New York Style Cheesecake with Cherries

This recipe was originally posted on my Thoughtful Eats column on the Woburn Patch.

*note - I know New York style cheesecake is served plain but I don't care. I like cherries.

New York Style Cheesecake with Cherries

Ingredients:

5 8-oz packs of cream cheese, softened

1-1/2 cups of granulated sugar

5 whole eggs

2 egg yolks

1 tsp (or 1 tbsp depending on taste) of good vanilla extract

½ cup of sour cream

3 tbsps of flour

1 cup of graham cracker crumbs

3 tbsps of extra light olive oil or canola oil (butter isn’t necessary but you can use it if you want)

Any topping you desire, we recommend using canned cherry filling or topping with fresh strawberry slices

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, add the cracker crumbs and oil. Mix with a spoon. Transfer mixture into the springform pan and press into the bottom. This is the crust. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, add the cream cheese and sugar. Mix with a handheld or standing mixer until incorporated. Add eggs, vanilla, sour cream and flour and mix again until very very smooth. Make sure all the lumps have been worked out. Pour the mixture carefully into the springform pan and over the crust. Tap the pan a few times on a flat surface to get out any air bubbles.

Add the pan to your large casserole dish. Fill the dish with water until it comes half way up the side of the pan. Cover the top very lightly with tin foil. Place in the oven and cook for 1-1/2 hours.

After it’s cooked, remove the tin foil, shut off the oven and let sit in the closed oven for 20 minutes. Then remove from the oven and let sit on a counter top for 20 more minutes. Then place in the oven. This slow cooling process will help prevent cracks. If cracks do occur, don’t worry! You can smother the cheesecake with cherry sauce and no one will know the difference!

Cool in the fridge for a couple more hours or overnight. Remove from the fridge, take off the springform and top with your topping. Serve cold and enjoy!