Yesterday was the anniversary of my father's birthday (June 14th, 1932). He would have been 78. For as long as I can remember my mother would make him a cheesecake for his birthday. As soon as he got a piece of the cake, he would grin from ear to ear in enjoyment as he ate each bite. His eyes were often closed too as he slowly savored each creamy bite. Then maybe a half hour later after my mom was gone, he would ask me to get him another small slice of the cheesecake. Ahh...he loved this recipe and cheesecake was one his all time favorite. We are having this in honor of you today!
For crust
- 1 9-ounce box chocolate wafer cookies
- 2 TBSP sugar
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
For filling
- 4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Make crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Wrap outside of 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides with double thickness of foil. Spray bottom of pan with vegetable oil spray. Finely grind cookies in processor. Add butter and process until blended. Press mixture onto bottom (not sides) of prepared pan. Refrigerate while preparing filling.
Make filling: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in sugar. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla.
Transfer filling to prepared crust.
Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Pour enough boiling water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of springform pan. Bake until cheesecake puffs around edges, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Turn off oven. NOTE: Let cake stand in oven 1 hour, leaving oven door ajar. This is very important.
Transfer cake to rack. Run knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Cool completely. Remove foil from pan sides. Cover cake and chill overnight. (Can be made 2 days ahead or freeze for up to a month)