In order to have a strong start for my recipe* area, I am betting on a champ: cheesecake.

This creamy and juicy delight is definitely a great summer choice. At home it is always a guaranteed success. The funny fact it that I never cared about cheesecake before coming to the US. Always thought it was too salty or too umami for my sweet tooth taste. On my first visit to the US, my husband (boyfriend back then) insisted that I should give it another chance and it completely blew my mind. I felt in love immediately… nhom nhom nhom.

Well without any further delay, here goes the goods:

Crust

• 2 cups of Graham cracker crumbs
• 2 tbsp of sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Process the graham crackers with the sugar and salt. In a bowl, slowly incorporate (with your hands) the melted butter. You will get a slightly crumbly mixture. Coat the base of a springform with the mixture, gently pressing so it can cover the whole surface. Put in a preheated (350°F; 180°C) oven for 10 minutes to seal. Let it cool.

Filling

• 1 pound of cream cheese (2 packages; 450g)
• 2/3 cups of sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/3 cup whipping cream/heavy cream

In your mixer beat at medium speed the cream cheese for about 4 minutes or untill it gets softened. Add the sugar and beat for another 4 minutes. Add the pinch of salt and the vanilla extract, once at a time beating for 1 minute after each addition. Add the eggs one at a time beating for one minute between each addition.  Add the sourcream and beat until incorporated. Add the heavy cream and beat until incorporated.

Pour your mixture onto the cooled graham crackers layer. You will cook your cheesecake on water bath in a preheated oven (325°F; 160°C) for 50 minutes and turn off the heat leaving the cake inside the oven untill it cools. Check the oven frequently to see if the top of your filling is browning. You don’t want to form a brown crust, you just want it to cook and form a nice pillow-like surface. Turn off the heat if you see that your cheesecake is starting to brown.

Take it off the oven, cover it with plastic wrap and foil and put it on the freezer for 4 hours (or overnight).

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About and Tips:

• 8in springform
• Blueberry topping made with home made blueberry thin jam
• The crust is 0.5in thick in a 8in form and 0.25in thick in a 10in form. I don’t change the amounts on the recipe for the crust in these two cases.
• If you are like me and want to get the top slightly incorporated in the cream, before you put it in the freezer, coat the whole surface with your topping. If you want it to be well separated, wait to pour your topping when you take the cheesecake out of the freezer.
• Some people even like to put a cream coat of sourcream and sugar on the top of the cheesecake before putting the filling. This completely prevents the filling to soak into the cheesecake but, in my opinion, give some acidity to the dessert that I don’t care for.
• DO NOT, under any circumstances, put your springform direct on the water. You ARE going to soak your crust and make a mess. Cover the entire bottom of the form with foil and test it for leaking before even placing the crackers.
• This is a really fragile dessert (cream cheese, sour cream, heavy cream…) I really  don’t advise you to do it with too much advance of the occasion. One day before tops. It should last around 4 days on the fridge.

*This recipe was tested by me for exclusive home consumption.

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