Adapted from this recipe by simplyrecipes.com - no pictures sorry guys! I lost them, but trust me this is really good.
Strawberry topped cheesecake
I listed this recipe in a follow-along sort of recipe, so it's sorta listed in a weird way. Just think of it as preparing a few small steps to make a whole cheesecake and you can follow along me making this yummy cheesecake.
First, we're gonna make the filling
CHEESECAKE
2 8oz packages of cream cheese (room temperature)
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
splash of vanilla (1 tsp)
2 eggs
1/3 cup and 2 tbsp sour cream
1/3 heavy whipping cream
1. A few hours before, set your cream cheese out to let it soften. I had one package set out a few hours before and one that's been out the ride home from the grocery store (I had to go buy another package real quick because one of my packages had gone bad.
2. In a clean bowl, add your cream cheese and whip it with a hand mixer for 3-4 minutes.
3. Add 1/2 cup a sugar to the mix and turn on your hand mixer for another 3 minutes.
4. Next, add a pinch of salt and splash of vanilla and whip it until incorporated.
5. Add an egg one at a time and whip until incorporated. Followed by sour cream, whip until incorporated and lastly whipping cream.
6. Set the filling into the fridge while you prepare the rest of the cheesecake, it'll set up a little in the fridge making it a little more solid.
Next I prepared my pan in which I will bake my cheesecake. I used a 8x8 square pan because I couldn't find my cake pan (I don't have a spring form pan). If you do have a spring form pan, please follow the first step in preparing the crust on this recipe. She wraps aluminum foil around the pan so no water can leak into the crust. We're gonna bake our cheesecake in a water bath.
You can skip this pan if you don't want to use a square pan. If you do have a square pan, please follow these steps in preparing the pan.
CRUST
1 1/2 crushed graham crackers (1 package crushed)
1 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp melted butter
pinch of salt
1. Place graham crackers in a big ziploc bag and crush it with a rolling pin or anything on hand. Use can also place it in a food processor and pulse it a few times.
2. Add 1 tbsp of sugar and a pinch of salt and combine.
3. Melt 5 tbsp butter in the microwave. Add butter into the graham crackers and stir. It should look like slightly wet sand and should be able to stick together and form together when you pat it tight. If your crust doesn't stick, add a little more melted butter.
4. Press your graham crackers into your pan. Make sure it's even and nicely packed together.
5. Turn your oven on to 325 degrees Fahrenheit, and add your pan with crust to let it bake for 10 mins. Yes, even when it's preheating, I like to use the heat from the oven as it's warming up to slightly bake the crust.
Preparing water bath
Find any pan big enough to fit the cheesecake pan and a water bath. I used a roasting pan. Take a kettle and boil some water enough for the water bath to fill about half-way up the cheesecake.
After the crust is done baking, take the cheesecake filling from the fridge and spread it nicely and evenly in the pan. Add the cheesecake to the roasting pan and add water bath. Be careful because the water will be hot!
Bake in the oven at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 90 minutes. Watch for the cheesecake top, it might turn a little golden brown. Add an aluminum foil over the cheesecake. Be careful of any steam that will escape when you open the oven door to do this though!
When it's done baking. Turn off the heat and crack the oven open slightly and place a chopstick or skewer so the oven door remains slightly open. This will cool the cheesecake slowly and allow it not to crack.
Afterwards, chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
SOUR CREAM FROSTING
a little over 1/4 cup of sour cream
2 tbsp powered sugar
few drops of vanilla
While our cheesecake is baking we can make this sour cream frosting. I remember making this frosting the first time and I was very skeptical about the taste. Sour cream in frosting was something I've never heard of before, but this is my favorite frosting. It's sweet and tangy.
Just mix the sour cream and a few drops of vanilla. Add powdered sugar to taste little by little. 2 tbsp of powdered sugar makes the frosting a little sweeter, so if you want more tangy-ness, add less sugar. This makes a thin frosting for the cake, so double up if you want more frosting.
HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY SAUCE
8-10 cubed strawberries
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
Sour cream frosting and strawberry sauce? That does sound like a little too much topping for a cheesecake, but let me tell you, these two work so well together with the cheesecake. The taste is heavenly.
1. Cube about 8-10 strawberries for this sauce and combine with 1/3 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water. Reduce on stove for around 5-10 minutes paying careful attention to not let it boil over. Be careful with this because it is boiling sugar and water and I want every one to be safe. At first you sorta cook the sauce on a high heat, and you turn the heat down to let it simmer. You really have to stand by and watch this sauce because it can boil quickly and spill over the sauce pan. The key it to just let it thicken, reduce and do it's thing. Why I think works best it cooking it on med-high heat at first stirring often, and then turn it on low-med to let it simmer and reduce, stirring less often. When the sauce looks thicker than originally, turn off the heat. Remember it may look a little liquidy, but it will thicken as it cools.
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