For some reason I’ve always kept my distance from the cheesecake! But they are actually very easy to make if you keep a few things in mind: Use fresh ingredients, while baking place the pan in a larger roasting pan filled halfway with water (so that is bakes gently) and after baking time is over turn the oven off and leave cheesecake in there to cool down gently and then place in the fridge.
This recipe is for plane cheesecake and you can use other toppings instead of the strawberry glaze.
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 cup slivered almonds
- 2/3 cup graham cracker crumbs (I used honey flavor)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 TBS unsalted butter, melted
For the Filling:
- 16 oz cream cheese
- 16 oz mascarpone cheese
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 eggs
For the Strawberry Glaze:
- 1 pint fresh strawberries
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Tightly wrap the outside of a 9-inch springform pan with aluminum foil. Repeat for 2 or 3 more layers.
- Put the almonds, cracker crumbs, and sugar in a food processor and blend. Add the melted butter and process more until fully mixed.
- Pour the almond mixture onto the bottom of the pan and press until it is firm. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly golden.
- While crust is baking, make the filling:
For the Filling:
- Preheat oven to 325 F. Pour water into a large roasting pan so that it comes up half way the height of the springform pan.
- Beat the cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, and sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer until smooth. Make sure you scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula before moving on to make sure ingredients are blended well.
- Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla and the eggs, one at a time.
- Pour the filling on top of the crust. Place the pan into the roasting pan with the water and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes. After this time leave the cheesecake and turn off the oven, leaving it a little bit open. The cheesecake cracks if it is suddenly exposed to cold air.
- After it reaches room temperature refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
For the Strawberry Glaze:
- Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend!
