Fruits of the Gods

Raspberries.  Strawberries.  Kiwis. Peaches.  I love fruit.  I love vegetable as well, but this post isn't going to be about that......

I recently made three different cheesecakes.  It was a lot of cheesecake.  I had to call in extra family members to help us eat it all.  The winning recipe is (drumroll please):

Chantal's New York Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 15 graham crackers, crushed
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

                    

• 4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 3/4 cup milk
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9 inch springform pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Press onto bottom of springform pan.
3. In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with sugar until smooth. Blend in milk, and then mix in the eggs one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate. Mix in sour cream, vanilla and flour until smooth. Pour filling into prepared crust.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Turn the oven off, and let cake cool in oven with the door closed for 5 to 6 hours; this prevents cracking. Chill in refrigerator until serving.               

The next time I make this, I will attempt to gently release the sides of the cake from the pan, with a knife.  Another recipe recommended this after letting it cool for about 20 minutes, and it really helped with the "non-cracking" issue.

 

I love cheesecake - best served cold, in my opinion, never room temperature.  Actually, I think what I love best about cheesecake is the toppings, especially the fresh fruit.  I had stopped by the Cheesecake Factory and begged for some of their mixed caramel and nut topping, which they gave me.  For free!  What do you want to bet that won't ever happen again?!