Baking the cheesecake at 475 degrees F for 12 minutes gives you a brown top.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 2 hourshours10 minutesminutes
Total Time 2 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Servings 12
Author Cookie Madness
Ingredients
Crust:
2cupsgraham cracker crumbs
¼cupgranulated sugar
8tablespoonsbuttersalted or unsalted is fine
Filling:
5packages8 ounces each cream cheese, softened
1 ¾cupssugar
2teaspoonslemon zest
½teaspoonvanilla extract
5large eggsroom temperature
2large egg yolksroom temperature
3tablespoonsall-purpose flour
¼cupheavy cream
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.
Grease a 9 inch round springform pan. Mix all the crust ingredients and press into the pan, going about ½ inch up the sides. This crust is not baked ahead of time. Keep in the refrigerator until ready to fill.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of stand mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla until well mixed. With mixer on low, add the eggs one at a time, beating on low and being careful not to add a lot of extra air to the batter. Add the yolks. With the mixer still on low, add the flour and cream. Pour into the prepared pan and drag a spatula through the batter to remove air bubbles. Let stand for about 10 minutes and drag the spatula again.
Put the cheesecake on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips.
Bake in lower third (right below center) of oven for 12 minutes. Without opening door, reduce heat to 300 F. and bake another 35 minutes. Turn off the oven and let cheesecake sit in closed oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes, then run a knife between the sides of the cheesecake and the pan without removing the sides. Let cool completely, then chill overnight.