The Perfect Classic Cheesecake With Strawberry Meringue Topping Recipes

CLASSIC CHEESECAKE WITH STRAWBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 inch springform pan with nonstick spray and make sure the bottom is securely fastened. Stir together crust ingredients and press into prepared pan and up the sides a bit (see photos above). Bake this for 8 minutes. Set aside. Keep the oven on at 350.
• Make the Cheesecake Filling: Remember that your cold ingredients need to come to room temp before you start or the filling won't turn out. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened cream cheese until nice and creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar and mix until just incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each until just incorporated. Add the vanilla and sour cream, and mix until just incorporated. (See photos above for what the batter will look like). Pour the batter over the baked and cooled crust, and smooth the top with a spatula.
• Prepare the Water Bath + Bake: Get out a roasting pan and set the rack aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Set the springform pan with the cheesecake on a rack positioned in the center of the oven, and place the roasting pan on the rack below. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan. This is the best way to do a water bath - no possibility of leakage into your cheesecake!Bake for 88-91 minutes. When done, the cheesecake will have only a slight wobble in the center, and a toothpick inserted into the edge will come out clean, and will have a bit of thick batter when inserted into the center. Turn off the oven and crack the door open. Let the cheesecake cool in the oven for 1 hour before removing it.
• Cheesecake Cooling: Once the hour is up, remove the pan from the oven. It should be cool enough to handle. Remove the foil and set the springform pan on a cooling rack to continue cooling. Let cool completely at room temp, then cover well with foil and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 2 days before removing from the pan and serving.
• Make the Strawberry Sauce: Stir together the cornstarch and water in a small bowl, making sure the cornstarch is fully dissolved. Add this and remaining sauce ingredients to a pot on the stove over medium heat. Stir, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Once simmering, cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool. It will thicken more and more the longer you let it cool. Store in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to use.
• Serve + Store: Once cheesecake has chilled, remove it from the springform pan and serve with the strawberry sauce! Keep leftovers, well covered, in the fridge for up to a week.

THE PERFECT CLASSIC CHEESECAKE WITH STRAWBERRY MERINGUE TOPPING

Steps:

• Adjust oven to rack lower-middle position and heat oven to 325F/163C degrees.
• Brush the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with 1/2 tablespoon of melted butter.
• In a food processor, combine the graham crackers (or digestive biscuits) and sugar, and process until finely ground, about 30 seconds.
• Add the flour and salt and pulse to combine. Add the 6 tablespoons of melted butter and pulse until crumbs are evenly moistened.
• Transfer the crumb mixture to the prepared pan and spread to evenly cover the bottom. Using the flat bottom of measuring cup or ramekin, firmly press to pack the crust into the pan.
• Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around edges, about 13 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and set aside to cool completely. Maintain oven temperature. Meanwhile, prepare the filling.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment (or in a large bowl and using a hand electric mixer) beat cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and free of lumps.
• Add in the sugar and beat until well combined. Add in the sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla, and mix until incorporated.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then beat the mixture for a few more seconds until the batter is smooth. Be careful not to overmix. If the batter has lots of cream cheese lumps, pour it through a fine mesh strainer to smooth it a out.
• Gently draw tines of fork across the surface of the cake to pop air bubbles.
• Prepare the pan (with the cooled crust) for the water bath, by placing it in a turkey roasting bag; do not close the top. Then secure it by wrapping a triple layer of foil around the bottom and up the sides of the pan. This helps seal the pan well so the water from the water bath doesn't seep into the pan and soak the crust. (The roasting bag step is optional but recommended, as it really does the trick at keeping all the water out. Foil wrap only, does not guarantee leak-free baking)
• Pour the batter over the cooled crust, then place in a large roasting pan. Taking care not to splash water into the cheesecake pan, pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan, to reach halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan.
• Transfer the roasting pan to the oven, and bake the cheesecake at 325F/163C degrees for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the cheesecake's outer three inches look slightly puffed and set, but the inner circle still jiggles slightly when you gently shake the pan and the internal temperature of the cheesecake's center registers 165F/74C.
• Turn off the oven heat and crack the oven door open just by 1-inch. Let the cheesecake cool inside the oven for 1 hour. This gentle cooling process prevents the cheesecake from collapsing and helps avoid cracks from happening, ensuring a very creamy filling.
• Remove the cheesecake from the oven and from the water bath, unwrap the foil and roasting bag. Let cool for 5 minutes, then run a thin-bladed knife between the cheesecake and the side of springform pan to loosen. This helps avoid cracking as the cheesecake cools. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely; about 2 hours.
• Lay a triple layer of thick paper towels over the springform pan, without touching the surface of the cheesecake. This soaks up any condensation that may occur during chilling. Then wrap the pan with the paper towels still intact, tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold and firmly set, at least 6 hours or up to 3 days. Meanwhile, prepare the other cake components , if using.
• Adjust oven to rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 200F/93C degrees.
• In a medium saucepan, heat an inch or so of water until barely simmering over medium-low heat.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer (or any heatproof bowl), whisk together egg whites and sugar until combined. Place the bowl over the pot of barely simmering water, making sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl.
• Stir gently but continuously until the sugar dissolves and mixture is warm, about 3 minutes. To be sure, rub the mixture between your fingers and you shouldn't fell any graininess. Add salt and cream of tartar.
• Transfer the bowl to a standmixer fitted with whisk attachment (or use a handheld mixer) and beat on medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form and meringue is mostly cooled, about 7 minutes.
• For white meringues, skip the coloring step. For stripped colored meringues, using a small paintbrush, paint 3 vertical stripes of food coloring inside a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip like Ateco #805 (for round kisses) or 1/2-inch French star tip like Ateco #867 (for rosette kisses). Fill bag with meringue, and pipe 1-inch kiss shaped drops, 2 inches apart on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. As you finish piping each shape, apply less pressure to pastry bag, and pull the tip off in a quick motion.
• Bake for 2 to 3 hours, until the meringues are firm to the touch but still have a soft center, and lift off the parchment paper easily. If you prefer them crisp all the way through, then go with 3 hours. The best way to know if they've reached your preferred texture is to taste one! For better judgment, let the sample cool completely (about 5 minutes), before tasting it. The meringues shouldn't change color or brown as they bake.
• Allow the meringue to cool completely on the baking sheets then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.
• Using a food processor or blender, purée the strawberries until completely smooth.
• Pour the strawberry purée through a fine mesh sieve set over a medium saucepan. Press against the strainer with rubber spatula or back of a spoon to help as much juice and pulp to pass through the strainer. You should end up with 1 1/2 cups. Discard seeds. Stir in sugar and lemon juice.
• Bring pulp and juices to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula, for 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to skim foam from the sides and surface of saucepan.
• Continue to cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a rubber spatula to prevent scorching and burning, until mixture has thickened and reduced by half (3/4 cup; 225 grams); about 8 to 10 more minutes.
• Transfer to a glass jar or container and refrigerate uncovered until no longer hot. Cover tightly and store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
• In a very small saucepan, combine the powdered sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in 1/4 cup of the cream.
• Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly until just thickened but pourable. Do not let it get too thick.
• Scrape the mixture to a small bowl and set aside to cool to just room temperature. Stir in vanilla.
• In a chilled mixing bowl, beat the remaining 3/4 cup cream just until traces of the beater marks start to appear. Add the cooled cornstarch mixture in a steady stream, whipping as you go. Continue to whip until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over mix so the cream doesn't curdle. Keep chilled in the fridge until ready to use.
• Remove the plastic wrap and paper towels off of the the springform pan. To unmold cheesecake, remove sides of pan. Slide a thin metal spatula between the crust and the pan bottom to loosen, then slide cheesecake onto serving plate. Serve plain, allowing it to stand for 30 minutes before serving, or follow the instructions below for Eton Mess inspired cheesecake. Alternatively, plain cheesecake can be served with the fresh strawberries and sauce on the side.
• Spread and swirl the whipped cream over the surface of the cheesecake.
• Transfer the hulled and halved strawberries to a bowl and stir in the strawberry sauce to coat. Place the sauce-coated strawberries over the whipped cream, squeezing in some meringue kisses between them. Top with more meringues (you might not need to use them all up) and the whole strawberries. Add accents of crushed meringues, raspberries and mint leaves if desired.

SUPREME STRAWBERRY TOPPING

Steps:

• Wash strawberries and remove stems; cut large berries in half or roughly chop them.
• Combine strawberries, sugar, and vanilla in a saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. The mixture will sizzle for a while, but then juice will begin to form. Continue stirring; mash a few strawberries with a wooden spoon or heat-proof spatula to help produce the syrup. Cook until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes.
• Remove from heat. In a blender, puree about 1/3 of the sauce, then mix back into remaining topping. Store in refrigerator.

STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 160C/320F (standard) or 140C/295F (fan/convection).
• Get a 20cm/8" springform cake tin. Turn the base UPSIDE DOWN (Note 4), butter lightly and place a square piece of parchment/baking paper on the base. Then clip into the springform pan - excess paper will stick out, see photos in post and video.
• Butter and line the side of the pan.
• Break up biscuits roughly by hand and place in a food processor.
• Blitz until fine crumbs (Note 5). Add butter, briefly blitz until dispersed and it resembles wet sand.
• Pour into the prepared cake tin. Use a spatula to roughly spread it out over the base and up the walls.
• Use something with a flat base and vertical edges (I used a measuring cup) to press the crumbs up the wall almost to the top of the sides, and flatten the base.
• Use a mixer or beater to beat the cream cheese until just smooth, no longer than 20 seconds on speed 4. (You do not want to aerate cheesecake filling as it causes cracks when it bakes)
• Add flour, beat for 5 seconds on speed 4 until just incorporated.
• Add vanilla, sour cream, sugar and lemon zest. Beat until just combined (10 sec max, speed 5).
• Add eggs one at a time, beat in between until just combined (5 sec each), and after the last one, beat just until the egg is fully incorporated.
• Pour into prepared crust.
• Bake for 55 minutes. The top should be a very light golden brown, not cracked, and near perfectly flat. It should jiggle slightly when you gently shake the pan.
• Cool the cake in the oven with the door open 20 cm / 8" (Note 6), then refrigerate for 4 hours+ in the pan.
• Remove sides. Use overhang paper to slide cheesecake off the cake pan. Then slide the cheesecake off the paper.
• Place chopped strawberries, vanilla, sugar and lemon juices in a saucepan. Stir then bring to simmer over medium heat.
• Simmer for 10 minutes until strawberries breakdown.
• Mix cornflour with water, then add into saucepan and stir.
• Add halved strawberries and cook for 1 minute to soften.
• Sauce should be syrupy - remove from stove and cool. Will thicken as it cools.
• Once cool, stirl. Adjust thickness to make it the right "oozing" consistency (see video, Note 7) with a tiny touch of water (be careful!).
• Spoon onto cheesecake so it's covered with a single layer of strawberries. Flip strawberry halves so they are facedown. Refrigerate 2 hours+.
• Slice and serve with remaining Strawberry Sauce!

SIMPLY DELICIOUS NEW YORK-STYLE CHEESECAKE WITH STRAWBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Butter the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. In a mixing bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, butter, and 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar and mix well. Press onto bottom of springform pan and bake until golden, about 8 minutes. Set aside to cool. When completely cooled, butter the sides of the pan.
• Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
• In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, combine cream cheese, 1 1/2 cups sugar, zests, and vanilla and beat until light and creamy. Add the flour, then the eggs and yolks 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the sour cream, vanilla bean seeds, and bourbon and mix until smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Wrap the pan in foil and place in a roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough hot water to come half way up the sides of the pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours.
• Transfer cake to a cooling rack and let cool completely. Refrigerate cake overnight before serving. Cut into wedges and top with strawberry sauce.
• Combine berries, sugar, water and zest and cook until berries are soft and the liquid is thick, about 10 minutes. Stir in the kirsch or brandy and cook for 1 minute.
• Remove from the heat and let cool. Spoon on top of the cheesecake and serve.