Cheesecake Supreme (New York style)

Karen Sokol, from Betty Crocker and Better Homes and Garden Cookbooks.

Crust:

1 c. flour

1/4 c. sugar

1 tsp. grated lemon peel

1/2 c. butter

1 slightly beaten egg yolk

1/4 tsp. vanilla

Filling:

5 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese

1/4 tsp. vanilla

3/4 tsp. grated lemon peel

1¾ c. sugar

3 T. flour

1/4 tsp. salt

5 eggs

2 egg yolks

1/4 c. whipping (heavy) cream

Topping:

Prepared cherry pie filling, or raspberry glaze, or strawberry glaze

1 can berries, or use fresh if in season (frozen berries work well too, just reduce sugar)

1 c. sugar

3½ T. cornstarch

1/4 c. water

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Lightly grease 9-inch springform pan with shortening; remove bottom.

In a medium bowl, mix all crust ingredients with fork until dough forms; gather into a ball.

Pat 1/3 of dough evenly on bottom of 9" spring form pan (sides removed.) Place on cookie sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown; cool. Assemble bottom and side of pan; secure side. Press remaining dough 2 inches up side of pan. Heat oven to 450 degrees.

Make filling:

Let cream cheese stand out till room temperature. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and add sugar, flour, vanilla, lemon peel, and salt with electric mixer on medium speed about 1 minute or until smooth. Beat in eggs and egg yolks and whipping cream on low speed until well blended. Pour into crust lined spring form pan. Bake 12 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 200 degrees and continue baking for 1 hour longer. Cheesecake may not appear to be done, but if a small area in the center seems soft, it will become firm as cheesecake cools. (Do not insert a knife to test for doneness because the hole could cause cheesecake to crack.) Turn off oven; leave cheesecake in oven 30 minutes longer. Remove from oven and cool in pan on wire rack away from drafts for 30 minutes.

Without releasing or removing side of pan, run a metal spatula carefully around side of cheesecake to loosen. Refrigerate uncovered about 3 hours or until chilled. Remove sides; cover and continue to refrigerate at least 9 hours so it is fully set and cold.

Topping:

Drain berries. Reserve juice. Combine with sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Slowly add mixture of 1/4 juice and cornstarch dissolved together. If there is not enough juice, use water. Stir and cook until thickened. Cool and spread on top of cheesecake.

12 to 18 servings depending on thickness of slices. Delicious!