Cheesecake is a delicious dessert with a creamy, sweet and creamy texture. It is also an essential dessert in restaurants around New York. So let’s start with the standard New York cheesecake. It really is the cheesecake that other cheesecakes measure up against. It’s rich, it’s decadent and it starts with a Graham cracker crust.
CRUST INGREDIENTS
– 1 cup (225 g) graham cracker crumbs
– 2 Tbsp (25 g) sugar
– ¼ cup (80 g) unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing the pan
CHEESECAKE INGREDIENTS:
– 4 pkg or 2 pounds of good quality packaged cream cheese, stored at room temperature
– 1 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp (275 g) sugar
– 3 Tbsp (22 g) cornstarch
– 2 tsp (10 ml) vanilla extract
– 2 tsp (4 g) finely grated lemon zest
– 3 large whole eggs – 1 large egg yolk
– 1 ½ cup (375 ml) fatty sour cream
– 2 tsp (10 ml) lemon juice
The Crust
Preheated oven 350ºF (176 C).
Measure a cup of Graham cracker, to which you will have to add a few teaspoons of sugar.
Now add the quarter cup of melted butter which has to be mixed with the Graham cracker until the cookie is well covered. Line the bottom of a cake pan (preferably non-stick) with the mixture, tamp down well.
Now, bake the mixture in the preheated oven for 10 min.
In New York, everything is big and sassy, so think of a lot of cream cheese, 4 packets, basically, 2 pounds of cream cheese kept at room temperature.
The Cake
Now whip cream cheese, from a cup of sugar incorporate a quarter the cream cheese, then gradually add the remaining sugar. Do not forget to scrape the bottom of your container each time and at each step, you can avoid the formation of lumps in your cheesecake.
It’s time to add the remaining ingredients. Include a spoonful of Maizena Corn Starch, this adds a velvety texture to our cheese.
Then add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and lemon zest to accentuate the taste of the cream.
Now for the eggs, add 3 eggs and 1 yolk egg to add texture to the mixture.
While you add my eggs, do rotate your beater gently because you don’t want to whip your cream too much at this point because it will get bigger due to the heat of the oven then contract as it cools and there, a crack can ruin the whole cake.
The last ingredient that has to be incorporated into the mixture is the key to New York cheesecake, it is the sour cream. 3/4 of a cup will be added to the mixture, this allows to add a burst of taste to the cake. The last step is to butter/grease the container.
Baking the cake
Bake the cheesecake for 10 minutes at 400ºF (205 C) and then reduce the oven temperature to 225ºF (107 C) and bake for 25 more minutes. Turn off the oven, and leave the cheesecake in for an hour, cracking the oven door after 30 minutes. While the cheesecake is baking, prepare the sour cream layer.
The finishing touches
Then at this point, turn off the oven and I leave the cheesecake for 1 hour to cool down. After 30 min has passed, open the oven to let the oven cool.
Then take the leftover 3/4 of a cup of sour cream and soften with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. Now spread the mixture on the surface of your cheesecake. Now you will have to will leave the cheesecake aside, while leaving it preserving at room temperature before putting it in the refrigerator for 6 hrs to set.
Each time you slice the cake try to wipe the knife to get perfect slices.
Serve chilled with fruits like strawberry, blueberries, and cranberries.