Simple Cheesecake - No longer fear baking a cheesecake!

Do you just excited, maybe even start to feel a food high, when certain ingredients are involved in a dish/meal/dessert? Cream Cheese is one of those ingredients that gets me excited. It's never just the cream cheese alone however. In this case it's the combination of cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, vanilla…that gets me to that place of bliss. Of course, there are some more ingredients and a bit of time to get to the place a bliss, a cheesecake. 

I've been a fan of cheesecake since the first bite. I used to eat those cheesecakes you can buy from the grocery until I finally decided to get over the fear of baking my own. I always heard horror stories about people ruining their cheesecake and how difficult it could be. Finally one day I just decided to give it a go. I was even more brave than I thought because I altered my very first recipe, just a little. They turned out just great though! And let me say that I'm glad I made my own, it is HEAVEN in comparison to the ones you can get at the grocery store! 

I'm here to tell you do NOT fear making cheesecake! It's insanely simple! All you need to do is make sure you have water in the oven and you don't bake it to long. Another tip to making it a simple process, pre-made graham cracker crust. Yes, I cheat sometimes if it makes it just a little more simple but doesn't sacrifice flavor or quality. 

All excitement aside (trying to not type to fast and go bake one now) you do need to have patience. See, I already have a patience issue just in typing out these words. That said, if I can wait for the cheesecake to bake and cool COMPLETELY, so can you. :-) I remember the first time I made cheesecake and I didn't have the patience. After the cheesecake had cooled to room temperature, I tasted. Horrible idea! It was a weird texture and the taste of all the ingredients when warm, NOT good. I learned my lesson and gained the patience to wait for it to rest in the fridge for 3-4 hours. It's worth the wait. 

On to the recipe…I found the original recipe on foodnetwork.com by Emeril Lagasse (I wish his show was still on TV…BAM!). The recipe I have has since been updated and replaced on the site with different measurements. The recipe is actually for a Chocolate New York Cheesecake. I'm moody when it comes to chocolate and desserts. I can kill a chocolate bar any day at any time, but when it comes to cakes and desserts, I'm moody. I know what you're thinking and I don't get it either. So, when it came to making a cheesecake the amount of cream cheese in this one was what got me hooked. I knew I wanted it to be plain so I simply left out the chocolate. Yes, feel free to scream at me you chocolate lovers! 

I usually have some kinda of sauce on hand (usually Caramel, recipe here) to top the cheesecake with. This time around I made a strawberry sauce from frozen strawberries my Grandparents brought home from Florida. You can top this with chocolate if you so wish. The possibilities are really endless. :-) Enjoy!

Strawberry Sauce

Caramel Sauce

Simple Cheesecake        [Printable Recipe]

From: thedreamdaycafe.com 

Adapted from Emeril Lagasse New York Chocolate Cheesecake

Recipe yields 2 cheesecakes.

Ingredients:

• 2 pre-made graham cracker pie shells

• 4 - 8 oz packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped 
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla
• 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Preheat one to 350 and have a pan of water in the oven…see note below.
2. In the bowl of a mixer combine the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and vanilla bean and beat until light and creamy. 
3. Add the flour to the cream cheese mixture and beat until just smooth.
4. Add the sour cream and beat until mixed well.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, until just mixed.
6. Pour the batter into prepared pie shells. 
7. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes. switch oven rack halfway through. Cheesecakes are done when the center is almost set. If the cheesecake starts to crack, it IS done! Not over done, it will still be fine, but it shouldn't crack.
8. Let the cheesecake cool completely and the refrigerate for at least 4 hours. As hard as it may be to not eat the cheesecakes when cool, they MUST cool in the refrigerator.

1. NOTE:  Water in the oven is KEY to having a good cheesecake. I usually place my pie shells in a full sheet cake pan and add water to that. You could easily use two 9x13 pans by placing each cheesecake in the pan and adding water, about half full. If you don't have two 9x13 pans, use one and fill it half way with water. Place the cheesecakes on one rack and the pan of water on the other rack.