Did you know that cheesecake already a popular dish in ancient Greece? Cheesecake is a dessert that has stood the test of time. The Romans spread cheesecake from Greece to Europe and centuries later it was brought to America by immigrants. While Greece used feta cheese, Americans use cream cheese which was invented by American dairymen, William Lawrence of New York. Here's a very basic New York cream cheese cake recipe.
Ingredients
Crumb crust
15 graham crackers, crushed
2T butter, melted
Filling
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3T all-purpose flour
5 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1t vanilla
1 lemon zest
Directions
Crumb crust
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Press onto bottom of greased springform pan with spoon.
Filling
1. In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with sugar until smooth.
2. Add eggs and egg yolks one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate. Mix in vanilla and flour until smooth.
3. Pour filling into the crust. Bake in oven for 1 hour.
4. Turn off the oven. Chill cake in oven 6 hours (*Note: keep this rule. It prevents cracking).
