Best Cakey Cheesecake Recipes

THE BEST CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F.
• For the crust: Put the butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl, cover with a paper towel and melt in the microwave in 10-second increments. Brush a 9-inch springform pan with some of the melted butter.
• Stir together the remaining butter with the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and salt. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan, taking care to get the crust evenly to the edges. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool. Place the pan on a large sheet of foil and wrap up the sides. Place in a roasting pan.
• For the cheesecake: Beat together the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the sour cream and vanilla and beat until just combined. Mix in the eggs by hand, one at a time, until just combined. (Take care not to overmix or the cheesecake will puff up and crack.) Pour the batter evenly over the crust, smoothing the top. Pour enough hot water into the roasting pan to come about halfway up the sides of the foil-wrapped springform pan. Bake until the outside of the cake is set but the center is still slightly loose, about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
• Turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour. Remove the cheesecake from the roasting pan to a cooling rack. Run a knife around the edge and cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours.
• Run a knife around the edge of the pan once more and unlock to unmold the cheesecake. Transfer to a serving platter or cake stand and smooth the edges with a knife.

TALL AND CREAMY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

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

JAPANESE CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment. Place a 3 1/2-inch-wide strip of parchment around the inside of the pan so that it comes up about 1 inch higher than the edge; set aside.
• Heat the cream cheese, milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk together the vanilla, egg yolks and lemon juice in a large bowl until smooth. Pour the cooled milk mixture into the yolk mixture and whisk until smooth and combined. Whisk in the flour and cornstarch until combined; set aside.
• Beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the granulated sugar and continue beating on medium speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes longer.
• Gently fold the egg white mixture into the yolk mixture in 3 batches, making sure not to overmix (you want the whites to stay as fluffy as possible). As soon as the white streaks disappear from the batter, pour it into the prepared pan.
• Place the cake pan inside of a larger pan and pour enough hot water into the larger pan so that it comes 1 inch up the sides of the cake pan. Bake for 30 minutes, then reduce the oven to 250 degrees F and continue baking until the cake is doubled in size, golden brown on top and around the edges and jiggly in the center but set, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
• Let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Carefully invert the cake onto your dominant hand (right onto your palm--this is the most gentle way to handle it), then invert it back onto a cake stand or plate so that the top is facing up. Sprinkle the entire top with confectioners' sugar and serve while still warm.

OUR BEST CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix graham crumbs, butter and 1/4 cup sugar; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.
• Beat cream cheese and remaining sugar in large bowl with mixer until blended. Add sour cream and vanilla; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over crust.
• Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 min. or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim. Refrigerate cheesecake 4 hours.
• Top with pie filling before serving.

TRADITIONAL CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs and sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Grease the sides only of a 9-in. springform pan; press crumb mixture onto bottom of pan. Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack., In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in lemon juice and vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Pour filling onto crust. Return pan to baking sheet. , Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer., Refrigerate overnight. Serve with Raspberry Sauce and Sour Cream Topping if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

CAKE 'N CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Cheesecake topping:.
• Beat cream cheese and sugar together until well blended, then mix in sour cream and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time, then set aside.
• Cake batter:.
• Sift dry ingredients together. Cream butter and sugar, then beat in eggs, then milk and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients.
• Grease and flour a deep 9-inch Pyrex pie plate, or a 9 x 9-inch square pan. Spread cake batter over bottom and sides, spreading much thinner on sides. Spoon cheesecake mixture over batter.
• Bake at 325° for 40-45 minutes, until cheesecake is set. Spread with sour cream topping, then return to oven for another 5 minutes. Cool, then refrigerate at least 4 hours.
• Sour cream topping:.