You’ve done it! We’ve made it past Labor Day, summer is officially over, school is finally underway—and now you need a reward!

When I was a child, I once scoured the kitchen looking for something sweet. First I found the Crisco. Looked good … ummm, nope! Then I found a tub of margarine. Yeah, no.

Sadly, the poor little farm girl didn’t have any luck that day. But now I stock my own kitchen, and guess what? I usually seem to have something to help out the sweet-fix craving when it strikes!

Cheesecake is one of my favorite luxury treats, and it will always, always do the trick. It’s a delicacy I don’t often indulge in, but I savor every bite when I do. Because it isn’t the cheapest treat out there, a while back I started hunting for a good homemade recipe. My all-time favorite (so far) is a vanilla Cheesecake Factory knock-off that (to my knowledge) was originally published in the book Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2. It ended up being quite a bit easier than I had imagined, and every bit as good as the restaurant version.

VANILLA CHEESECAKE

For the crust you just need three ingredients:

• 1 ½ c. of graham cracker crumbs
• ¼ tsp. of ground cinnamon
• 1/3 c. of unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

• 4 (8 oz.) packages of cream cheese, room temp
• 1 ¼ c. granulated sugar
• ½ c. sour cream
• 2 tsp. of vanilla extract
• 5 large eggs

Topping:

• ½ c. sour cream
• 2 tsp. of granulated sugar

Directions:

First, preheat your oven to 475° F (yes, that’s seriously hot, so be sure your pans are all safe at that temperature!) and place a large pan filled with ½” of water in the oven to warm. This is your water bath for baking the cake. I use my large cast iron skillet, but you can use anything that is oven safe at 475°. You just need a pan bigger around than the 9″ springform that will hold your cheesecake.

While the water bath is heating, mix up your crust. Combine all three ingredients together and press into a 9″ springform pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Cover the bottom, and press it about 2/3 of the way up the side of the pan. Cut a large piece of aluminum foil, place the springform pan on top, then wrap the bottom of the pan and up the sides with foil. Place the pan with your crust in the freezer while you are preparing your filling.

To make your filling: Place the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and blend until it’s smooth and creamy. Whisk up your eggs in a separate bowl and mix again just until the eggs are incorporated into the mix.

Retrieve your graham cracker crust that has been sitting in the freezer, and pour in your filling. Carefully place your unbaked cheesecake into the now-hot water in your pan inside the oven.

Bake for 12 minutes, then turn your oven down to 350° F and continue baking for another 50-60 minutes until the top is just starting to turn golden brown. If the 60 min. is up and the top of your cake still looks completely white, leave it in a while longer … just keep a close eye on it. My oven is a little on the slow side and I ended up baking it an extra 20 minutes.

When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and the water bath, and place it on a wire rack to cool. You can remove the aluminum foil when your pan is cool enough to touch; it will cool faster without foil around the pan.

After the cake has cooled completely, mix up your topping and spread it over the top. Place it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Don’t remove the outer springform ring until after this cooling time.

Once the cake is chilled, you can add your favorite topping and indulge! A few ideas: canned pie fillings (like cherry, strawberry, blueberry, blackberry, or raspberry), homemade jams and jellies, or fresh fruit are nice. You can also sprinkle a few pecans on top, drizzled with chocolate and caramel.

This makes a good sized cheesecake, plenty to feed 12-15 people. You may find it’s more than you’d like your family to eat in a week, so smaller servings can be frozen individually, as well.

Just so you know, it makes an excellent secret mama snack after the kids are in bed. That’s right, no more late night checking out the Crisco at our house—and shhhhhh! I won’t tell if you don’t!

 

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Vanilla Cheesecake

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