Peach Cobbler Cheesecake

Peach Filling & Topping

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Wash, pit, and slice the peaches into 1/2-inch slices. There is no need to peel the peaches unless you feel like it since the peels soften significantly during the roasting process and aren't noticeable at all. Gently toss the peach slices with lemon juice, brown sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon in a large bowl until evenly coated, then spread on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 10 to 12 minutes at 400°F until softened but not mushy. Set aside to cool.* Decrease oven temperature to 350°F. If I want the very best presentation, I will only roast half of the peaches (with half of each of the peach topping ingredients) before making the cheesecake and do the rest the day I plan to serve the cheesecake, but it's also okay to do them all at once and refrigerate the rest for finishing the cheesecake later.

Crumb Filling & Topping

1. Make the crumb topping by combining flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. Whisk or stir together, then add the melted butter and vanilla extract and stir until everything is evenly moistened. Squeeze fistfuls of the crumble mixture to compress some of it into larger bits, then scatter on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 20 minutes at 350°F until golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and break up larger clumps while still warm. Set aside about 1/2 to 2/3 cup of the crumb topping for later.

Crust

1. Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor or in a large ziploc bag using a rolling pin until they are fine crumbs. Add the sugar and melted butter and pulse again until evenly moistened. Press the crumbs into a 9-inch springform pan that is at least 3 inches deep. Use a flat bottomed glass to compact the crust on the bottom and about 1 1/2 to 2 inches up the side of the pan.
2. Bake crust for 10 minutes in a 350°F oven until lightly toasted and fragrant. Set aside to cool. Decrease the oven temperature to 325°F.

Cheesecake Filling

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and granulated sugar with an electric hand mixer until smooth.
2. Add the sour cream, heavy cream, and flour, beating until combined and stopping to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl.
3. On low speed, beat in the vanilla extract and the eggs, one at a time, mixing just until combined. Be sure to pause and scrape the bowl again partway through mixing so the batter gets evenly mixed.
4. Add a little less than half of the cheesecake batter to the prepared graham cracker crust. Spoon about half of the roasted peaches and juices on top of the cheesecake filling. Sprinkle with all but about 1/2 to 2/3 cup of the crumble topping. Add the remaining cheesecake filling and rap the pan against the counter a few times to remove trapped air bubbles. The pan will be very full (almost to the brim).
5. Bake in a water bath for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hours 20 minutes in a 325°F oven until set around the edges but still jiggly in the center. The easiest, most foolproof approach to a water bath is to nestle your 9-inch springform pan inside a 10-inch cake pan (we don't mess around with wrapping in foil here), then nest both of those into a larger 12-inch cake pan. Transfer to the oven and carefully pour boiling water (or super hot tap water) into the outer ring of the 12-inch cake pan. This easy, foolproof water bath is the best method I have found for achieving great cheesecake results every time without leaks. Alternatively, you CAN bake this without a water bath, but it will be done about 10-15 minutes earlier.
6. When checking for doneness, a cheesecake should be set around the edges but still have a wobble in the center like a just-set jello. You can also test for doneness with an instant read digital thermometer inserted into the center of your cheesecake. A cheesecake will have an internal temperature of between 145°F and 150°F when it is done.
7. Once the cheesecake is done, do not remove it from the oven! Instead, turn the oven off and crack the door to let it cool slowly for 30 minutes before removing it to cool the rest of the way at room temperature. Run a thin, sharp paring knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the cheesecake so it doesn't stick to the sides of the pan as it cools. Once the cheesecake has cooled for about 2 hours, you can transfer it to the fridge to chill all the way, at least 4-6 hours or overnight.
8. To finish the cheesecake, top with the remaining roasted peaches and sprinkle with reserved crumble topping. If you roasted all of your peaches at once on the first day, you can zhuzh it up by warming them in the oven or microwave and tossing them gently to freshen them a bit or just pile them on cold. I like to let my cheesecake sit out for 20-30 minutes to take off the chill so the flavors are more pronounced before serving.