Linda’s Never Fail Cheesecakes

Dessert

Linda Nance is the master of cheesecake. A spring-form pan is a must. You can use one of these fillings or let your imagination do the work and develop your own version.

Ingredients

Basic Cheesecake

2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar

Pinch salt
5 eggs

4 egg yolks
3 /4 cup heavy cream

2 tsp vanilla extract

Crust

1 1 /2 cups graham cracker crumbs

3 /4 cup melted butter

1 /2 cup sugar

Instructions

Basic Cheesecake

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees

Place softened cream cheese in large mixing bowl and beat using paddle attachment on medium speed until VERY smooth. Scrape sides and beat again to ensure there are no lumps.

Add sugar and mix well. Add in eggs and yolks a few at a time, allowing them to incorporate well before adding more.

Place the mixer on slow speed and add vanilla and cream. As soon as the cream is incorporated, stop mixing

Crust

Combine crumbs and sugar and mix by hand Add butter in stages, mixing well before each addition.

Evenly distribute the crust in a nine-inch spring form pan, pressing it firmly on the bottom of the pan, and building crust up two inches on the sides of the pan.

Pour in the cheesecake batter and bake for 1-1 1 /2 hours. The cheesecakes should jiggle slightly when tapped.

Remove and cool refrigerate overnight before serving.

To cut, run a thin knife under hot water before cutting each slice.

for Pumpkin Cheese Cake:

Substitute brown sugar for white sugar.

Substitute pumpkin puree for heavy cream

Add 2 tsp pumpkin spice

for Lemon-Blueberry Cheesecake

After filling is prepared, gently fold in 2 tsp lemon zest and 1 1 /2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

for Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cheesecake

In the crust, replace 1/2 cup of the graham cracker crumbs with 1 /2 cup finely ground peanuts

When making the filling, use 1 1/2 pounds cream cheese. When the filling is prepared, divide it in half. Beat 1 /2 cup peanut butter into one half of the filling. Fold 4 ounces melted semisweet chocolate into the other half. Alternate filling the crust with the two different fillings.

for Summer Peaches and Cream Cheesecake

Replace 1/2 pound of the cream cheese with 8 ounces of sour cream.

Add in 1 1/2 cup fresh peaches, peeled and diced and 1/4 cup peach schnapps.

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Chef Linda Roderick has been by my side through these cookbooks for over two decades, and there’s no one I’d rather have guiding me through a cheesecake recipe. She’s a master of the craft—steady, exacting, and always aiming for perfection. This rich, decadent chocolate cheesecake is no exception. It's all about balance. The deep, smooth chocolate filling meets a crisp, slightly salty crust for a perfect bite every time. Ensure your cream cheese is at room temperature before mixing—otherwise, you’ll end up with lumps. And when you melt the chocolate, give it time to cool slightly before mixing it into the batter, so you don’t end up with curdled filling. It’s worth the patience, every time. A few techniques can elevate this recipe to another level: chilling the dough overnight for a richer flavor, using a water bath to ensure an ultra-smooth texture, and letting the cheesecake rest for at least 24 hours before serving for the best flavor.

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