New York Cheesecake with Classic Shortbread Crust

This is everything you need to know to bake the ultimate rich and creamy New York-style cheesecake. The recipe includes a traditional shortbread crust with the option for a graham cracker crust if that's your preference.

I've made this cheesecake countless times over the years, including for a few weddings. One bride told me recently that even though she's been married for over 12 years, people still bring up her wedding cake as the best cheesecake they've ever eaten.

Making this cheesecake couldn't be easier. But, I've also shared everything I know about making it, storing it, freezing it, serving it, and even transporting and decorating it for a special occasion.

"This is hands down the perfect cheesecake. Great texture, flavor, not overly sweet, something I always get requests for. Another winner!!"

-Judy

What is New York-Style Cheesecake?

New York-style cheesecake is tall, dense, and incredibly rich and creamy. The pinnacle of indulgence.

The center of a New York Cheesecake should be silky smooth and soft - somewhat like the consistency of really good pastry cream. Then, moving out to the edges, the cake should gradually get firmer, changing ever so slightly from soft and creamy to drier and cake-like.

The flavor of a classic New York Cheesecake is pure and simple. Elegant. The cake should taste rich, slightly tangy, not cloyingly sweet, with just a hint of vanilla or a touch of citrus.

New York Cheesecake should NOT be thin, airy, gummy, chewy, dry, or heavy.

Critics of New York Cheesecake (yes, they exist) claim that this style of cheesecake is too dense. On this point, I want to offer what I think is an important distinction: New York Cheesecake should be dense but not heavy.

Let me clarify - a dense, ultra rich texture is the entire point of a New York Cheesecake. If you're looking for a light-as-air kind of dessert, you're not going to find it in a New York-style cheesecake. But, dense and heavy are not the same thing.

The best analogy I can think of is the difference between a really good chocolate truffle and chocolate fudge. Both are rich and dense. But the truffle has a lightness to it, while the fudge feels heavy. Not a perfect comparison, but one that hopefully communicates the distinction I'd like to make.

In this recipe, the texture is dense but not heavy. It's rich and creamy in a way that melts on your tongue rather than something you have to work to chew your way through.

Why This Recipe Works

There are three keys to baking an ultra rich and creamy New York cheesecake:

1. Heavy cream
2. Extra egg yolks.
3. Patience.

#1. Heavy Cream gives cheesecake a silky, ultra creamy texture

Most New York Cheesecake recipes call for sour cream, but I prefer heavy cream.

Sour cream adds more tang than I like in my cheesecake. Cream cheese already has a tangy flavor and this recipe includes a lot - 32 ounces. Adding more interferes with the rich, elegantly simple flavor I adore from a really great slice of cheesecake.

Heavy cream also has a higher fat content than sour cream, further contributing to this cake's silky, ultra creamy texture.

#2. Eggs give cheesecake structure and richness

Cheesecake relies on eggs rather than starch to create a thick, stable, "set" consistency. But it's the egg yolks that give cheesecake a smooth, rich texture.

To create an ultra creamy consistency, this recipe uses just enough whole eggs for structure, and a couple of extra yolks for extra richness.

#3. Cheesecake requires plenty of patience

New York Cheesecake is incredibly thick and requires long, slow baking and 8 - 10 hours to cool and set. When cooked for a long time at high temperatures, the proteins in eggs get tough and become tightly coiled.

But, when cooked gently, at a low temperature, they create a texture that's rich and silky-smooth. As in most things, when it comes to cheesecake, patience is a virtue.

Traditional New York Cheesecake has a Shortbread Crust

Although the vast majority of cheesecake recipes call for a graham cracker crust, "traditional" New York Cheesecake has a buttery, shortbread crust.

The crust is a simple mixture of flour, sugar, egg, and butter. It's a mild flavored crust that's only very slightly sweet because its purpose is to showcase the star of the show - the cheesecake. The crust isn't trying to compete with the cheesecake. It's just there to support it.

Personally, I prefer this traditional shortbread crust to the sweeter, stronger flavors of a graham cracker crust. But, honestly, I'm not much of a traditionalist in anything. Eat what you like, I say. If you're a graham cracker crust lover, here's how to make it...

How to Make a Graham Cracker Crust for New York Cheesecake:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a springform pan as directed in the recipe - fit the bottom with a round of parchment paper and spray the parchment and sides of the pan with a bit of non-stick baking spray.
2. Dump 1 ½ cups (140g) of crushed graham crackers, 5 tablespoon (70g/ ⅖oz) melted butter, 2 tablespoon (25g) granulated sugar, and ½ teaspoon salt into a bowl. Stir until all the crumbs are moistened, then press them into an even layer on the the bottom of the pan. (If the mixture seems dry, add a bit more melted butter.)
3. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and set aside to cool.

I've also included instructions for making a graham cracker crust in the notes section of the recipe card below.

Is it Really Important to Use Room Temperature Ingredients?

Yes.

Room temperature ingredients blend together better, plain and simple. If you try to beat cold cream cheese with cold eggs, they won't come together and create a smooth, cohesive batter.

The easiest way to bring ingredients to room temperature is to simply remove them from the refrigerator a couple of hours before you plan to start baking. But, if you are anything like me, you'll rarely remember to do this. So, here's how to bring dairy to room temperature quickly.

Do You Have to Bake New York Cheesecake in a Water Bath?

Nope.

This cheesecake is not baked in a water bath. Instead, it’s baked at a high temperature for 15 minutes, then at a very low temperature to ensure it stays creamy inside.

Baking the cheesecake at a high temperature for a few minutes creates a steam-induced "spring" in the cheesecake batter that keeps the consistency from being overly heavy.

Remember our discussion earlier about baking a cheesecake that's dense but not heavy??? This quick bake at a high temperature is how you achieve that.

When you bake cheesecake at a low temperature for the entire time, usually in a water bath, it creates an ultra dense texture that can feel heavy. This method avoids that.

Here's the downside: your cheesecake might crack. The steam from baking cheesecake in a water bath helps it rise nice and slowly, reducing the risk of cracks on the surface of the cake.

I care MUCH more about texture and flavor than cracks in the surface. I've used this cheesecake recipe hundreds of times for every kind of occasion - even for wedding cakes. Sometimes it cracks, sometimes it doesn't.

As you can see in the photo below, the cheesecake I baked for these photos has a crack in the top. Do I care? Not even a little bit. Did I rush to bake another one just so it would look perfect for the photos? Nope.

I'll choose taste and texture above aesthetics every single time. No contest.

How to Make a New York Style Cheesecake:

New York-style cheesecake might be one of the most impressive and indulgent dessert to serve, but it's one of the easiest desserts to make. Here's how:

1. To make the shortbread crust, simply dump all the ingredients into a bowl and mix until they are moistened and form a dough. Press the dough into a springform pan that's been lined with parchment paper and sprayed with non-stick baking spray. The dough should cover the bottom of the pan and come about ½-inch up the sides.
2. Prick the dough all over with a fork and then bake the crust at 400 degrees F (204 degrees C) for 15 minutes. Let cool while you make the cheesecake batter.

3. Beat the cream cheese, sugar, flour and salt with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until creamy and completely smooth, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

4. Add the eggs and egg yolks and beat until well combined, then mix in the heavy cream and vanilla extract.

5. Pour the cheesecake batter into the crust. The batter will come up nearly to the top of the pan.

6. Bake the cheesecake at 475 degrees F (246 degrees C) for 15 minutes.

7. Leaving the oven door closed, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees F (93 degrees C) and bake for 50-60 minutes longer.

To know when the cheesecake is done: Very gently shake the pan. You should see a small amunt of movement, a slight wobble, in the center of the cheesecake, but it will be clearly set. If the center appears liquidy when you gently shake the pan, it needs longer to bake. Be patient. Cheesecake cannot be rushed.

8. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven with the door closed for 30 minutes.

9. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate uncovered for about 2 hours, until chilled. Then, cover the cheesecake and continue refrigerating for a total time of at least 8 hours, or overnight.

What Kind of Pan Do You Need To Make a New York Cheesecake?

The easiest pan to bake a cheesecake in is a springform pan. Springform pans have a removable bottom and sides. The side is flexible and can be tightened or released with a latch.

Springform pans eliminate the need to turn a cake out of the pan. Instead, you simply release the latch and remove the sides of the pan from the cake. Easy, peasy.

Since the consistency of a cheesecake is delicate and creamy, turning it upside down to remove it from a pan is tricky to say the least. With a springform pan, you don't have to.

Having said that, I have baked this cheesecake in regular cake pans of all sizes - up to a 16 inch round cake pan. I did this for a couple of weddings in which I was tasked to make cheesecake for around 350 people. It's tricky, but it can work. Here's how...

How to Bake a Cheesecake Wedding Cake

You can bake this cheesecake in any size cake pan, but be sure to use deep pans with 3-inch sides. Remove the cheesecake from the pan by setting it in a larger pan that's been filled with hot water. Run a knife around the outside of the pan to release the sides of the cake.

Then, set a large baking sheet that's been covered in parchment paper over the top of the cake and flip the whole thing over onto the baking sheet. Quickly, set another baking sheet that's also been covered in parchment paper over the cake and flip it again so it's right side up.

Tips For Baking Cheesecake in Standard Cake Pans

1. Be sure the cake is well chilled (at least 8 hours in the refrigerator) before trying to turn it out. If you want added assurance, pop it in the freezer for a couple of hours.
2. This is a tall cake, but it's not as tall as a traditional layer cake. If you're wanting to create the appearance of tall, decorated layers, set the cheesecake on top of a styrofoam cake dummy and then decorate the entire thing. That's what I did in the photo below - each of the 6 cheesecakes sit atop a styrofoam round to create the appearance of tall layers.
3. Every wedding I ever made this for was in the middle of summer. To deal with the heat, I decorated the layers with Italian Meringue Buttercream, then put them in individual boxes and set them in the freezer at least a week before the event. I removed them from the freezer right before transport, setting them up at the venue and adding finishing touches. When it was time to serve, the cakes were thawed, but still perfectly cool.

How to Freeze a New York-Style Cheesecake

Some recipes claim that you can't freeze cheesecake that doesn't include sour cream. This is simply not true. This cheesecake, which contains heavy cream instead of sour cream, freezes beautifully for up to 3 months.

The most important thing to remember when freezing cheesecake is to wrap it well. I usually wrap it in 2 layers of plastic wrap than another layer or two of aluminum foil.

If you're freezing the cheesecake whole, you can leave it in the pan, or remove it to a flat plate or other sturdy surface. Allow the cheesecake to thaw, still wrapped, in the refrigerator overnight.

You can also freeze this cheesecake in slices. Separate slices with pieces of parchment paper, then push the slices together, wrap them up, and pop them in the freezer. The parchment paper separators will allow you to remove as few or as many slices as you like.

Delicious Cheesecake Topping Ideas

My favorite thing to serve with New York Cheesecake is Cherry Sauce.

Cherry sauce is one of those things I make all summer long, spooning it over ice cream, cakes, pancakes, waffles, scones, biscuits and cheesecake. But, you can also use frozen cherries to make it any time of year.

Other great cheesecake topping options include:

• Butterscotch Sauce
• Salted Caramel Sauce
• Whisky Sauce
• Maple Brown Butter Roasted Fruit Sauce
• Blueberry Sauce
• Hot Fudge Sauce
• Caramel Rum Sauce

New York Cheesecake FAQs

New York Cheesecake is a Building Block Recipe

Building block recipes are tried-and-true recipes that I consider foundational to great home baking. They are the kind of recipes I come back to over and over again, sometimes baking them as is, but often using them as a jumping off point to create something new. > Scroll through all Building Block recipes.