how do you make a good homemade cheesecake?

Answer 1

This is from Good Eats on the Food Network:
Crust:
33 graham cracker squares, crumbled
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus additional, for brushing the pan
1 tablespoon sugar
Filling:
20 ounces cream cheese
1 1/4 cups sour cream
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 yolks
1/3 cup heavy cream


Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Brush some of the melted butter around a 9 by 3-inch cake pan. Adhere parchment to the bottom and the sides.
In a small bowl, combine crumbled graham crackers, the remaining melted butter, and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Press 2/3 of the mixture into the bottom of the parchment-lined pan. Place remaining crumbs on a sheet pan and bake both the crust and the remaining mixture for 10 minutes. Cool. Reserve additional crumb mixture for sides.

In a mixer with a paddle attachment, beat sour cream for 10 seconds. Add the cream cheese and sugar and mix on low for 30 seconds and then turn up to medium. Scrape the bowl.

In a separate container, combine vanilla, eggs, yolks, and heavy cream. With the mixer on medium, slowly pour the liquid mixture in. When half of it is incorporated, stop and scrape. Continue adding the mixture until the rest of the ingredients are incorporated. Once completely combined, pour into the cooled crust.

Lower oven temperature to 250 degrees F. Place cheesecake into a preheated water bath, in the oven for 1 hour. Turn the oven off and open the door for one minute. Close the door for one more hour. Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and place in the refrigerator for 6 hours to completely cool before serving.

When ready to serve, place the entire cake pan into a hot water bath for about 15 seconds. Unmold onto a cake round or serving dish. Take the remaining graham cracker mixture and press into the sides of the cake.

To slice, place your knife into a hot water bath and wipe dry each time you make a pass through the cake.

Answer 2

allrecipes.com, go to cheesecake supreme.The baking time had to be increased to about 3 1/2 hours in order to set the cake, I did the toothpick test, and when it came out with cheesecake, not batter, on it, it was done, but this is a great recipe, I have made it many times. Very rich and cheesecakey.
My personal trick is to cool the cake, remove it from the pan and its bottom onto a flat surface, then cut it. It was easy, I just took the long knife I use for angel cake, and separated the crust from pan. I put the individual slices on a tray, freeze them, then wrap them well. Anytime any one wants cheesecake, I pull out that many slices, it doesn't take long to thaw. I always though cheesecake was difficult to make, it wasn't, no worse than a cake, the only big deal is to dedicate 3 1/2 hours to baking it.
And Sony is right, that is exactly where I got my springforn pans, I got 3 in the package for about$8, less than one would cost at the fancy kitchen store,. And they hade little cute mini ones for just over $3.
And I skipped the water bath, but it is very humid here. Dry climate or kitchen? I wouldn't skip it.

Answer 3

Plain Cheesecake
1 1/2 lbs. cream cheese at room temperature

1 C. sugar

4 eggs

1 t. vanilla

1 t. almond extract

1/2 C. sour cream

Bake this cheesecake in a 9 inch cake pan. Cut a parchment circle to fit the bottom.

Blend cream cheese and sugar well with mixer. Add eggs 1 at time, until well blended. Add vanilla, almond extract and sour cream. Pour into pan.

Place a pan filled with 8 C. boiling water in the oven to create a moist oven.

Bake for 15 minutes at 400°F. and then turn oven down to 225°F. for 50 minutes, or until center is set. Turn oven off and let cheesecake set in oven 1 hour before chilling.

To remove cake from pan, take a knife and run it around the edges. Place a cardboard disc on top of pan and turn cheesecake over onto it. Remove parchment paper. Place your serving dish on the bottom of the cheesecake and turn it over.

Answer 4

Check out the recipe below. It's from this show on the Food Network called "Tyler's Ultimate". I tried this cheesecake and I'll never look for another cheesecake recipe again. Just remember to buy a spring form pan and take out the cheesecake after about 50 minutes, even though it's a little jiggly. Just chill or freeze until it's ready to eat. You don't want to bake it until it's firm or it will be overcooked and it won't taste good.

Answer 5

If you want something different than just plain cheesecake, this one's a good one.

Orange Chocolate Cheesecake:
INGREDIENTS:
CRUST:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
FILLING:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
5 eggs
2 tablespoons orange juice
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest

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DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). In a medium bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter until well blended. Press into the bottom and 1 1/2 inches up the side of a 9 inch springform pan.
Bake for 10 minutes. In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt chocolate, stirring occasionally until smooth. Set aside to cool, but do not allow to harden.
In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese and 1 cup sugar until smooth. Mix in the eggs, one at a time on a low speed, or by hand. Gradually stir in the orange juice, and orange zest. Reserve 2 cups of the batter. Pour the remaining batter over the baked crust. Stir the melted chocolate into the reserved batter. Drop the chocolate batter by large spoonfuls onto the white batter. Use a knife to cut through the batter, and leave a swirling design.
Bake for 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the center is almost set. Run a spatula or thin knife around the edge of the pan while it is still warm, so the cake will not crack. Allow cake to cool completely before removing the sides of the pan. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.

Answer 6

There are lots of good recipes that you can find on line but the real trick is in having a good set of spring form pans. If you don't have any, you can find them rather inexpensively at WalMart - no need to pay a fortune at some really expensive place.

Answer 7

go to razzle dazzle recipes