Cheesecakes are of America's most favorite desserts. Everybody has his favorite ranging from the purist's choice which is dense and creamy called a NY Style Cheesecake or Junior's Famous No. 1 Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe to light and airy as in my Reduced-Fat Chocolate Cheesecake. You can bake your own or purchase one ready-made from the frozen food section of the supermarket or online.

Though a cheesecake can be savory (and served with crackers as an appetizer), most of us think of the term as describing a luscious, rich dessert. The texture of any cheesecake can vary greatly-from light and airy to dense and rich to smooth and creamy depending on the ingredients and mixing methods used. It is really a baked custard and needs to be treated as such. Just as most baked products are essentially flour protein structures, custards are egg protein structures.

I have included all sorts of information about making your own cheesecake, from its ingredients, how to mix, how long to bake and serving tips. My tips will hopefully come in handy helping to prevent the #1 problem most of us bakers have, which is a cracking cheesecake or one that puffs up in the oven and falls during baking. I will also show you how to prevent water from leaking into the pan when placed in a waterbath, how to remove the springform pan's bottom, storage tips and of course, lots of cheesecake recipes!    

What is a Cheesecake?:

Cheesecakes comprise two or three components: a crust, sometimes prebaked, the filling and optionally a topping layered in a special Springform Pan and baked with or without a waterbath. After baking, cheesecakes must be chilled a few hours, preferably overnight, in order to gel.

All dessert cheesecake fillings begin with a soft cheese - usually cream cheese, but it can contain mascarpone, cottage cheese, farmer cheese, Neufchatel, ricotta, goat cheese or yogurt cheese, cottage cheese or sometimes Swiss or cheddar cheese if savory.

A classic cheesecake filling is made by creaming the cheese and mixing it with sugar (for desserts), eggs, and vanilla extract or other flavorings such as chocolate, peppermint, mocha, lemon, cherry and more. The Pumpkin Cheesecake is one of my favorites. Add-ins, such as chocolate chips or chopped candy can be folded into the batter before baking, as in the Peppermint Candy Cheesecake Recipe.

Sometimes a starch, such as cornstarch or flour are added to the cheesecake's ingredients, such as in the Junior's Famous No. 1 Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe. These recipes will result in a cheesecake whose texture is slightly more firm and dense. These flour-containing cheesecakes can be baked directly on the oven rack at moderate temperatures, but sometimes you will see them baked in a waterbath, which is a gentler heat. Cheesecake recipes that do not contain flour are intended to be delightfully smooth and silky, such as the NY Style Cheesecake. To achieve the proper texture, these cheesecakes must be baked in a waterbath at a lower temperature.

A cheesecake may or may not have a crust and they vary. Crusts can be a light dusting of cookie crumbs or the classic Graham Cracker Crust, made from just graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Some crust recipes use a combination of chopped nuts and cookies are used, such as in the White Chocolate, Macadamia Nut Cheesecake Recipe. A Pound cake crust is used to make the Tiramisu Cheesecake Recipe. Even a Sponge cake bottom can be found in Junior's Famous No. 1 Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe. Or, no crust at all, such as in the Meyer Lemon Cheesecake Roulade.

After the crust is made and pressed into the bottom of a Springform pan, it is sometimes prebaked. The batter is poured on top of the crust and baked (again). When done, a perfectly baked cheesecake will be puffed around the edges, yet the center should be slightly moist and will jiggle. Look around the edge you'll see tiny cracks that look dry. When it cools, those tiny cracks will seal together. Cheesecakes become firmer as they cool and before serving, they must be refrigerated for 8 hours or more, preferably overnight.

Right after baking or after being chilled, cheesecakes can be topped by varied choices as sour cream, raspberry, strawberry, praline and streusel, such as in the Classic Cheesecake Recipe. Toppings also include whipped cream, fruit or even chocolate ganache. A cheesecake's edge may be trimmed with crust or cookie crumbs pressed into it. On top of that, some even frost theirs, such as in the White Chocolate - Frosted Hazelnut Cheesecake with a Raspberry Garnish (phew!) Recipe.

Many home-cooks are often a little nervous about diving into baking a cheesecake. We’ve all heard how temperamental they can be and how they must be perfect, without cracking, falling, being lopsided, dry, uneven browning, no browning or looking inedible. The best part about a cheesecake is that you can hide any imperfections under a disguise of a topping or serve it by cutting around its cracks as long as it tastes good. To be on the safe side, choose a cheesecake recipe that has a topping, such as the Classic Cheesecake Recipe.

My first cheesecake attempts looked so horrible, but tasted great. So, I cut it into chunks and served them in a parfait dish, with a spoonful of blueberry compote and whipped cream. No one knew and thought that I had invented a new cheesecake dessert! (This is also a good way to serve it when you drop the cheesecake on the floor, which I have done before!)  Or, maybe you'd like to follow my lead and serve your cheesecake anyway, cracks and all!

Regardless of the type of cheesecake you prefer, here are a few secrets to preparing and baking it like a pro. Once you get the hang of it, I know that you will end up with a moist and good-looking cheesecake, that's also quite delicious! Remember, it's essential to bake your cheesecake at least one day before you plan to serve it so it can chill and firm up in the refrigerator for at least 8 to 12 hours, preferably overnight.

Here are all of the popular ways. When baking cheesecakes or other items, make sure the oven rack is in the center section of the oven. Unless specified differently in the recipe. To high or low of rack placement will cause baking problems.

Waterbath Method: Similar to other custard desserts, such as Crème Brulee or Flan, a waterbath, also known as a bain-marie (French), insulates a cheesecake from the direct dry heat of the oven. This is the method I use and recommend for best cheesecake baking for recipes with starch, such as cornstarch or flour; the water in the bain-mairie takes longer to heat and longer to cool than the outside air, thus maintaining a stable temperature, ensuring that the cheesecake (which is really a type of custard) bakes evenly. I found that cheesecakes not baked in a waterbath to be slightly drier in their texture.

Some bakers place their springform pans in larger rimmed sheet pans, place the sheet pans on the oven shelves, then add water to a depth of about 3/8 - 1/2-inches. Ideally, use just enough water to ensure that it has boiled off within the length of time needed for your cheesecakes to bake.

Steam Method: a pan is placed on the oven floor or bottom rack while the oven preheats. Water is then poured into the pan (about an inch or so) or ice cubes tossed in while the cheesecake is baking. This results in steam that acts as the waterbath would. From my experience this method is not the most dependable, but some bakers swear by it.

Straight Oven Baking Method: no water bath or steam is used. Best used with cheesecakes that have cornstarch or flour that prevent the eggs from overcoagulating. Temperature usually ranges from 300 to 350 degrees F, though I like to bake mine at 325 degrees F, regardless of the recipe. The results of the recipe depends solely upon the technique and ingredients used in the recipe. If eggs are overbeaten, batter overmixed or the cheesecake is overbaked, cracks will certainly result and it will rise and fall in the oven. I personally find this method unreliable for beginners. Some recipes come out without cracks while other may have minor to major cracks.

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