"Jen" > wrote in message
...

> All this talk about cheesecakes is making me hungry for
> them. Anyone want to share their favourite recipes? I've
> only ever made uncooked ones, (many different types
> and flavours, and very yummy), and I only have one recipe
> for a very plain baked one. A local cafe here does a
> wonderful baked caramel and macadamia nut cheesecake
> that I'd kill for.

I'm very fond of this one -- not quite plain, not with a sour cream topping!
But not so fancy, either. I can highly recommend the book _Cheesecake
Extraordinaire_, from which this recipe comes. It's got all the fancy
cheesecakes you could want.

I will say that I wasn't so happy with the crust on this one -- not because
I don't like vanilla wafer crusts, but because the cookies I used (not real
Nilla Wafers, which I can't get here) got soggy. Next time, I'm going
to fool around with the Oatmeal Cookie Crust recipe which follows (which I
*think* I got from the Quaker Oats site) or try pre-baking vanilla wafer
crust.

Super New York-Style Cheesecake

From Cheesecake Extraordinaire



Vanilla Wafer Crust

1-3/4 cups finely crushed vanilla wafers

1/2 cup butter, melted



In a small bowl stir together crushed wafers and melted butter. Stir till
well combined. Press crumb mixture evenly onto the bottom and up the sides
of a greased 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.



New York Filling

32 ounces cream cheese

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

5 eggs

1/3 cup whipping cream

1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel

1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract



In a large bowl combine cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and flour. Beat with an
electric mixer till smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after
each addition. Stir in whipping cream, orange peel, lemon peel, and 1
teaspoon vanilla extract. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust.



Bake at 350F (176C) for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 200F (93C) and
bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until the center no longer looks wet or
shiny. Remove the cake from the oven. Stir together sour cream, 2
tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Spread over warm
cheesecake.



Return cheesecake to the oven and bake for 15 minutes more. Remove from
oven and run a knife around the inside edge of the pan. Do not chill
cheesecake.



Sour Cream Topping

1 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract



In a small bowl stir together sour cream, sugar, and vanilla extract.
Spread sour cream mixture over warm cheesecake. Bake at 350F (176C) for an
additional 15 minutes. Chill, uncovered, overnight. Makes 12-18 slices.



Oatmeal Cookie Crust

1-1/2 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)

8 tbsp (1 stick) plus 2 tbsp butter, melted



Spray bottom and sides of 13x9" baking pan with cooking spray [I'd probably
skip this, for the cheesecake, plus make allowances for the difference in
the size of the pan]. In large bowl, combine oats, flour, sugar, baking
soda and salt; mix well. Stir in butter; mix well. Press firmly into an
even layer on bottom of pan. Follow baking instructions for each variation
[then a number of other recipes using the crust are listed -- I think I'd
bake it for a bit until lightly browned].