This has been our favorite cheesecake for years! It‘s a recipe from a Martha Stewart catalogue I found maybe 12 years ago. I’ve made it every year for Shawn’s birthday. Martha Stewart likes to write her recipes in what seems like a foreign language, so I’ve rewritten it for you in a way that’s easier to understand 😉.
Ingredients
Crust
12 full sheets of graham crackers
1/4 c sugar
1/4 tsp salt
5 T melted butter
Filling
5 8oz blocks of cream cheese room temperature
1 1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp finely grated lemon peel
1 T fresh lemon juice
4 eggs
1 c sour cream
Preheat oven 375. Generously butter a spring form pan being sure to coat the bottom and sides very well. Wrap outside of pan in foil. In a Magic Bullet or food processor pulse graham crackers until fine. Add melted butter, sugar and salt. Mix well. Press mixture into bottom of the pan and about an inch up the sides. Bake 12 minutes. Let cool.
Reduce temperature to 325. Cream cream cheese until well blended and fluffy. Add sugar. Then add salt, lemon zest and juice. Beat in eggs and sour cream.
Pour mixture into pan and set in a roasting pan. Pour boiling water into roasting pan filling until water comes half way up your springform pan. Bake until set. 1 hour 45 minutes.
Remove from roasting pan. Let cool 10 minutes. Use a knife to loosen around the edges and remove pan sides. Store covered in fridge.
*Optional: Top with caramel sauce or raspberry compote.
People tend to think good homemade cheesecake is hard, but it really is quite simple once you make a few mistakes and learn from them!! True story: I forgot the sugar one time. Shawn took one big bite and couldn’t choke it down. 😂. I had to make the whole thing all over again. Lesson 1....lay out all ingredients and set aside once used. Then you know if you’ve missed something. 😉
Here are are a few tips I’ve learned about making this New York treat:
1. The first step to a perfect cheesecake is the cream cheese. Mix and mix until your cream cheese is super smooth. If you have lumps now, you will have a lumpy cheesecake.
2. Use the extra large foil to wrap your spring form pan to keep water from seeping in making your crust soggy.
3. I have used several different ovens and the cooking time has always been spot on. Be sure to set your timer for 10 minutes to cool. Use a buttered knife to go along the edge and then release your spring form pan.
4. Let cool completely before storing to keep condensation from forming and making a soggy crust.
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