Mile-High New York Cheesecake~ Crustless

This cheesecake is a purist's cheesecake, my type of cheesecake! It is baked. It is crustless. It is topless. It is pure cheesecake, unadorned. It is not a no-bake. It does not have fruit. It does not have nuts or chocolate chips. One slice of this cheesecake, and I think you will know what I mean.

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 18

Calories: 358

Equipment

10-inch springform pan
larger pan for a water bath
heavy-duty aluminum foil

Ingredients

5 eggs at room temperature
2 cups sour cream at room temperature
32 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
8 tablespoons butter at room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest grated

Instructions

Move an oven rack to the center position.
Preheat the oven to 300° F. (Yes, 300 F.!)
Generously butter the inside of a 10-inch springform pan.
Wrap a double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil tightly around the outside of the springform pan, and around the bottom and sides, crimping and pleating the foil to conform to the pan.
In a large bowl, whisk by hand the eggs and sour cream until well-blended. Set aside.
With a mixer on medium-high speed, beat the cream cheese with the butter until smooth and creamy. On low speed add in the egg mixture, gradually increase the speed to medium and mix it well.
On medium high speed, beat in the sugar, cornstarch, vanilla extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat thoroughly until it is all mixed,, about 2 minutes.
Make a water bath by placing the springform pan into another larger pan that is filled with very hot tap water about one-quarter full. Wait a few minutes to make sure no water is leaking into the springform pan. If it does leak, then add more aluminum foil on the bottom and around the sides of the springform pan.
Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan.
Bake the cheesecake at 300° F. in the water bath for 2 hours and 15 minutes, or until it is very lightly browned, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove the springform pan from the water bath. Peel off the aluminum foil.
Place the pan on a wire rack to cool at room temperature for 4 hours.
Cover it and refrigerate it overnight or at least 4 hours before serving.

EXTRA TIP:

TO SERVE: You can leave the cheesecake on the bottom of the springform pan to serve. You can remove the cheesecake to a serving plate by using 2 extra-large metal spatulas. Or use 3 or 4 regular size metal spatulas and grab another person to help you!

VARIATION: If you really need fruit with it, I would suggest serving it with just some fresh fruit. To me, anything more sweet like pie filling or glazed fruit will take away from savoring the delicious taste of this cheesecake.

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