and my go-to graham cracker crust, so it’s possible you’ll not be capable of press it has excessive up the perimeters as standard (although should you can, it would assist forestall cracks). Put aside when you put together your filling–there isn’t a must pre-bake the crust.
With a lot of my cheesecakes (like my chocolate cheesecake and pumpkin cheesecake), I often suggest you press the crust as excessive up the perimeters of the springform pan as you possibly can to stop cracks, however it’s actually not needed right here. The truth is, my mother and grandmother (who’ve made this recipe for years) often don’t. It’s actually fairly tough to press this crust up the perimeters, because it’s so crumbly earlier than it’s baked. Fortunately, cracks hardly ever occur with this recipe, and even when they do, we’re going to be hiding them with the bitter cream topping. All this to say — don’t stress it!
Make the batter
Beat the cream cheese and sugar simply till easy and creamy. Beating the cream cheese with the sugar helps work out any lumps, however don’t beat for too lengthy on too excessive of a velocity as you don’t wish to whip an excessive amount of air into the cheesecake. Periodically scrape the perimeters and backside of your bowl throughout this course of to verify there are not any lumps hiding in your bowl.
Relating to the eggs, gently beat them individually first, then add them in one after the other and blend till simply included after every addition. That is going to maintain from whipping in an excessive amount of air and helps maintain the filling of the New York cheesecake appropriately easy and custardy.
Bake & add the topping
Bake on a lined baking sheet till the perimeters are set and the middle is jiggly and jello-like. You should utilize a thermometer to substantiate that the cheesecake is completed (search for 165F/74C). Take away from the oven (depart it on!) and put aside when you put together the bitter cream topping.
End the cheesecake
My grandmother’s recipe requires letting the cheesecake relaxation for five minutes earlier than you start making the topping. This step has by no means failed me, so take a fast pause.
Then, whisk the bitter cream, sugar, and vanilla collectively till easy (you should use an electrical mixer or a whisk), then evenly pour over your cheesecake.
Bake 5 minutes extra, then take away and let cool at room temperature for an hour or so earlier than transferring to the fridge to sit back. Don’t panic if it appears to be like like nothing has modified with the bitter cream topping if you take it out of the oven, it has and it’ll arrange fantastically after a stint within the fridge!
SAM’S TIP: I maintain my cheesecake in its springform pan till I’m able to serve, then I simply take away the collar and serve immediately from the pan. When I’m able to retailer it once more, I put the collar again on and canopy with foil or plastic wrap. Simple peasy!
Spruce Up Your Cheesecake!
- Swap the crust. Use an Oreo crust as a substitute of a basic graham cracker crust. Word that I like to recommend utilizing the crust from my Oreo cheesecake as a substitute of my basic Oreo crust, which might leak out of your springform pan.
- Add a topping. A number of of my favorites embrace caramel sauce, chocolate ganache, macerated strawberries, a drizzle of lemon curd, or a dollop of blueberry sauce.
- Add lemon zest. Add a teaspoon of recent lemon zest to the batter for a refined citrus observe! In the event you actually desire a sturdy lemon taste, attempt my lemon cheesecake.
- Freeze it! Cheesecake freezes surprisingly properly, both entire or by the slice (and it really tastes fairly good frozen too!). I discuss how to do that within the FAQ part beneath.
Regularly Requested Questions
Whereas completely different completely different folks have completely different concepts of precisely what meaning, we’ve at all times referred to as a New York cheesecake one which has a bitter cream topping on high. My basic cheesecake recipe has bitter cream baked proper into it. This model is extra creamy/custardy than my basic model, which is extra agency.
This recipe doesn’t want a water bathtub, and utilizing one might even trigger points. So long as you observe my suggestions listed above (use room temperature substances, no over-mixing, cool slowly, and so on.), you need to have a crack-free cheesecake.
If for some purpose you do get a crack (it occurs!), we’ll be masking it proper up with our bitter cream topping. Nobody will know! 😉
It positive can! Simply ensure that to retailer it in an hermetic container so it doesn’t soak up any freezer smells. You may let it sit within the fridge to thaw in a single day, or get pleasure from it semi-frozen (yum!).
Whereas we serve this recipe yr spherical in my family, it at all times makes an look on the vacation dessert tables, so I’m actually excited to listen to should you resolve to make it to your personal get-togethers this yr!
Get pleasure from!
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New York Cheesecake
Servings: 12 servings
Energy: 375kcal
Stop your display from going darkish
Directions
For the crust
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Preheat oven to 300F (150C).
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Mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar In a medium-sized bowl and stir collectively. Add melted butter and use a fork to stir collectively till crumbs are moistened.
1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs, 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar, 4 Tablespoons (55 g) unsalted butter
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Pour crumbs into 9” springform pan and firmly press into the underside and up the perimeters of your pan (if the crust received’t go all the way in which up the facet of your pan don’t stress, my grandmother and my mom usually make this recipe simply urgent the crust flat into the underside, both works!). Put aside.
For the cheesecake
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Mix cream cheese and sugar in a big mixing bowl (or within the bowl of a stand mixer, utilizing the paddle attachment) and use an electrical mixer to beat till easy and creamy (don’t over-beat otherwise you’ll add in an excessive amount of air). Scrape the perimeters and backside of the bowl to verify there are not any lumps after which stir briefly once more.
24 oz (630 g) brick type cream cheese, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
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Add vanilla extract and salt and stir till mixed, scraping the perimeters and backside of the bowl with a spatula to make sure all substances are properly included.
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon desk salt
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With the mixer on low velocity, add calmly overwhelmed eggs, one at time, stirring simply till every egg is included into the batter. Scrape the perimeters and backside of the bowl with a spatula once more to make sure all substances are combined.
5 eggs
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Pour cheesecake batter into ready springform pan and place on a parchment or foil lined baking sheet. Switch to middle rack of 300F (150C) preheated oven and bake for 60-70 minutes. To inform that the cheesecake is completed, give it a lightweight jostle. The middle will nonetheless be jiggly (like jello) however the edges ought to be set. In the event you nonetheless aren’t positive if it’s performed, you should use an instantaneous learn thermometer to examine the temperature of the middle of the cheesecake, it ought to learn a minimum of 165F/74C.
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When cheesecake is completed baking, take away from the oven and let cool at room temperature for five minutes earlier than getting ready the topping (depart the oven on because the cheesecake will return.)
For the topping
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After the cheesecake has cooled for five minutes, mix bitter cream, sugar, and vanilla extract and use an electrical mixer to beat collectively till totally mixed.
2 cups (454 g) 1 pint bitter cream, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
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Pour combination evenly over the cheesecake and return to the 300F (150C) oven for five minutes.
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Take away cheesecake from the oven and permit to chill for a minimum of an hour earlier than transferring to the fridge to sit back in a single day, or a minimum of 6 hours, earlier than serving.
Notes
Pan
This recipe can also be baked in a ten” springform pan (simply press the crust immediately into the underside of the pan)
Storing
Cowl springform pan with foil or plastic wrap and retailer within the fridge for as much as 5 days. I serve my cheesecake proper within the springform pan it’s cooked in, I take away the collar to slice and serve it after which return the collar for storage.
Vitamin
Serving: 1serving | Energy: 375kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 13g | Fats: 15g | Saturated Fats: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 1g | Monounsaturated Fats: 4g | Trans Fats: 0.2g | Ldl cholesterol: 108mg | Sodium: 530mg | Potassium: 253mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 484IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 258mg | Iron: 1mg
Dietary info relies on third-party calculations and ought to be thought of an estimate solely. Precise dietary content material will fluctuate primarily based upon manufacturers used, measuring strategies, cooking technique, portion sizes, and extra.
