I come from a large, loud italian family. Somehow throughout several generations, no one has shared this recipe outside of our family, until now. Oddly enough, I only just found out the real recipe about 8 years ago myself. Why? Well, sit down and buckle up, buttercup. I am going to take you on a wild journey.
The air was hot and sticky, a true summer in Florida. Tears clung to my cheeks as I packed up my beloved Nonna’s house after she passed. My mother, aunt and I reminisced as we packed up her belongings. We sorted through years of memories, wafting in the bittersweet symphony of family pictures. When we finally made our way into the kitchen, we stumbled upon a small box of old family recipes. Lo and behold, we found our family cheesecake recipe, neatly written in cursive!
In true Italian fashion, my Nonna never once wrote down a recipe, instead dictating them to me as we went. We didn’t need written recipes. It was all in my nonna’s head. For years, we raved about her cheesecake, but we could never figure out why hers was ALWAYS better than ours, regardless of how many times she walked us through the process and ingredients. Well, dear readers, my lovely nonna had a secret…
And what was that secret, you might ask? An egg. Yup. 1 egg. That is it. For years, she had been telling the family that our cheesecake was made with 3 eggs instead of 4. I still like to think she is getting a chuckle about that as she watches over us. Who knew 1 egg could make SUCH a difference… But it did. We tried it and our socks were blown off. The cheesecake was so much richer and creamier.
So, dear friends, I hope as you try this cheesecake, you think of my Nonna and giggle today.
Aunt Anne’s Cheesecake
Equipment
- mini food processor This is the mini food processor I use and love.
- 9 inch springform pan I personally prefer one that isn't coated, like this one.
- Baking sheet You will need a sturdy baking sheet for this recipe.
- Parchment Paper
- Aluminum foil
- Plastic Wrap
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- 113 grams unsalted butter melted
- 200 grams graham cracker crumbs You can purchase crumbs or use a food processor to make your own
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Cream Cheese Filling
- 24 ounces Philadelphia Cream cheese
- 220 grams sugar
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
To Make the Crust
- Adjust oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Place parchment paper into the bottom of your springform pan- this isn't necessary, but allows you to remove the cheesecake more easily from the pan after it has cooled.
- Crush graham crackers with a food processor until you have fine crumbs- skip this step if you have purchased pre-ground graham cracker.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and cinnamon until sugar and cinnamon are dispersed evenly. 200 grams graham cracker crumbs1 tbsp sugar1 tsp cinnamon
- Add the melted butter into the bowl of graham cracker. Mix until fully combined.113 grams unsalted butter
- Spread the mixture evenly into the bottom of your springform pan, pressing down tightly with the bottom of a 1/4 measuring cup or other small, flat surface.
- Wrap the bottom of the springform with a large piece of aluminum foil. You want to make sure that it sits about 1/2 an inch up on all sides. Double layer the foil.
- Place the springform pan onto a baking sheet and place it in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
Cream Cheese Filling
- Unwrap the cream cheese and place it on a plate. Microwave it for 90 seconds to soften. Alternatively, you can let it come to room temperature before using it or soften it on the stove top.24 ounces Philadelphia Cream cheese
- Place cream cheese into the bowl of a standing mixer. Add vanilla, sugar and eggs to the bowl.220 grams sugar4 eggs1 tbsp vanilla extract
- Using a whisk attachment, mix at medium low speed until no visible chunks of cream cheese are present. If you are still seeing chunks after a few minutes, your cream cheese was likely too cold. Increase the speed to medium in this case. Do not mix this at too high of a speed or you will end up with a lot of air bubbles.
- Switch to a paddle attachment and mix on low for a minute to remove any air that has been added to the mixture.
- Pour mixture into springform pan, knocking it once to try to remove any air bubbles that may have formed. The springform should still be on the baking tray.
- Place baking tray back in the oven and add about 4 cups of water to the bottom of the tray- NOT in the springform pan. This will allow the cheesecake to steam in a waterbath.
- Bake cheesecake for 45-50 minutes. The cheesecake should be slightly jiggly in the center but not appear liquid anymore. If it is beginning to form small cracks around the edges, it is just past done and should be pulled out.
- Once done, carefully remove it from the oven, as the water will be very hot. Try to keep it level. Pull the cheesecake carefully out of the waterbath and place it on a cooling rack for 1 hr.
- Once cool enough, wrap the cheesecake and place it in the fridge for at least 6 hours. If you attempt to remove it from the springform before then, you risk it cracking.
- After chilling, remove the cheesecake from the springform pan carefully and place it on plate or platter of choice.
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