I used only lemon zest, no lemon juice. I added sour cream but no flour. I made a crust that came almost all the way up the sides. Instead of a heavy sauce, I thawed some cherries and blueberries from the freezer, smashed them with a fork and it was the perfect subtle topping for the rich cake. I'm a dessert lover, but it really is impossible to eat too small a piece of this. Cheesecakes are rich and this one doesn't disappoint. Oh course, to drive the point home, my dear husband calculated the calorie content. This is celebration food and I am celebrating Spring!
Troubleshooting
The two biggest problems people seem to have when baking cheesecake are cracking and falling. If you don't want cracks then use a water bath. It keeps the humidity high and the temperature steady. The other problem is a cheesecake that falls in the middle. Assuming the cheesecake was adequately cooked, falling cheesecake is usually the result of overbearing the batter. I solve this by using my trusty handheld mixer on low and constantly scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl by hand. Beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth not fluffy. You don't want to incorporate air. Mix in the eggs slowly, one at a time, don't beat them. I've read that the addition of flour or cornstarch helps prevent falling because its presence gives the air bubbles something to cling to instead of just burst. I think flour makes for an unpleasant texture. Always use a water bath and always gently mix on low to avoid whipping in any air. Cook it slowly, cool it slowly. Butter the sides of your springform pan so the crust won't stick and pull away from the center or cause a crack. Shame on me for not keeping a closer eye one the cake in its final minutes of cooking. It is much darker on top than I would have liked but thanks to the water bath, the cake is still very moist. It was still jiggling in the center when I took it out of the oven to finish cooling which is what you want. Once it fully cools down and then chills in the fridge overnight the consistency will be perfect.
The Crust
15 graham crackers (The texture and taste of organic graham crackers is often quite different than traditional graham crackers. Trader Joe's graham crackers are a good compromise with all the flavor but no HFCS or artificial ingredients.)
6 1/4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 9 inch springform pan. Mix together crust ingredients and then press mixture into the bottom and a 2 inches up the sides of the pan. Bake until set, abut 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
The Filling
5 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, room temperature, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon course sea salt
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
In large bowl, mix cream cheese with electric mixer until smooth. Add sugar and continue mixing until smooth. Constantly scrape down sides of bowl. Add lemon zest and salt. Add eggs, one at a time. Continue to mix on low, scraping down the side and thoroughly combining the ingredients after each edition. Mix in sour cream. Scrape down side. Make sure everything is fully incorporated so you don't have lines in your cake.
The Baking
Boil water for water bath. Wrap the bottom of the springform pan in foil or with a silicone cover. Pour in filling. Set springform pan into a roasting pan and pour in enough water to come about halfway up the side of the springform. Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes. Turn off oven and leave cake inside to cool for about an hour. Remove from oven and cool on counter until room temperature. Cover loosely and chill in fridge for 6-8 hours before serving.
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