Cheesecakes

Some Special Tips for Cheesecakes Do not use the more expensive “natural” specialty cream cheese. Philadelphia brand, available almost all over the world, or other regional commercial brands such as Organic Valley, offer the best and most consistent flavor and texture for these cakes. Cream cheese without gums will aerate more, yielding more volume and less creaminess.

Bake a cheesecake in a water bath to keep the sides as creamy as the center. Placing the springform pan in a silicone pan before placing it in the water bath works wonderfully to keep the water from leaking into the springform pan. Silicone, however, is very slow to conduct heat. If using a silicone pan for this purpose, bake the cake an additional 5 to 7 minutes to compensate. To help prevent staining the aluminum cake pan if used as the water bath, add about 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar to the water.