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Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake
INGREDIENTS:
Crust
3 cups graham cracker crust
3 tbsp granulated sugar
12 tbsp salted butter
Strawberry Sauce
1 lb strawberries
1/3 cup sugar
Juice of ½ lemon or lime
Filling
4 8 oz pkgs. (32 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
4 tsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt
4 large eggs
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup strawberry sauce
Additional
Whipped cream for decorating, if desired
INSTRUCTIONS:
For the crust
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the base of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper and the outside of it with a sheet of 18 by 18 heavy duty aluminum foil. Make sure the foil has no holes; you don't want any water to leak in. To be safe, place the foil-lined springform pan in a baking bag and tie to secure it.
2) Add graham cracker crumbs and sugar to a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Then, pour in butter and mix with a fork until evenly coated.
3) Pour into prepared springform pan and press evenly into bottom and up the sides coming leaving about 1 inch from the top. Bake in preheated oven 20 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack.
4) Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Have a large roasting pan ready to place the springform pan in, and boil about 4 quarts of water (you may not need all of it).
For the strawberry sauce
5) Wash and cut up strawberries. Add them to a pot over medium heat along with the sugar and lemon or lime juice. Stir.
6) Bring the strawberries to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Allow to simmer (stirring occasionally) for 20 minutes.
7) Remove from the heat and allow to cool and thicken. Yields about 1 ½ cups of strawberry sauce.
8) Optional: Blend then strain if a completely smooth consistency is preferred. This will yield about 1 ¼ cup of strawberry sauce.
For the cheesecake filling
9) In a large mixing bowl, add softened cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Use an electric mixer on a low to medium setting and blend until smooth.
10) Mix in eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined after each addition. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
11) Mix in sour cream, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and 1 cup of strawberry sauce until smooth.
12) Pour into the cooled graham cracker crust. Gently tap the pan on the counter top to settle the batter and remove any air bubbles. Use a spatula to smooth out the surface if needed.
13) Add ½ tsp dollops of strawberry sauce evenly over the top of the cheesecake. Use a knife to swirl a design into the top of the cheesecake.
14) Place cheesecake in roasting pan then place roasting pan in oven and carefully pour in enough boiling water around cheesecake pan to reach halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan.
15) Bake in preheated 325-degree oven until cheesecake is nearly set but still jiggly in the center, about 80 minutes minutes. Turn oven off and crack open oven door. Let cheesecake stand in the oven another hour. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Place in a cake container and chill in refrigerator at least 8 hours.
Decorate with whipped cream before serving, if desired, and enjoy!
For maximum freshness, store cheesecake in refrigerator for up to five days. Slice, wrap slices in plastic wrap and again in foil, and store in freezer bags in the freezer for three to six months or deep freeze for up to one year.
