Creamy Cheesecake with Blueberry Jam Topping

Lynn-Marie

5 years ago

When Josh made his blueberry jam, he asked me if I could make a cheesecake to go with it. I don’t remember the last time I made a cheesecake, but fortunately, I have a favorite recipe.

Creamy Cheesecake with Blueberry Jam Topping

Servings: 8-12
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This cheesecake tastes best after sitting in the fridge overnight. Make sure to plan ahead if possible!

Ingredients

Crust:

9 sheets graham crackers
1 Tablespoon sugar
½ cup butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling:

3 packages cream cheese (8 oz. each), softened
¾ cup sugar
3 teaspoons cornstarch
3 eggs
¼ cup heavy cream
2¼ teaspoons vanilla
½ teaspoon lemon extract

Topping:
½ cup to 1 cup blueberry jam, homemade or storebought

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Line the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan with a circle of parchment paper.

Pulse the graham crackers in a food chopper or food processor until they are fine crumbs. In a bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, tablespoon of sugar, and the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of the 8 inch springform pan.

Refrigerate the crust for 15 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Combine the sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl, then add the sugar mixture to the cream cheese. Beat the sugar mixture into the cream cheese. Add the eggs and beat on low speed just until combined. Add the cream, vanilla, and lemon extract and beat again until just combined. Pour into the refrigerated crust.

Place an 8 in by 10 in baking pan with high sides in the oven on a rack below where the cheesecake will bake. Boil a liter of water in either an electric kettle or in the microwave. Carefully pour the hot water into the baking pan in the oven. This will be your “water bath.”

Place the cheesecake in the oven directly on the rack above the water bath and bake for 40-50 minutes, until the cheesecake is set at least 2 inches from the edges. Take the cheesecake out of the oven and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, carefully run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen, then cool for 1 hour more. Your cheesecake top may crack but the blueberry jam topping will cover. Refrigerate the cheesecake overnight.

Remove the sides of the pan and transfer the cheesecake to a serving plate. Top cheesecake with blueberry jam and serve slices with whipped cream.

I know that most graham cracker crusts are pre-baked before adding the cheesecake filling, but I’ve found that I like the crust better when it is not pre-baked. So after patting the crust into the pan, I refrigerated it for 15 minutes until the cheesecake filling was ready.

My cheesecake did brown on top in spite of the “water bath.” I thought that the texture of the cheesecake was better though than when I don’t do the steam bath (which I guess it really is, not a water bath.) I have yet to make a cheesecake that does not brown on top, which is why I always cover the top with jam, sour cream, whipped cream, etc.

I also let the cheesecake sit overnight in the fridge. Since the cheesecake was still warm when I put it in the fridge, I left off the jam until the next day.