New York Style Cheese Cake (Cook's Illustrated)

Emily Reason enjoying NY Style Cheese cake at the Clay Club.

New York Style Cheesecake

Ingredients

1 sleeve of graham crackers (8 whole crackers broken up)

5 tbsp of unsalted butter, melted

1 tbsp of sugar

2 1/2  lbs. (5 packages) of cream cheese, softened to room temp. Cut into 1 “ cubes.

1/8 tsp of salt

1 1/2 cups of sugar

2 teaspoons of real vanilla extract

2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup of sour cream

6 eggs

2 egg yolks

1 tbsp unsalted butter,melted

Directions

Line a nine inch spring form pan with foil. (can be skipped)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Finely crush the sleeve of graham crackers.

I used a rolling pin and resealable bag method, or you can use a food processor.

Mix with the sugar and 5 1/2 tbsp of the butter with a fork until crumbly.  (reserve the remaining butter for brushing the spring form pan)

Press the crumbs in the bottom of the prepared pan, bake for 13 minutes, remove to rack to cool while you prepare the filling.

Brush sides of spring form pan with remaining melted butter generously after the crust has cooled.

(Cook's Illustrated used a stand mixer with paddle attachment; I have a portable mixer, so I used it)

Turn oven up to 500 degrees

In a large bowl, Beat the cream cheese for about 2 minutes, to get out most of the big lumps with the salt, add the sugar in thirds, beat after each addition.  Scrape down the sides.  About one minute each addition.

Add the sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla.  Mix well.

Add the eggs two at a time, beating well after each addition, including the two extra egg yolks.

Pour into cooled crust and place on a lipped baking sheet in case there is spillover.

Bake at 500 degrees for 10 minutes.  Reduce heat to 200 degrees.

DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR.

Bake 90 minutes.

Remove from oven, cool for five minutes on wire rack.

Run knife around the outer edge of the cake.

Allow to cool for 3 hours at room temp..

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

Best served 30 minutes out of the refrigerator.

Raspberry sauce- one pack frozen raspberries, crushed and sieved to get out seeds, confectioners’ sugar added to taste.