If you’re looking for a decadent and creamy dessert, this easy cheesecake recipe is just the thing!
With a simple four-ingredient filling, this cheesecake is fail-proof and delicious. Top it with assortment of fresh berries or sauces!
Ingredients for Cheesecake
This easy cheesecake recipe is a classic for good reason, and it needs few ingredients.
- Graham Cracker Crust: I purchase graham cracker crumbs, but you can also pulse graham crackers in a food processor to make your own crumbs. A bit of sugar adds sweetness, while butter binds the crust.
- Cream Cheese: Full-fat blocks of cream cheese are recommended in this recipe. For a lighter version, low-fat cream cheese can be used, but the texture will be much softer.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the cheesecake.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds flavor to the cheesecake filling.
- Eggs: Room temperature eggs mix smoothly into the batter. If short on time, place the eggs in warm water for 5 minutes to quickly reach room temperature.
How to Make Cheesecake
- Prepare crust: Mix the graham crust ingredients and press them into a springform pan.
- Prepare filling: Combine filling ingredients according to the recipe below. Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared crust.
- Bake: Bake according to the recipe below. Cool and chill before serving.
Do you Need a Water Bath for Cheesecake?
No, you don’t need a water bath for baking cheesecake but it helps with even baking and it helps eliminate cracks. While it might seem like a bit of a task, I can assure you it’s easy to do and only takes a few minutes extra.
To avoid cracks, line two layers of aluminum foil around the outside of the springform pan and place them in a large pan. Fill the pan halfway up with water. If you choose this method, bake it and allow it to cool for a bit in the oven. Cool in the refrigerator.
If you don’t use a water bath, your cheesecake will still be great. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the crust to loosen the cheesecake from the pan. Remove the pan from the cheesecake and let the cheesecake cool completely in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
This is what’s so great about cheesecake! There are dozens of toppings and sauces for every cheesecake occasion!
- Sweet: Caramel sauce, Berry, Raspberry, Peach, or Raspberry sauce
- Tart: Lemon curd or Cranberry sauce
- Spiced: Pumpkin or Apple
Delicious Cheesecake Toppings
This is the perfect dessert for any occasion! Serve this easy cheescake topped with fresh fruit, chocolate sauce, dessert sauces or even pie filling.
Storage & Freezing
Keep cheesecake up to 5 days in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic wrap or sealed in an airtight container.
If you’d like to enjoy a few slices out of the freezer, slice the leftover cheesecake before freezing or you can freeze it as a whole cake and thaw the whole thing. Store cheesecake in the freezer for up to 4 months. Let the cheesecake thaw in the refrigerator before serving.
Cheesecake Favorites
Did your family love this easy Cheesecake recipe? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Easy Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust:
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup melted unsalted butter
Cheesecake:
- 24 ounces cream cheese softened, 3 x 8oz packages
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a medium bowl, combine graham crumbs, sugar, and butter. Mix until well combined and press into the bottom and about ¾-inch up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan.
- In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until fluffy, scraping the sides as neede. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until just until incorporated (do not overbeat, this will cause cracks).
- Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared crust and wrap the bottom of the springform pan in 2 layers of aluminum foil. Place the springform pan in a large roasting pan and pour enough water in the roasting pan to reach halfway up the springform pan. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes.
- Once the cheesecake is set, turn the oven off, open the door slightly, and allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven for 1 hour.
- Remove from the oven and run a butter knife along the edges. Remove from springform pan and cool completely in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Remove springform pan and cool completely in the fridge at least 4 hours or overnight.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Cake, Dessert
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
This cheesecake is SO GOOD and so easy! I have made it twice now and have shared the recipe with a couple friends who loved it too! People in my family do not love cheesecake so I decided to just make 1/3 of the recipe and it turned out great!
Thank you for sharing the recipe, so glad you loved it Lauren!
When you say remove from spring pan, do you mean the whole cake or individual slices? If it’s the whole cake, how do you do that successfully? Thank you.
You will want to remove the whole cheesecake from the pan. Be sure to run a knife along the edges when it is removed from the oven. When you are ready to remove it, the springform pan should have a “latch” on the side. Open the latch and gently slide it off of the cheesecake by lifting.
I have used this recipe and it was so easy. I have however added a tablespoon of cream cheese extract and a teaspoon of vanilla paste ontop on the vanilla this calls for. Makes it so creamy and tasty.
I’ve made this successfully several times. Everyone loves it!
I didn’t have an graham crackers on hand, so I substituted crushed shortbread cookies instead. It came out FABULOUSLY, was easy to make and totally delicious!!! (I’m imagining all the different cookies I could substitute now…Oreos, ginger snaps, lemon cookies with lemon zest added to the cheesecake…this is a great basic cheesecake recipe that I can’t wait to play around with different flavors)
I’ve tried this once already and it came out amazing!!! It’s so easy and instructions are straight forward! Thank you for this recipe.
I was just unsure about how much butter I used for the crust. Is 2/3 cup equivalent to 11 tbs of unsalted butter? I used 11 tbs but was super nervous on how moist the crust was so I added an extra two graham crackers crushed up just in case.
It should be approximately 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons. As this is refrigerated, the butter will harden in the fridge holding the crust together so the crust recipe is a little bit forgiving if you have a tiny bit more or less. Hope that helps!
Do I have to use a springform pan?
A springform pan makes the cheesecake easy to get out of the pan but is not required for this recipe.
can you do a recipe this simple but it’s biscoff cheesecake?
most recipe call for heavy cream and sour cream which is hard to find in my area
this is the simplest recipe I’ve found in the internet and I’m grateful for it
I would really appreciate if you reply
,amber
I haven’t tried adding Biscoff to this recipe but it sounds delicious! Let us know how it goes if you try it.
Came out perfectly! Easy to memorize.
Can’t wait to try these recipes!
This is the best and easiest cheesecake recipe! I’ve used this recipe twice now and both times it’s come out as the creamiest cheesecake I’ve ever made. Very tasty and I keep getting requests to make more. Thanks for sharing it!
Made this recipe last weekend for my future in-laws. Needless to say I was asked to make two this weekend. It was a simple recipe that is much lower in cost than any other cheesecake recipe I’ve tried. I topped it with bananas foster and they loved it! Thank you ❤️
Could I bake it in a glass pie dish?
Hi! My name is Ialla and as I was looking at this, I accidentally put the eggs before the cream cheese. I’m wondering if it will effect the cheesecake in a negative way. Another thing, am I supposed to mic until the cream cheese is fully mixed or is there supposed to be chunks?
If you mix it until smooth (without chunks) it should work fine.
Hi!
Just wondering about the nutritional information. Is that for a slice or for the whole cheesecake? By the way, we made it today with the kid and was fun and delicious. We butt the crust a bit though. Oh well!
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe! The nutritional information is for one slice of cheesecake.
What if I don’t have a spring form pan
The cake will still be delicious in a regular cake pan Judy, you just may not be able to remove it nicely from the pan before serving. Spraying the pan should definitely help though.
This sounds great and I want to make it. However, I don’t have a spring form pan. Can I use a regular cake pan and just layer it with foil and spray it?
The cake will still be delicious in a regular cake pan Patricia, you just may not be able to remove it nicely from the pan before serving. Spraying the pan should definitely help though.
This recipe is such a simple, lovely, recipe! I followed the recipe exactly as written, and my cheesecake came out beautifully! I couldn’t do a water bath, but luckily my cheesecake came out perfectly without any cracks!! I’m so happy with how it turned out and I will definitely use this recipe again!
So glad to hear this recipe was a hit, Ree! Thanks for leaving a comment
Hi Holly, I ordered the cream cheese bricks but they delivered the wrong versions – they came in tubs! Can I still use them? Thanks!
Hmm, the tubs are usually the spreadable version which I worry will be too soft for the cheesecake to hold its shape! Sorry I couldn’t be of more help Gaelle.
Super fun and easy too make! And taste excellent
Did your texture turn out fine without using any whipping cream or sour cream? Because ei saw so many recipes use that but this one doesn’t
That’s the difference between regular Cheesecake and New York Cheesecake.
Love
I don’t have a spring pie pan and really would not use it very much as I am not a huge baker. Can I use the store bought graham cracker ready-made crust?
Hi Jackie, I haven’t tried making this one in a ready-made crust but it should work fine. However, you will want to pick up two crusts as this will most likely fill them both. I would fill the shells just over ¾ full to avoid any overflowing. Hope that helps!