Blueberry Cheesecake
This Blueberry Cheesecake is ultra creamy with a buttery graham cracker crust and a thick, glossy blueberry topping. It’s the perfect blend of rich, smooth cheesecake and bright, fresh fruit.
Equipment
- spring form pan
Ingredients
Crust:
- 6.5 ounces graham crackers usually 1 package plus 3 long strips
- 7 Tablespoons butter I like to use salted
Blueberry Cheesecake Filling:
- 24 ounces full fat cream cheese VERY soft (note 1 below), Philadelphia HIGHLY recommended (note 2)
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 ¼ cups sugar see note 3 below
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla pure vanilla extract recommended
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- ½ cup heaving whipping cream
- 1 ⅔ cups blueberries fresh, see note 4 below
Blueberry Topping:
- 2 cups blueberries divided, fresh, again see note 4
- 2 ½ Tablespoons lemon juice fresh squeezed is ideal
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 1 Tablespoon water
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter the sides of a 10" springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper (this makes removal SO much easier). Wrap your springform pan with foil (I recommend following a tutorial on Youtube to ensure you don't get any leaks) or use a cheesecake moat. Place a large pot of water on to boil for your cheesecake bath.
- Melt butter and crush graham crackers until they're a sandy texture. I like to use my food processor. Add the butter and mix until well combined. Press into the bottom and about 2 inches up the sides of the springform pan. Use the bottom and sides of a measuring cup to push the crust in firmly. Bake for 7 minutes and remove from the oven.
For the Blueberry Cheesecake Filling:
- Place very soft cream cheese into a mixing bowl with the corn starch and ¼ cup of the sugar. Mix with a hand mixer on LOW speed for 2 minutes (see note 6 below for tips with a stand mixer). It will be smooth and creamy. Scrape down the sides and bottom then add another brick of cream cheese and beat on low for 1 minute until well combined. Scrape the sides again. Repeat with the final brick of cream cheese. Also scrape off the beaters. With the mixer on, slowly add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and mix for about 1 minute total. Scrape down the sides again. Add the vanilla and mix until combined.
- Increase mixer speed to medium and add eggs, 1 at a time. Mix for about 30 seconds each, scraping down the bowl before adding the third. Add the heavy whipping cream and mix on medium speed, only until just combined, maybe 20 seconds. Stir in the blueberries. Pour batter into the prepared springform pan.
- Place pan in the water bath (I use a large turkey pan) and pour the boiling water until it's a couple inches up the side of the pan. Place in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 60-70 minutes. When you nudge it, the edges should be pretty set and it will have a little wobble in the center. If you have an instant read thermometer, it should read 150°F. Turn off the oven and crack the oven door a tiny bit and walk away for an hour. After an hour, pull the cheesecake out and allow it to cool on a cooling rack undisturbed until it's about room temperature, around 2 hours. Move to the refrigerator and chill at least 4 hours, but preferably 8 or more before serving.
Blueberry Topping:
- 30 minutes or more before serving: Place 1 cup of blueberries in the pan with the lemon juice and sugar over medium heat. Bring to a boil and let boil for 7-8 minutes until the blueberries start to break down. Mix together the corn starch and water together in a small bowl to make the slurry. Stir into the mixture and stir continuously for about 30-60 seconds until it becomes translucent and the milky look has gone away and the sauce has thickened a bit.
- Stir in the remaining cup of blueberries and vanilla and remove from heat. Allow to cool for at least 20 minutes. I like to serve the cheesecake with the topping on the side so people can control how much they get. For a beautiful presentation, I recommend first cutting the cheesecake (it always makes such a mess!) but leaving it in the circular shape. Spread the blueberry topping across the whole thing, serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- For the smoothest possible cheesecake, you don't want to over mix it. Part of this means using cream cheese that is super soft. Your finger should be able to smoosh through it easily before use. Feel free to microwave room temperature cream cheese at 50% power in 10 second increments to reach this very soft phase if your kitchen isn't warm enough to get it there.
- I have made many many cheesecakes and tested a lot of different brands of cream cheese. With many ingredients, name brand makes no difference. When it comes to cheesecake it makes a HUGE difference. Please consider using Philadelphia or even higher end cream cheese. There is a reason there is a big price difference and it will mean having your cheesecake turn out vs not turning out.
- This is not a super sweet cheesecake. For a sweeter cheesecake, increase sugar to 1 ⅔ cups.
- We do not recommend using frozen blueberries in the filling of this cheesecake, as it would likely make it too wet. I highly recommend using your favorite type of blueberry as they really shine in this recipe, especially in the topping. Not all of the berries are cooked in the topping, so if you like firm tart blueberries and use them, that is what you'll get in the topping.
- A water bath will help your cheesecake bake evenly and help prevent cracks and also help prevent it from falling while it cools. I have tried many different ways of doing this and nothing works as well as a classic cheesecake bath. I HIGHLY recommend you watch a youtube video if wrapping your pan with foil to ensure you don't have any leaks. There is nothing worse than pulling your beautiful cheesecake out of the oven only to find it's flooded.
- Part of the key to getting cheesecake super smooth is to get every last lump of cream cheese smooth. If you're using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment. After every single addition of an ingredient, you'll need to scrape down the bottom and edges of your bowl as well as the paddle attachment where bits of cream cheese attach. If you don't do this, you'll end up with little lumps from the paddle.
Nutrition
Serving: 1sliceCalories: 390kcalCarbohydrates: 41gProtein: 5gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 14gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 95mgSodium: 258mgPotassium: 106mgFiber: 1gSugar: 30gVitamin A: 897IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 55mgIron: 0.3mg
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