- Easy
- Budget Friendly
Ingredients
- For the crust:
- 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 5 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
- 2 Tbs sugar
- For the filling:
- 3- 8oz packages cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 C sugar
- 1/4 C heavy cream
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Preparation
Step 1
Make the crust: preheat oven to 350*. Toss the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and sugar in a medium bowl until well combined. Firmly press into the bottom and one inch up the side of a 9" round springform pan. Bake until firm and a few shades darker, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely. Reduce the oven temperature to 300*
Step 2
Meanwhile, make the filling: beat the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on a medium-high speed until smooth and lightly fluffy, about 3 minutes. Best in the heavy cream until combined. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Pour the filling into the cooled crust.
Step 3
Bake until the cheesecake is set around the edges but the center still jiggles
slightly, 1 hour to 1 hour 25 minutes. Turn the oven off. Keep the cheesecake in the oven with the door ajar slightly, 20 minutes.
Step 4
Remove the pan from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the cheesecake to loosen. Transfer the pan to a rack and let the cheesecake cool completely, then refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the springform ring, then slice.