For some reason the easy cheesecake is something that every aspiring home chef seems to have troubles with at one point or another. There are alot of restaurant copycat recipes that are so hard to find and some common problems baking these super easy lemon cheesecake recipes, include large slits , burned top, clumpy filling, collapsed middles and the awesome shrinking cheesecake (cake shrinks around the outside).

Some of these problems tend to go away when the cheesecake is constructd and cooked properly.

Before we get baking , a little science if you please. Alot of the problems discussed above all stem from an improper cooking process . That ordinarily is because everyone treat the recipe as if it was for a cake. But the truth is, cheese cake is very similar to a custard pie than it is to a basic cake recipe. So, that means we need to work and bake the ingredients differently .

Leading off with  is the pan. Many people recommend using a spring form pan but I do not like them. The reason will become apparent when we get into the cooking process. For now place a 9 inch round cake pan with very high sides (at least 2 inches). We first want to treat the pan so we can get the cooked cheese cake out later . For that, melt a touch of butter and with a brush, cover the entire inside of the pan . Now , using parchment paper, cut out a circle for the backside of the dish and a long rectangle for the side. Once the waxed paper  has been added to the pan, we can focus on the crust.

Some people like a cookie crumble crust but I choose good old graham crackers. I take about 2 dozen and place them in a moldable ziptop bag. With my fingers only, I squeeze them for about 30 secs. to a minute . Some big chunks are ok. Next , melt 1/4 cup of unseasoned butter and add the cracker crumbs to it along with 1 table spoon of sugar. Combine with a spatula briefly and place into the bottom of the pan . Now get a heavy glass with a flat bottom or other tamping tool (the ones used to flatten chicken works great ). You want to tamp down all the crumbs in the pan so they stick to each other and help the crust form. Bake the crust blind for 10 minutes at 300 degrees.

Now comes the filling. Before you begun working on the dish prep , you should have grabbed your cream cheese out of the fridge and set it on the counter to soften (at least 30 mins or so). We are also going to need 1.25 cups of sourcream , one cup of sugar, one third cup of cream (whipping or heavy), 1 tbs. of vanilla extract, five large eggs, one quarter cup of lemon juice, the zest of 1 lemon, and one tbs. of cornstarch (optional).

Next , the mixing of the batter is very important. We want everything combined well but we don’t want to add any air into the batter. Air is commonly the problem when a cheesecake falls or has a sunken center. So, the best tool in my ruling is the Kitchenaid stand mixer (or your favorite brand).

To start , put the sourcream in the mixing bowl and with the paddle attachment, beat on medium low for a minute. Next add the creamcheese , the sugar and the optional cornstarch. The cornstarch acts to help slow down the binding of the eggs in the custard which prevents cracking. Think of it as a little extra insurance. If you follow this recipe you should not need it but if this is your first time trying this recipe, consider adding it.

So, now we beat this mix in on low speed for 1 minute. Then turn up the speed to medium for a few more minutes. Stop the machine and scrape the bowl. Next, in a container mix the one third cup of cream, vanilla, two large eggs, 3 egg yolks, lemon juice and lemon zest. Mix this up well with a fork.

Put the mixer on medium low speed and slowly drizzle in 1/2 of the cream and egg mixture. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl again. Start it again but this time on medium high speed and add the remaining egg mixture. Continue mixing for about one more minute. The batter should be uniform (no lumps) and not airy.

Now , the baking . Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. recall when we baked the crust blind. Well, you want to add the batter to the pan but first make sure the crust is completely cool (let it cool out of the oven for at least 15 minutes). Add the batter to the pan. Give the pan a few little twists left and right to help any air bubbles come to the top.

At the same time, boil at least two quarts of H2O (the amount will depend on your pan size). We need to create what’s known as a “bain marie” (Marie’s bath). If you have another cake pan that is a few inches bigger in diam use that. If not, a disposable aluminium baking dish works well too (the kind for lasagne or roasting). Add a clean towel to the bottom of the large pan and enter into the oven. Add the cheese cake pan into the bigger pan and gently push it to the side . Next , with kid gloves add the boiling water into the larger pan. Pour enough to come up 2 thirds the way up the cheese cake pan.

Now , being very careful ,  center the cheese cake pan in the larger pan and close the oven. Bake at 250 for an hour. Here’s the hard part. After 1 hour the cake will not looked cooked. But the problem is we do not want to overcook the cheesecake . So, open the oven door for about thirty secs. to let some heat escape. Next , close the door and leave the cake alone for 1 hour. After that, carefully take the cake pan out of the water pan and place into a refridgerator for 6 hours.

Finally we have cheesecake. There are some minor acrobatics necessary to get the cake out of the pan. First, fill your sink 1/2 way up with hot water directly from the tap (the hottest it will go). Now , let the pan float in the sink for 15 seconds . Now remove it and place it on a towel. Using a sharp thin knife gently trace around the outside of the pan and then gently slip ot the parchment from the side of the pan. Next , take some wax paper and cut a circle the same size as the cheesecake . Place the wax paper on top of the cheesecake. Place a round plate or the bottom from a spring form pan on top of the cheesecake and gently but quickly invert it. Next remove the pan.

Ok, but now you are looking at the under side of the cheese cake . Remove the waxed paper from the bottom. Decide what plate you will use to serve the cheesecake (or opt a nice size bakers cake round). Place that on the bottom of the cheesecake and once again invert it carefully . Lastly, remove the wax paper from the top and cut your cheese cake .

If everything went well we should have a delicious and beautiful lemony cheesecake that your friends and family will think you purchased . And you know what, if the top does crack, who cares. That’s why they fabricated whipped cream! Right?

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