Strawberry Cheesecake

This strawberry cheesecake is made with a creamy cheesecake filling and a buttery, crisp graham cracker crust. The easy strawberry sauce is swirled in with the filling and also spread over the top of the cheesecake, so there's no shortage of fresh strawberry flavor! 

Strawberry cheesecake is one of the most popular types of cheesecake, and for a good reason! The light, tangy cheesecake filling paired with sweet, fresh strawberries is a flavor combination that's simply tough to beat. 

If making a cheesecake entirely from scratch sounds daunting, I promise it's actually really easy, and once you get a few basics down, you'll be able to do it in your sleep! 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE:

Fresh Strawberry Sauce:

• Strawberries: Fresh or frozen. No need to thaw if using frozen. 
• Sugar: Just a little to enhance the naturally sweet flavor of the strawberries. 
• Cornstarch: Dissolved in water to thicken the sauce.
• Fresh lemon juice: Not bottled!
• Vanilla extract & salt: For extra flavor.  

Graham Cracker Crust:

• Graham cracker crumbs: For 1 and ½ cups of graham cracker crumbs you'll need about 10 full sheets of graham crackers. You can also buy store-bought graham cracker crumbs, which can be found in the baking aisle. 
• Granulated sugar: Along with making the crust sweeter, the sugar also helps to bind the crust and makes it crunchier. 
• Butter: Melted butter binds the crust together. Feel free to use salted or unsalted butter since there's no added salt in the crust.   

Cheesecake Filling: 

• Cream cheese: Brick-style, full-fat cream cheese. Fully softened to room temperature. Leave the cream cheese out of the fridge for at least 1 hour before using it.
  • To soften quickly: Remove the packaging and place the foil-wrapped cream cheese in a bowl of lukewarm water for 5-10 minutes. Just be sure to wipe the foil dry before unwrapping the cream cheese. 
• Sugar: Granulated sugar.
• Flour: Adding a little flour to the filling makes it more sturdy and helps prevent cracks. 
• Sour cream: Full-fat and room temperature. I usually take the sour cream out of the fridge at the same time as the cream cheese. As long as it's not too cold you'll be fine. 
• Eggs: Room temperature is key! Room temperature eggs mix more evenly and easily into the batter without overmixing. Take them out of the fridge at least 1 hour before using. You can also quickly bring the eggs to room temperature by placing them in a bowl of lukewarm (not hot) water for 5-10 minutes.
• Vanilla extract: Pure or imitation is fine.
• Strawberry sauce: Some of the sauce gets mixed in with the filling and the rest is poured over the top of the cheesecake before serving. 

WATER BATH FOR CHEESECAKE: 

A water bath, or bain marie, is when you bake something inside a larger pan and surround it with boiling water. It's most often used when making delicate desserts like custards or cheesecakes. Basically, no matter how hot your oven is, the temperature of the water doesn't get higher than 212°F. It allows for slow, even baking, which gives the center of the cheesecake time to cook through without the outside being over cooked. 

To keep water from seeping into the pan from the water bath, make sure you wrap it very well with several layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil. *Note: No matter how well you wrap your springform pan, there's still a chance of water leaking into the pan and ruining your otherwise perfectly good cheesecake. This has happened to me a few times and so now I always follow a trick I learned thanks to lifeloveandsugar, which is to tie a slow cooker liner around the pan after wrapping it with aluminum foil. Which will ensure your cheesecakes always come out perfectly dry! 

HOW TO MAKE STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE:

Make the Strawberry Sauce:

1. Add the fresh or frozen strawberries and granulated sugar to a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally until the strawberries start to release their juices. 
2. In a small bowl, whisk the water, cornstarch, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt. Add it to the saucepan and bring the liquid to a boil. Cook and stir, try to mash the strawberries as you stir to get out more of their juices. Cook and stir until the sauce is thickened, then strain it through a sieve into a bowl while still warm. Use the back of a spoon to push as much of it through the sieve as you can, and scrape the strained sauce from the other side of the sieve. Set aside and allow the sauce to cool slightly.  

Preheat your oven to 350°F and begin boiling water for the water bath.

Prepare the Springform Pan

Line the bottom of an 8 or 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper (lay some parchment paper on top of the removable bottom and then close the sides around it). Spray the inside of the pan generously with non-stick cooking spray. Wrap the bottom and sides of the pan well with 3-4 layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil, then tie a slow-cooker oven liner around the wrapped pan.   

Make the Graham Cracker Crust

1. Use a food processor to pulse the graham crackers into fine crumbs.
2. Mix the crumbs, granulated sugar, and melted butter together until combined, and then add it to the prepared pan.
3. Use the bottom of a glass or measuring cup to pack the crust down tightly and evenly in the bottom and slightly up the sides of the pan. Pre-bake the crust for 10 minutes. 

Make the Cheesecake Filling

1. Use a hand-held mixer to beat the room temperature cream cheese, granulated sugar, and flour together in a large bowl until smooth. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract and mix until smooth, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. 
2. Add the room temperature eggs, one at a time, and mix until just combined after each. Then mix until smooth once they've all been added in. Don't overmix. 
3. Add ¼ cup of the prepared strawberry sauce to the batter and use a whisk to gently mix it in a few times, just so there are streaks of sauce in the batter.
4. Pour the filling over the pre-baked crust and use a rubber spatula to spread it out evenly. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to release any trapped air bubbles.

Bake

1. Place the cheesecake in a large roasting pan with high sides and very carefully pour boiling water around it, going up about 2 inches around the sides of the pan.
2. Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, check that it's done by gently shaking the pan. If the outside edges look set and the center is slightly wobbly, it's done. Turn the oven off, leave the cheesecake in, and crack the door. Allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven for 1 hour, then remove it from the oven and the water bath and let it cool completely at room temperature. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight so it can fully set. 

Tips for Making Cheesecake

• Avoid opening the oven door while the cheesecake bakes. Especially during the first 40 minutes. Opening the oven door causes sudden changes in temperature which can lead to cracks, uneven baking, or the cheesecake falling in the center. 
• Don't overmix. Overmixing creates pockets of air in the batter that rise to the surface during baking and turn into cracks. This is especially important once the eggs have been added in, so make sure the cheesecake batter is completely smooth before you add them. 
• Use room temperature ingredients. This ties into not overmixing, if your ingredients are cold then you'll need to mix the batter more to get it smooth. 
• Don't overbake. Overbaking can lead to cracks. Check the cheesecake after 1 hour and 10 minutes. Gently shake the pan and if the middle is just slightly wobbly and the outside is set and golden then it's done. Turn the oven off and crack the door. If the entire cheesecake is still pale and wobbly, keep baking and check it in 5-minute intervals.
  • *If you've done this a few times and it still looks under, turn the oven off and keep the cheesecake in the oven with the door closed for about 30 minutes, then crack the door and keep it in for another 30 minutes. 
• Don't slice the cheesecake too soon. I know it's tempting, but you need to allow plenty of time for the cheesecake to set before slicing it. For the best results, always cover and refrigerate overnight before slicing.

When you're ready to serve the cheesecake, pour the remaining strawberry sauce over the top and decorate as desired. You might need to reheat the sauce a little if it’s become too thick to spread.

Cover leftovers and keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. Enjoy! 

More Cheesecake Recipes:

• Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake  
• White Chocolate Cheesecake
• White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
• Red Velvet Oreo Cheesecake
• Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake
• Caramel Cheesecake
• Pumpkin Cheesecake