Classic New York Cheesecake Recipe
If you’re a cheesecake fan, look no further this recipe for the best New York cheesecake of your life! The cheesecake itself is smooth, creamy, rich, sweet yet tangy, and dare I say just the best. This decadent New York cheesecake is set on top of a buttery graham cracker crust. This classic cheesecake recipe is based on my incredible Samoa Cheesecake recipe I recently published. I realized that I don’t have a recipe for a classic New York style cheesecake so now is the time. And in case you need one, here is the Best No Bake Cheesecake recipe that my readers just adore. If you’re nervous about making cheesecake from scratch, don’t be! A water bath and some cooling time may seem cumbersome, but I promise that these steps are easy follow. When you sample your first bite of this incredible classic cheesecake with graham cracker crust, you’ll know that your efforts creating this best New York cheesecake recipe were all worthwhile. For me homemade cheesecake is a special occasion dessert that’s perfect for the holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve. Or of course Easter, Mother’s Day, or anytime you want to surprise your friends and family with an incredible homemade dessert.
Ingredients in Classic New York Style Cheesecake
To make cheesecake at home, you don’t need fancy ingredients. Just basic fridge and pantry staples including the following: Crust
Graham cracker crumbs Light brown sugar (or granulated sugar) Unsalted butter
Cheesecake
Full fat cream cheese Granulated sugar Sour cream (or plain, full-fat Greek yogurt) Heavy whipping cream Lemon zest Lemon juice Salt Vanilla extract Large eggs + egg yolks Cornstarch
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
Ingredient Tips for the Best New York Cheesecake
When considering making this homemade New York cheesecake recipe, there is plenty to take into account! Namely, the ingredients themselves. I want to delve deeper into things and ingredients that can make, or break (no pun intended), your New York style cheesecake! Graham Cracker Crumbs – The recipe calls for 2 cups graham cracker crumbs. You have two options: Cream Cheese – You’ll need four 8-ounce packages of brick-style cream cheese. I use the Philadelphia brand. Do not use anything type of “cream cheese” product labeled lite, fat free, spreadable, or whipped. Your cheesecake will not turn out since most are made with lots of water and fillers. Heavy Cream – Use heavy cream and not half-and-half. Sour Cream – You need full-fat sour cream. You may substitute with full-fat Greek yogurt, plain flavor. Do not use regular yogurt (non-Greek yogurt) because it’s too runny and your cheesecake won’t set up. If you do use Greek yogurt, your cheesecake won’t have quite as much tanginess compared to if you use sour cream. Eggs – Make sure to use large eggs and not another size. There are four eggs used, plus 3 with yolks only. Save the whites for another use like this show stopping White Layer Cake. Or just make scrambled eggs with the whites. Cornstarch – This is what I suggest for the best texture in your homemade cheesecake, although if you don’t have it, use 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour instead. Lemon Juice vs. Lime Juice – This recipe calls for lemon juice. The resulting finished cheesecake has a good amount of prominent lemon flavor. Takeaway: Lime juice enhances and lemon juice adds flavor. For this cheesecake, I use lemon juice although you can use lime if you’d like.
What About Ingredient Substitutions?
Although this NY style cheesecake with it’s fabulous graham cracker crust is just perfection as written, if you’re wondering about substitutions, here are the most common: The final cheesecake is notably quite lemony. Although no one would actually say it’s “lemon cheesecake”. If you want more of a neutral and less lemon-flavored cheesecake, I suggest you reduce or omit the lemon zest to make the cheesecake less overtly lemon flavored. You can also halve the amount of lemon juice. Although I find that to quickly scale back the lemon flavor, reducing or omitting the ZEST is more effective than playing with the juice. For all you lemon lovers, make it exactly as written and the undertones of lemon will be a delight for you!
How to Make New York Style Cheesecake
Every step of this process is straightforward and my goal is to keep the directions easy to follow despite it looking like a lot of words. Cheesecakes just are. Remember to scroll all the way down to the actual recipe card for full details! You’re going to appreciate how simple this impressive recipe really is so let’s get started!
Step 1: Crust and Batter
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare a 9-inch springform pan by lining the base with parchment paper and spray well with cooking spray. Step 2: Blend whole sheets of graham crackers in your food processor until you have 2 cups of crumbs. OR simply use store bought graham cracker crumbs. Step 3: Mix the crumbs together with the brown sugar in a medium bowl, add the melted butter, and mix until you have a wet sand consistency. Step 4: Press the crust into the prepared pan and form an even layer. Bake for 10 minutes in a 350F oven. Let cool and preheat the oven to 400°F. Step 5: In a stand mixer (or handheld electric mixer) beat together the cream cheese and white sugar using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Step 6: Once smooth and creamy, add in the sour cream, heavy cream, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla extract, salt, vanilla, and beat until combined. If cream cheese lumps do remain at the end of making the batter, simply press them against the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula to disperse them as best as possible. Step 7: Add the eggs, egg yolks and beat for 15 seconds to incorporate before lastly adding the cornstarch and beating. Step 8: Pour the mixture on top of the crust.
Step 2: Baking Process
Step 9: Wrap the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan very well with heavy duty foil to prevent water from seeping in. Step 10: Place the springform pan wrapped in aluminum foil into a larger baking pan and fill the larger pan with 1-inch of warm water. Step 11: Bake at 400°F for 10 minutes. Reduce to 250°F and bake for another 1 hour.
Step 3: Cooling Process
Step 12: Once the hour is up, turn off the heat, and let the cheesecake sit in the oven with the door closed for 30 minutes. I like to use a deep 9-13-inch roasting pan which is just big enough to encase the cheesecake. I also prop it up on the wire rack that comes with the pan but this is optional if you don’t have a wire rack – because remember – you wrapped your springform pan very well already with foil so water doesn’t leak in. Another option is a 9×13-inch baking pan depending on the exact measurements of both the baking pan and the springform pan. If you do not have a deep enough pan to fill with 1-inch of water, simply use a pan with enough depth or lip to hold a little bit of water. Partway through baking, add more water to the pan so that there is always water to steam. Step 13: Then, open the door and let the dessert rest for 30 minutes with the oven door open. Step 14: Place the cheesecake on a cooling rack to cool completely at room temperature before covering it transferring to the fridge and chill it for at least 8 hours before serving
Step 4: Topping and Assembly
Step 15: You can top your homemade cheesecake with anything you’d like – chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, fruit sauces like cherry, or any type of fresh fruit or fresh berries. Let it cool completely at room temp. Then cover it and chill it for at least 8 hours in the fridge. Don’t shortcut the chilling time. This aids in completely setting the cheesecake which enhances the creaminess of it.
Serving Suggestions
Based on how rich and decadent this cheesecake is, I like to keep the toppings less over-the-top rich and decadent. For me, fresh fruit including strawberries, blueberries, or blackberries, or some fruit sauce like a cherry pie filling type of sauce or some jam is all I need. However it’s up to you! Meaning, you really don’t need to serve it “with” anything. Maybe a cup of coffee or espresso. Homemade Baileys Irish Cream would also be a nice treat to add to your coffee.
How to Store Cheesecake
This is a large cheesecake and makes a large quantity. As long as you’re going through the work of making a cheesecake, leftovers aren’t a bad idea! The cheesecake will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
More Easy Cheesecake Dessert Recipes:
Samoa Cheesecake — Smooth, creamy cheesecake with an Oreo crust and topped with chewy toasted coconut, caramel, and chocolate! If you’re a fan of Girl Scout Samoas Cookies, this homemade rich and decadent cheesecake with the same flavors is PURE PERFECTION! There are clear and easy directions even if you’ve never made a cheesecake so yours turns out amazing. For quick serving and thawing purposes, I like to slice the cheesecake, wrap each slice very well in plastic wrap, then freeze the slices. It’s less bulky to store slices wrapped in saran wrap in my freezer than in containers, but you can use containers instead if you can make that work for your space. When I’m ready for a slice, I take one out of the freezer, let it set on the counter for 15 to 20 minutes to thaw, and enjoy. Pay special attention to the baking and cooling process, with various times and varying temps, including: – Baking the crust at 350F for 10 minutes – Then increasing the temp to 400F and baking the cheesecake for 10 minutes – Lowering the oven temperature to 250F and baking for 1 hour – Then allowing the cheesecake to stay in the water bath in a powered-off oven with the door shut for 30 minutes – And then allow it to remain in the oven but crack the oven door open for 30 more minutes – Then room temp to cool fully – Then the fridge for at least 8 hours to chill
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