Friday, January 9, 2009

TFF - Ultimate Cheesecake




Ok, I did this a while back ( 2 weeks ago ) and let me tell you, BIG HIT. My whole family asked for the recipe and they were impressed how good this cheesecake was. I love Tyler recipes, I think he put so much flavor on everything and thats why I decided to join this group of great people making his recipes from his book or website. You can see the recipe below. I made some changes: I used chocolate ganache instead of blueberry topping. If you want be part of this blog , click here.


ULTIMATE CHEESECAKE

Ingredients
Crust:
2 cups finely ground graham crackers (about 30 squares)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
Filling:
1 pound cream cheese, 2 (8-ounce) blocks, softened
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 pint sour cream
1 lemon, zested
1 dash vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
In a mixing bowl, combine the crust ingredients with a fork until evenly moistened. Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 8-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pour the crumbs into the pan and, using the bottom of a measuring cup or the smooth bottom of a glass, press the crumbs down into the base and 1-inch up the sides. Refrigerate for 5 minutes.
For the Filling:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat slowly until combined. Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The batter should be well mixed but not over-beaten. Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
Set the cheesecake pan on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold up the sides around it. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan until the water is about halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan; the foil will keep the water from seeping into the cheesecake. Bake for 45 minutes. The cheesecake should still jiggle (it will firm up after chilling), so be careful not to overcook. Let cool in pan for 30 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for at least 4 hours. Loosen the cheesecake from the sides of the pan by running a thin metal spatula around the inside rim. Unmold and transfer to a cake plate. Top with any ganache recipe that you desire.

6 comments:

Megan said...

Oh yeah, bring on the cheesecake! Tyler recipe has been my favorite for several years now - it's always perfect. I always ditch the blueberries as well, but I think chocolate is simply the greatest idea for topping it!

Welcome to our little group!

Deb in Hawaii said...

Welcome to TFF--we are happy to have you join!
Your cheesecake looks incredible--great job! I too would go for the chocolate. ;-)

Aloha,

Deb

Carrie said...

This looks AMAZING, oh my goodness! You should join the "You Want Pies With That" club http://pieswiththat.blogspot.com/
that battle each month to make a pie/tart/cheesecake. This month's theme was a pie to break New Year's Diet Resolutions and Rachel... I think your cheesecake would have won it! You are an amazing baker, you inspire me!

Reeni said...

What a gorgeous cheesecake!! I made this a few weeks back and added some dulce de leche to it. It's so versatile. Yours looks soooo delicious!!

Meg said...

What an amazing cheesecake!

Judy said...

This looks just amazing as do all your cakes. I can't wait to try some of your recipes.