Are you looking for a truly rich and decadent cheesecake without the fuss? This is the recipe for you. Forget the common pitfalls of cracked tops, soupy fillings, and grainy textures. This guide is your secret to creating a flawless, bakery-quality New York-style cheesecake right at home.
We’ll walk you through each step, revealing the simple techniques that guarantee a perfectly smooth, un-cracked surface and a dense, creamy texture every time. With just a handful of straightforward ingredients, you’ll be able to create a stunning, classic dessert that is so incredibly rich, you’ll be coming back for more. Whether it’s for a special occasion or a simple craving, this recipe will quickly become your go-to for a slice of pure decadence.
Ingredients
The Key Ingredients for a Flawless Cheesecake
Every ingredient in this recipe plays a vital role in creating the perfect, rich, and decadent New York-style cheesecake. Here’s a breakdown of why each one is important:
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- Cream Cheese – This is the star of the show. Using a high-quality, full-fat block cream cheese is essential for achieving the signature dense, rich, and creamy texture of a New York-style cheesecake. Make sure it’s softened to room temperature for a lump-free batter.
- Caster Sugar – The fine granules of this sugar dissolve easily, giving the cheesecake a smooth, uniform texture and preventing a grainy finish. It provides the sweetness that perfectly balances the tangy cream cheese.
- Cornflour – Just a small amount of cornflour is a secret weapon. It acts as a stabiliser, helping to prevent the cheesecake from cracking and ensuring a perfectly set, smooth consistency.
- Whole Eggs – Eggs are a crucial binder that provide structure and richness. They help to create the velvety texture and ensure the cheesecake holds its shape once cooled.
- Egg Yolk – Adding an extra yolk without the white increases the fat content, which contributes to an even richer, more luxurious, and denser filling.
- Sour Cream – This is the key to the classic cheesecake tang. It also adds moisture and a silky texture to the filling. Make sure you use full-fat sour cream for the best results.
- Whipping Cream (35-40%) – A splash of heavy cream lightens the filling just enough, making it incredibly airy and smooth while still maintaining its richness. It’s a fantastic addition for a truly decadent cheesecake.
- Vanilla Paste – Using vanilla paste instead of extract provides a deeper, more concentrated vanilla flavour with the added visual appeal of real vanilla bean flecks.
- Digestive Biscuits (Graham Crackers) – These form the foundation of your cheesecake. They provide a sturdy, buttery, and slightly salty crust that perfectly complements the rich filling.
- Unsalted Butter – Melted butter binds the biscuit crumbs together to create a firm, delicious crust. Using unsalted butter allows you to control the saltiness of the final product.
All The Equipment You Need
- Stand Mixer or Electric Whisk
- Greaseproof Paper (Parchment)
- Mixing Bowl
- Digital scale
- Silicone Spatula
- 9 Inch Cake Tin
- Ziploc Bag
- Rolling Pin
- Foil
- Deep Roasting Tray
- Cling Film
- Small Offset Palette Knife
Storing The Cheesecake
Cheesecake will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge covered. You can also freeze the cheesecake, once removed from the tin, freeze uncovered for a few hours, then wrap in cling film or place into an airtight container and back in to the freezer for up to 3 months.
Making Cheesecake Ahead of Time
Yes you can absolutely make this cheesecake ahead of time, this is in fact what I do. Follow all the steps in the recipe up to chilling the cheesecake at room temperature. Place the baked cheesecake (still in the tin) into the freezer overnight.
The next day, with either a blowtorch or with a cloth soaked in hot water, run it around the side of the tin. You will see the frost melt away, unclip the tin and remove the sides and separate the cheesecake from the tin base, wrapping in cling film or into an airtight container back into the freezer for up to 3 months.
When ready to use, either the morning off or the night before remove the cheesecake from the freezer and unwrap, place onto a serving plate keeping covered in the fridge to thaw out. I usually let the cheesecake thaw at room temperature for 20-30 minutes and with a sharp hot knife portion, cleaning my knife in between slicing before placing into the fridge to completely thaw.
Gluten-Free?
This is an easy recipe to make gluten free, I mean the cheesecake batter is already gluten free so thats the tough part out of the way. Simply substitute the biscuit for a gluten free biscuit, you can get gluten free digestives/graham crackers or try gluten free oat biscuits or gluten free shortbread biscuits. Options are there, you may need to adjust the quantity of butter depending on the type of biscuit being used, I suggest starting with less and adding more, easier than having to had more biscuit.
Rich & Decadent New York-Style Cheesecake
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 110℃ (230℉)
- First, let's setup the cake tin. Start by turning the base of the tin upside down (this will keep the biscuit base flat and let it spread right to the edge) lightly grease the surface of the base and place greaseproof paper over it with slight over hang. Clip it into the tin, might require you to lift the base slightly so the base and slip into the groove. Wrap the base and sides of the tin with a couple layers of foil making sure there are no seams.
- Place the biscuits into the Ziploc bag and gently crush and roll them to a crumb. Transfer to a mixing bowl and cover with your melted butter. Mix with a spatula until all the crumb is covered evenly by the butter. Transfer the crumb to the tin and evenly distribute before pressing firmly.
- Into a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment add cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, cornflour and vanilla. Cream together on a medium-low speed, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl every so often.2
- Once everything is combined and there are no visible lumps, add an egg at a time and mix on low speed until incorporated before adding the next. Scrape the sides and bottom between adding an egg. Repeat this for the egg yolks.
- While the mixer is on low speed slowly pour in the whipping cream and let it mix until combined. Take the bowl of the mixer and give it a few folds with a spatula to make sure there is nothing sitting at the bottom of the bowl. Pour the batter into the tin.
- Place the tin in a deep roasting tray and cover ⅓ of the way up with boiling water and into the oven for 80-90 minutes rotating the tray 180° after 40 minutes.3 Once baked switch the oven off and leave the cheesecake to cool in the oven with the oven door left ajar for 45-60 minutes.4 Then leave to cool at room temperature for 30 minutes before removing foil, wrapping in cling film and placing into the fridge to completely set overnight.
- To serve: Run a small palate knife round the edge of the cheesecake before releasing the side of the tin. Do the same again to release the biscuit base from the base of the tin and carefully transfer the cheesecake to a serving dish or cake stand. Slice with a sharp knife, cleaning your knife between each slice.
Notes
- You can use any cream cheese you like, it is important to keep in mind the cheaper/supermarket brands usually have a higher water content than Philadelphia. The baking time will increase to allow the extra water content to evaporate, this could result in the cheesecake over baking in parts can cause cracks.
- We only want to remove the lumps from the cream cheese and dissolve the sugar, mixing at a high speed will incorporate a lot of air which we do not want.
- Baking times will vary base on the size of your oven, but to check the cheesecake is bake perfectly, look for the wobble. When you give the tin a shake, the centre third should still have a slight wobble to it and the surface should have a firm wobble.
- Use a tea towel folded up a couple times to keep the oven door cracked open.