whether you believe it's a cake or tart it's safe to say that cheesecake is one of our favorite desserts here at tasty we tested a bunch of different recipes and techniques to find a foolproof ultra creamy vanilla cheesecake so here's how to make a classic crack free cheesecake
every good cheesecake starts with a springform pan greasing the pan with nonstick spray or butter is gonna help easy removal and help prevent cracking down the line adding a band of parchment paper will ensure you've got those smooth picture-perfect sides when you go to remove the spring form
the foundation of cheesecake is the crust it only requires three ingredients to make a classic graham cracker crust this is the simplest part of the recipe the combination of sugar and butter helps hold everything together for a really fantastic crust some people like using other types of cookies
you can easily swap it in right here we're gonna do a bottom crust only some people like the crust on the sides it's totally a matter of preference just use a flat surface to spread the graham cracker mixture into an even layer now you're gonna bake it for
eight to ten minutes until it's golden brown and just let it cool as you prepare the filling now it looks like a lot of dairy but remember it's a rich velvety dessert you really need it here where I need full fat cream cheese here this is not the
time to skimp with reduced fat I know it looks like a lot of sugar it is we tried to reduce it but you really miss out on some of that classic cheesecake flavor make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature before getting started this way they'll be
easier to mix and give you a smooth cheesecake without any lumps we're adding a bit of heavy cream it's a subtle difference but it's gonna help smooth out the batter it's a personal preference and you can omit it but we wouldn't I'm adding in sour cream for a
bit of added tang and I'm also going to add some flour which is gonna help bind the cheesecake together and help prevent cracks to flavor the cake I'm using a whole vanilla bean a really easy way to remove the seeds is by splitting it down the middle lengthwise
and use the blade of your knife to slowly the seeds out while you can use vanilla extract in a pinch the intense flavor of a bean is really hard to beat eggs are crucial in any baked cheese cake they add in creaminess and also help bind the Cheesecake
together as it bakes some recipes will call for adding extra egg yolks we found in testing that this makes a denser cheesecake so for our era version we're sticking with whole eggs only so add in the eggs one at a time if you dump them in all at
once you run the risk of having a really lumpy batter okay so this part is crucial as soon as the eggs are incorporated stop mixing over mixing can result in a really dense cheesecake you also want to be scraping your bowl down to ensure everything is thoroughly mixed
from here it's really easy just pour the batter onto the cooled crust and smooth out the top if we didn't bake the crust it would mix in with the batter who wants up even cooking and cracking is a huge concern when making cheesecake one of the best ways
to prevent that is to use a water bath while baking even though the pan is sealed there could be a slight opening where water could get through and give you a soggy crust to prevent any water from seeping in we're gonna wrap our springform in two sheets of
foil to really seal it place the pan in a large heavy baking dish and fill it with hot water about one inch up the sides of the pan the hot water creates a moist environment in an otherwise dry oven so the cheesecake doesn't split from drying out there
are several methods where you can start your cheesecake in a hot oven and then lower the temperature well you do get some lift you also run the risk of burning or cracking your cheesecake for our recipe we're gonna do a steady moderate heat all the way through then
turn the heat off and leave the Cheesecake in the oven for another hour to finish baking allowing the cake to sit in the oven allows it for it to be fully set in the middle and get a little bit of color you can see that the cake that
was taken out after an hour isn't fully cooked and looks like a gloopy mess sometimes cracks happen there are so many reasons that can cause a crack such as high-temperature over mixing a water bath but this doesn't mean that you can't end up with a beautiful delicious cheesecake
in the end a great way to cover up a cracked cheesecake is to make a sour cream topping the stop being is really simple it's just sour cream sugar and vanilla extract all mixed together it not only covers up the crack but it's also really delicious and can
be used on uncracked cheesecakes as well for a sour cream topping you don't need a water bath just bake it for 10 to 15 minutes just so the top a set and continue the recipe as normal after sitting in the oven for another hour the cheesecake needs to
cool at room temperature and another way to prevent cracks is to gently go around the rim of the cheesecake with a knife at this point the center of the cheesecake should still have a slight jiggle just like this once the cheesecake is cooled place it in the fridge
covered with plastic wrap to fully set ideally overnight but you can still get a really good result in about 4 hours to remove the Cheesecake from the pan unlatch the side of the springform and carefully lift off the frame gently peel back the parchment and you're gonna see
those beautiful smooth sides there's such a wide variety of toppings you can add to your cheesecake but for ours we're gonna keep it simple with a ton of fresh berries to get the perfect slice fill a large vessel with hot water dip your knife into the water then
gently Pat it dry before slicing the hot knife will ensure that you get a smooth cut every time [Music] we love serving our cheesecake with a berry coulis which is basically a fancy word for a berry puree that has been cooked down until it's thick it's the perfect
complement alongside all those gorgeous fresh berries there's a reason we make so many cheesecakes here at tasty they're relatively easy they're great for a crowd and most importantly they're downright delicious by using these tips and tricks you too can make the dreamiest creamiest cheesecake of your life you
