With Easter last weekend, and needing a dessert to serve 13 people, I decided on a cheesecake. Usually they are a pain in the neck, but since Easter dinner practically cooks itself (hello ham), I figured I’d make at least a little effort in the dessert section of the meal. Also, I’m not a baker so I most definitely had to use a recipe. This one I adapted from Doris Greenspan and Emily Weinstein at The New York Times, and it is quite phenomenally delicious if I do say so myself.

I followed the instructions to a T except for one small part – the crust. Because, I did not, in fact, have graham crackers or graham cracker crumbs in my pantry. Even though I told myself I did as I was standing in front of them at the grocery store. Whoops. So I had to find something to sub-in for graham crackers because I was NOT going back to the store. Again.

Rummaging through the drawers and cupboards, I found: leftover Christmas cookies (don’t judge), Girl Scout cookies and a scant baggie of graham cracker crumbs. Score. These I could work with – I also found what I thought were graham cracker crumbs but when I opened the bag, I discovered they were most certainly not crumbs, but alas, granules for making seafood broth. Not the aroma I was expecting when I opened the baggie. But I digress.

Needless to say, I threw a bunch of cookies in a baggie, mashed them into crumbs and voila – the perfect makings for cheesecake crust. May not have been a traditional crust, but it was just as delicious. In fact, multiple people said it was better than a traditional crust. I will take that as a big win for this non-baker, Easter cheesecake maker. Forgive the photos, my little sous chefs were digging in as I was trying to take pics so they are a bit umm, eaten.

Recipe
Adapted from The New York Times and Emily Weinstein and Doris Greenspan

For the crust:

• 1 3/4 cups cookie crumbs (I used a sleeve of Girl Scout Trefoils, 12-15 leftover Christmas sugar cookies, and 1/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs)
• 1 TBS sugar
• 4 TBS unsalted butter (melted)
• dash of salt
• 9-inch springform pan with 2 3/4″ sides

Preheat the oven to 350.

Heavily butter the bottom and sides of the springform pan, then wrap the bottom in a double layer of aluminum foil. Get a roasting pan out that can hold both the springform pan with some extra space, and water.

In a medium bowl, stir together the cookie crumbs, sugar, and salt until well incorporated. Add the melted butter, and mix – the cookies should be the texture of wet sand when you’re done.

Dump this sugary goodness into the springform pan, and use your fingers to press the crumbs into the bottom and halfway up the sides. It doesn’t have to been even, (or pretty, ahem) just equal in depth so it doesn’t burn in one section, and not cook in another. If you’re super lucky, you’ll have leftover Christmas sprinkles throughout the crust too.

Place the crust in the oven (use a baking sheet to keep things level), and bake for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

For the cheesecake filling:

• 2 lbs full fat cream cheese (4 boxes, 8oz each), room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups of sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups heavy cream

Using a stand mixer (you can also use a handheld) with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until it is soft and creamy – about 4 minutes. With the mixer running, add the salt and sugar and beat for another 4 minutes or so until the cream cheese is light and fluffy.

Toss in the vanilla paste, then one by one, add in the eggs beating for a full minute after each addition. You want the batter to be very airy with lots of loft to it.

Reduce the speed to low, and pour in the heavy cream.

Take your roasting pan, and add the springform pan to it. Give the batter a stir with a rubber spatula (if you find there are clumps in your batter, scrape down the sides and whip on high for a few minutes or until the lumps are gone) and pour into the springform pan. The batter will reach almost all the way to the top. Add boiling water to the roasting pan so that it’s about 1/2 way full. Tip – this is called a water bath. Some of the water will end up in the tinfoil and that’s ok.

Bake in the oven for 90 minutes. The top should be nice and golden brown. The batter will have risen above the sides of the pan (part of mine fell into the water bath, so I just added Raspberries at the end to hide it) which is totally normal. Turn off the heat, and prop the door open with a wooden spoon. Let your cheesecake hang out in its water bath for an hour.

Once the hour is up, carefully remove the roasting pan, and move the cheesecake to a metal rack, making sure you remove the tinfoil beforehand – careful as the water will still be hot! Let sit for 2-3 hours or until it reaches room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 4 hours or ideally, overnight.

When it’s serving time, remove the sides of the springform pan and place on a plate or platter. I added Raspberries to hide the edge that fell off, but also because I like my cheesecake with berries; but you do you! Cut into slices, serve your guests, and enjoy dessert!

Bon Appetit!