New York Cheesecake

1. Please read over the recipe at least once in entirety before beginning so you know what the overall roadmap is. Pay special attention to the baking process, including lowering the oven temp from 400F to 250F after 10 minutes, and then allowing the cheesecake to stay in the water bath in a powered-off oven with the door shut for 30 minutes, and then out of the water bath but in the oven with the door open for 30 more minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350F and line the base of a 9-inch springform pan (do not use a regular 9-inch round cake pan, it's not deep enough) with a circle of parchment paper cut to fit it, and spray very well with cooking spray; set aside.

Crust 

1. To a large bowl, add the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and whisk the mixture together until it resembles wet sand. Tip - I use store bought graham cracker crumbs to save time. However you can blend whole sheets of graham crackers in a food processor until you have 2 cups. You'll likely need about 12 to 15 full-sized sheets of graham crackers to yield 2 cups of crumbs.
2. Press the mixture firmly into the base of the springform pan in an even flat layer with your hands and fingertips or a fork.
3. Bake crust for 10 minutes and after baking, place the springform pan on a cooling rack to cool while you move onto making the filling.

Cheesecake Filling 

1. Increase the oven temp to 400F and to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the cream cheese, sugar, and beat on high speed for about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl down intermittently. Tips - The smoother the batter is at the beginning of the process, the better the final result will be. If cream cheese lumps do remain at the end of making the batter, simply press them against the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula to disperse and flatten them as best as possible.
2. Add the sour cream, heavy cream, lemon zest (Tips - remember to zest your lemon before juicing it and only use the outermost yellow layer, no white pith which is bitter; reduce the quantity of zest as indicated above if you want less overall lemon flavor in the finished cheesecake), salt, vanilla, and beat for about 1 minute to combine. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl.Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the eggs, egg yolks, and beat for 30 seconds to incorporate. Tip - Do not mix for extra time because this will add air which will cause the cheesecake to crack while it bakes.
4. Add the cornstarch and beat for a few seconds or until just incorporated.
5. Pour the batter into the crust.
6. Tightly wrap the outside and sides of the springform pan with foil. Tips - It needs to be tightly and very well wrapped so that in the next steps water doesn't seep in. I suggest heavy duty foil.

Water Bath 

1. Place the springform pan into a larger pan (such as a larger roasting pan or bigger baking pan) and slowly add warm tap water so that the springform pan is resting in 1-inch of water. My roasting pan has a wire rack so I prop the springform pan on that, but a wire rack isn't necessary. Tips - Do not skip the water bath. It's essential to prevent the cheesecake from cracking during baking. While baking, add a bit more water if it starts looking low so there's a steady supply of steam.

Baking 

1. Place the pans into the oven and bake for 10 minutes at 400F.
2. Reduce the temp to 250F and bake for 1 hour.
3. Once baked (after the 70 minutes total for crust + batter) turn the oven off. Let the cheesecake rest with the door closed for 30 minutes inside the water bath, inside the oven with the door closed.
4. After 30 minutes, open the oven door, and allow the cheesecake to rest inside the oven (still in the water bath) with the door open cracked open a few inches.

Cooling 

1. Remove the pans from the oven, take the springform pan out of the water bath, and unwrap the foil from around the springform pan.
2. Place cheesecake on a wire rack to cool completely. Tip - Don't shortcut this step, make sure it's fully cooled to room temp before moving on.
3. After it's completely cooled, cover the top tightly with foil, and place it into the fridge to chill for at least 8 hours, or overnight. Tip - You can make this ahead of time for an event. Simply let it remain in your fridge for 2-3 days.
4. Serving - Serve cheesecake with the toppings of your choice such as fresh fruit or berries including strawberries, blueberries, blackberries. Fruit sauce such as cherry pie filling or blueberry pie filling, or a thick jam or fruit preserves are also great. Or try caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, or your favorite cheesecake topping.

Storage

1. Cheesecake will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5-7 days or in the freezer for up to 3-4 months. Freezing Tips - The cheesecake freezes very well! For quicker and easier serving and thawing purposes, I like to slice the cheesecake, wrap each slice very well in saran wrap, then freeze the slices. It’s less bulky to store slices wrapped in plastic wrap in my freezer than in containers. When I’m ready for a slice, I take one out of the freezer, let it set on the counter for 15 to 20 minutes to thaw, and enjoy.