Cheesecake Recipe for the Holidays

I know we like to share healthy recipes on this blog but in the spirit on the holidays I couldn't resist sharing my all time favorite cheesecake recipe. Beware: this is not healthy at all but it's seriously delicious.

 

 

The Best Cheesecake You'll Ever Taste Recipe

You'll need:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

1 stick butter

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 cup heavy cream

 

What to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. If you can't find graham crackers already in crumb form (like me) you'll need to crush those bad boys up. I used a package and a 1/4 of graham crackers to get 2 cups of the crumbs. I put the graham crackers in a ziplock bag and sealed it (this is very important unless you want crumbs all over your kitchen) and I used a rolling pin to create small crumbs. This takes a lot of elbow grease so be prepared for a workout while doing this.

3. Mix the crumbs and 3 tablespoons of sugar together and melt the butter and stir into the crumb mixture. Press the mixture into the bottom of a greased (I used more butter) 9-inch round, springform cake pan. Set aside.

4. Using an electric beater, blend the cream cheese and the remaining sugar together until creamy, wiping down the sides of the bowl and the beaters with a spatula to incorporate all of the cheese.

5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.

6. Add the vanilla and lemon juice to the cream, then slowly stir into the cheese mixture.

7. Put the prepared round cake pan into a slightly larger rectangular pan.

8. Pour the cheese mixture into the round cake pan.

9. Set both pans in the oven and fill the rectangular pan with water, half way up the sides of the round pan. It's important not to put any water into the rectangular pan until it's in the oven. I didn't do that the first time and water went everywhere. Lesson learned.

10. Bake until firm and golden brown, approximately 55 to 60 minutes. I'm not sure if it's my oven but I had to leave it in for 10-15 minutes extra to get the top of the cheesecake to be golden brown. Make sure to check on it every 5 minutes or so.

11. Cool completely before removing from the pan.

12. Enjoy. It may not be healthy but it sure is delicious.