Classic New York Cheesecake, Gluten Free

Instructions

1. 1

   Set up the pan

   Heat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the lower third. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and line the base with a circle of parchment. Wrap the outside of the pan in two large sheets of heavy-duty foil, pressing them flush against the sides with no seams below the rim. If your foil is narrow, use three overlapping sheets. A slow leak here is the one mistake you can't fix later.

2. 2

   Press and bake the crust

   Stir the gluten-free graham crumbs, almond flour, sugar, and salt together, then add the melted butter and mix until the crumbs are evenly damp and clump when squeezed. Gluten-free crumbs drink up butter faster, so press firmly and a little more deliberately than usual across the bottom and 1 inch up the sides, compacting with the base of a measuring cup. Bake for 12 minutes, until the edges are golden and set — this extra couple of minutes is what keeps the crust from going sandy. Cool on a rack and drop the oven to 325°F.

3. 3

   Beat the cream cheese smooth

   In a stand mixer with the paddle, beat the cream cheese alone on medium-low for about 2 minutes until completely lump-free, scraping the bowl and paddle well. Add the sugar, gluten-free flour blend, and salt and beat another minute on low. Keep the mixer low from here on — air beaten into the batter puffs the cake and then cracks it as it settles.

4. 4

   Add the liquids, then the eggs

   On low, mix in the sour cream, heavy cream, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice until uniform, scraping once. Add the eggs one at a time and then the yolk, mixing only until each disappears. Finish with a hand fold from the bottom of the bowl.

5. 5

   Rest the batter

   Let the finished batter sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before filling the pan. Gluten-free blends are starch- and rice-flour-heavy, and that short rest lets the particles hydrate so the baked filling is silky rather than faintly gritty on the tongue. Give it one slow stir afterward to even it out.

6. 6

   Fill and build the water bath

   Pour the batter over the cooled crust and smooth the top, then rap the pan on the counter to release bubbles. Set the wrapped pan in a large roasting pan, slide it into the oven, and pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it reaches about 1 inch up the sides of the springform.

7. 7

   Bake low and slow

   Bake at 325°F for 75 to 85 minutes. The outer 2 inches should look set and matte while the center 3 inches wobble like soft gelatin. An instant-read thermometer in the center should read 150°F to 155°F. Gluten-free batter can brown slightly faster at the rim, so if the edge is coloring before the center sets, tent loosely with foil.

8. 8

   Cool it in stages

   Turn the oven off, crack the door a few inches, and leave the cheesecake in the water bath for 45 minutes. Lift it out, remove the foil, and run a thin knife around the inside edge to free the cake. Cool on a rack to room temperature, about 1 1/2 hours.

9. 9

   Chill overnight, then unmold

   Cover loosely and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight — the gluten-free crust in particular firms up considerably with a long chill and will lift away from the parchment cleanly. Unlatch the ring, lift it off, and slice with a long thin knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between cuts.

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Baker's Tips

• 1.

  Everything cold-sensitive — cream cheese, eggs, sour cream, heavy cream — needs a solid hour on the counter. Cold cream cheese will not beat smooth, and lumps added at the start never disappear later.

• 2.

  Use brick cream cheese, never the whipped tub kind. Tub varieties carry extra water and air and will bake into a loose, weepy filling.

• 3.

  If your springform is a known leaker, set it inside a wider cake pan and put that in the water bath. It's a belt-and-suspenders fix that costs nothing.

• 4.

  A hairline crack is almost always a sign of too much air in the batter or too fast a temperature change — not a ruined cake. Cover it with sour cream topping or fruit and nobody will know.

• 5.

  The cake tastes even better on day two, so this is a genuinely good make-ahead dessert for a dinner party.

• 6.

  For clean, bakery-sharp slices, chill the cake thoroughly and wipe the blade after each cut. Warm, crumb-smeared knives are what ruin the look.