I posted this recipe waaaaay back in the very, very early days of the blog and I’m posting it again today not only because it’s such an amazing, creamy, velvety smooth cheesecake, but also because I know that cheesecakes scare a lot of people, so I want to do a little troubleshooting to make sure you get a perfect cheesecake every time.
Â
Â
2 8-oz. packages cream cheese (NOT low-fat or fat-free), softened
3 eggs
1 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 c. sour cream (NOT low-fat or fat free)
CRUST:
1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1/3 c. white sugar
6 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375. Combine crust ingredients and very gently pat into the bottom of a 9″ springform pan. Set aside.
Questions & Reviews
Would love to try this out ! Really nice.
This was the first cheese cake I ever baked and now it’s my go to recipe! Thanks so much for the tutorial and answers to the problems. You girls are wonderful!
Best recipe ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Is that 3 cups of sour cream?
my cheesecake didn’t quite set up in the center. Can I put it back in the oven after it’s been chilled for 8 hours?
Oh. My. Gosh. I can’t believe how amazing this was! I was feeling lazy, so I split the filling between two pre-made graham cracker crusts. I topped them with sour cream topping and a fresh raspberry glaze. It was TO DIE FOR. My dad couldn’t believe I made it myself (I don’t know whether that’s a compliment or an insult). The sour cream gives it such a smooth, creamy, light texture that just melts in your mouth. We made it when my parents came for dinner. They each had a slice before they left, and my husband and I ate the rest before lunch the next day and it was totally worth it.
have you ever made this a couple DAYS ahead? like… 2 days ahead? i’ve made it the day before, but it’s never had enough leftovers for me to know if the crust turns into jello by day 3…
I think you would be okay–you could always wrap it tightly and freeze it if you’re worried. But as long as the crust stays dry while it’s baking in the water bath, you SHOULD be okay for a few days. Hope that helps!
This is the best cheesecake recipe. As a pastry school grad, I bake for my friends and family and always bring this cheesecake for parties and events. Everyone loves it. Thanks for your recipe!
NO! I made this cheessecake and After 35 minutes it was still luke warm liquid. After and hour it was starting to set up-ish. I ended up with it in the oven for 2 hours and then it wasn’t the least bit golden. Still I had faith but alas big mushy mess the next day.
That’s so weird–I’ve literally made this cheesecake at LEAST 50 times in at least 5 different ovens and have never had a problem. I’m sorry! I wish I knew where yours went wrong.
I was wondering, are you using a 10 inc springform pan? It seems like a pretty high cake for a 10 inch pan.
Hope you can help with this one. I make my cheesecakes the same way everytime. Sometimes the cake isn’t as firm as it should be. My recipe calls for 1/4 cup of flour which I mix in with the sugar. I have switched to using constarch as I believe that should make it a bit more firm. I also use large size eggs, and have even cut it to using less egg whites. Any thoughts suggestions.
Hi there, i just want to ask about the temperature of the oven. Is it in celsius or fahrenheit? Sorry, beginner here. 😀
Hi Grace,
All of our recipes are written for Fahrenheit 🙂
Thank you so much for your ideas. I can’t wait to try it out! I have one question, I made a cheesecake recently but the consistency was grainy. I used a recipe that required me to bake it for 45 minutes which I did and it looked great until after I chilled it over night and when I cut it the next day that is when I noticed that it was grainy. Do you know what could cause it? Any suggestions? I would appreciate any help you could give me.
Since I’m not familiar with the recipe you used, I can’t really be sure what would cause that- sorry!
I just made this! *fingers crossed* I hope it doesn’t fail! My first attempt went horribly wrong thanks to me grandma who said the knife should come out clean! Ha, boy was she wrong! It was sooo gross! So I didn’t listen to anything she said! I just finished, it is now cooling! Looks delicious!
I am now making this recipe for the 5th time and everytime I make this cheesecake, every last bite is gobbled up. I will admit to being scared to try it the first time too…but the instructions are spot on! I bake mine for a bit longer than the 35 min. and it turns out so perfectly and thick everytime. Thank you for the best recipe ever!!!
Angie
i’ve had to bake this for a little over an hour too– top still isn’t golden but it’s JUST ABOUT THERE… and it’s still jiggy. so if anyone else is finding this, don’t worry! it’s not a bad sign- seems like the cheesecake baking business is pretty variable stuff! (the batter was fantastic, though… not that i’d eat spoonfuls of it knowing full well it contains raw eggs… nope, not me!)
my cheesecake started to float in the waterbath so i took out some of the water. unfortunately, my turky bag leaked!!! and I definitely was using a crappy pan. next time I think I will use foil on the outside of the turkey bag. But the good news is the cheesecake looks great–we haven’t tried it yet. I am making them for my SIL’s birthday–who, by the way, introduced me to your website:)
I made this for my girlfriends Bday..she LOVES cheesecake and it was a HUGE hit!! I made 3 of these AMAZING cheesecakes in 11 days all for Bday’s…This is definitely my go to cheesecake recipe for here on out:D Thank you
My cheesecake (in the springform pan) is floating in the water bath. Is that normal???
Totally not normal. How did it turn out?
Thank you so much for this AMAZING Cheesecake recipe. I was SO nervous. You have no idea. I was freaking out over it like a new mother… especially because it took so much longer to bake. I don’t know if it was because of the humidity or I didn’t do the water bath absolutely correctly or it was just the old style oven… but it took an hour to bake! I was so scared that it was going to be overcooked… but it came out perfect! Thank goodness! Not runny. Not dry. Perfect. And this was my first cheesecake ever. So thank you for making such an easy to follow recipe. =) I will be writing my own blog post about it later to encourage even more people to take a stand! and make their own cheesecake. =)
Mine took that long too and i’m wondering whether i went a little overboard with the water bath!
I am a HUGE cheesecake fan but have never had any success making them myself. This recipe turned out looking just like the pictures…perfectly golden, crackless top, and gorgeous after taking the outside ring off the pan. But when I cut into it, it was still kind of runny and mushy. I cooked it for five minutes longer than the recipe said, but was afraid of overcooking. Anyway, the flavor is great and I am willing to try this recipe again, hoping to not be a cheesecake failure forever!!! Thanks for the recipe!
P.S. The cooking tips were great; I think my problem in the past has been not letting it cool/chill for long enough.
ok can I just say I love your absolutely random reference to The Office? I’m gonna try this recipe!