Fluffy Cheesecake Using a Water Bath

Cheesecake Water Bath“To water bath or not to water bath, that is the question”

Some of my readers who baked my fluffy cheesecake using all the helpful suggestions have written to tell me that they had some problems while baking. The problem was usually the same one for all; they encountered cracking at the end of baking and during the cool down cycle. Well, I have also experienced that problem with either a small crack in the middle or several around the edges but never cracking completely through the cake.

When Aunt Mary passed down this family recipe to me, she did tell me that cracking can happen and it’s something that never concerned her. Being the Martha Stewart of her day, she would say, “Just top it with powdered sugar or make a nice fruit glaze to cover the top”.  Thus, that is what I have done. The cracking doesn’t happen all the time but it can occur and I have tried to see how we bakers can avoid this problem. There are some helpful suggestions posted at the end of the original post on Fluffy Cheesecake so make sure to always read those before starting:

Cheesecake Post Comments

I have also done some research on water baths for baking methods and many chefs use a water bath when baking cheesecakes. However, none of their recipes were similar to mine so I was leery of trying the water bath method especially after one of my young cooks (age 10-13 competition) baked my cheesecake recipe and won first place in a baking contest. And she didn’t use a water bath but just followed my instructions carefully!

Today I was determined to try the water bath method on my original recipe. I did not want to fuss with the foil method, so I devised an easier technique than the one in the link below:

Cheesecake Baking Steps

My Cheesecake Water Bath Method:

After preheating to a 320 degree oven, I placed a 9×6 loaf pan on the same rack I would use to bake the cheesecake. I boiled 4 cups of water and after placing the prepared cheesecake in the oven; I carefully filled the loaf pan with the hot water, closed the oven door and set the timer for 1 hour. It was completely cooked after 1 hour and I turned off the oven for another 1 hour, and remember DON’T OPEN THE OVEN DOOR. Follow the directions for cooling down in the original recipe.

PERFECTION, NO CRACKS!!

Aunt Mary would be very pleased with the final results and my using a water bath. Thanks again Aunt Mary for a fabulous recipe and good baking to all of you and enjoy a marvelous, fluffy cheesecake!

2 Responses to “Fluffy Cheesecake Using a Water Bath”

  1. Georgette says:

    Hi Mary, I am eager to try your cheesecake, sounds wonderful!
    I am wondering if you have ever tried running a small knive around the edge of the cheesecake & pan, BEFORE leaving to cool in the oven??? (Supposedly this will help the cheesecake to not pull from the sides of the pan, while cooling & prevent cracks.) But I have not tried it. Just wondered if possibly you might have?

    Thanks for sharing this dear old family recipe with us.

    Best Georgette

    • Mary says:

      Hi Georgette:
      Thanks for commenting and for your suggestion. I haven’t tried running a knife around pan while cooling. It is worth trying. However, I found that if the cake developed a crack it was usually in the center of the cake and not from pulling away from the side of the pan. Please let me know how this works for you. Enjoy!

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