Oh My Cheesecake

3/8/10

Folks, we have a winner!! If you're in the market for some high calorie heaven, you've got to try this. For the first time in (my) cheesecake history, I was able to get really good results. Here's why:

#1 You must let the cream cheese soften completely as to not have lumps. I let it sit on the counter for an hour and that did the trick. You can also try nuking it, but then you risk overheating it and making the texture all funny.

#2 I cooked it in a water bath:

Cheesecake is essentially a custard and needs slow, gentle heat. The water bath provides a moist cooking environment and ensures a steady, low temperature. My cheesecakes always turned out either too dry or too runny in the center before, but his time it was silky smooth and even. (By the way, if you normally use a springform pan for cheesecakes, you'll need to wrap it in foil to keep water from seeping into the batter.)

Raspberry Mousse Cheesecake
recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

*This recipe makes a huge 13x9 cake, but it can easily be halved and made in a 9-inch pie pan. You can use graham cracker or Oreo crumbs for the crust.

Crust:
5-6 Tablespoons melted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

Filling:
4 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened (don't use low-fat or whipped versions)
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup sour cream

Mousse topping:
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup seedless raspberry jam (can substitute strawberry or blackberry)
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip or whipped cream
fresh berries

Preheat oven to 325° F. Combine melted butter, sugar and graham cracker crumbs. Press into bottom of 13x9 baking dish*. Bake for 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sugar, eggs, sour cream and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Pour batter on top of cooked crust. Place cake pan inside of a large roasting pan. Place on oven rack. Fill the space between the two pans with hot water about halfway up the cake pan.

Bake for 80-90 minutes or until center is almost set. Check by sticking a toothpick in the center. Look for moist crumbs, not runny batter.

Slide out oven rack with cake still on it. Use turkey baster to remove some of the water surrounding the inner pan before removing it to cool completely.

For the mousse topping: In a medium bowl, beat together softened cream cheese, raspberry jam and sweetened condensed milk until smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip until well combined. Spread over top of cooled cheesecake and refrigerate for 2-4 hours. Garnish cheesecake with fresh berries. Serves 15-18.

*If halving the recipe, bake in 10-inch pie pan or 8x10 baking dish for 60-65 minutes.