Description
I was intrigued by the grapefruit and therefore was determined to make this work! Don’t get me wrong, it worked both times I’ve made it, but I like to have perfect proportions, nothing left over and always know how something is going to turn out – this is why I maintain Deanna’s Daughter. What’s below should work out perfectly in a 9 x 13 cake pan – I haven’t tried this yet. What has worked for me is the crust as shown, but baked in a pie plate, and then half of the filling below, also baked in a pie plate. We also trialed both orange and grapefruit and the grapefruit won, no contest – so experiment with what floats your boat and remember that there are extra tips in the original posting from NYT Cooking.
Ingredients
For the crust – either in a 9-inch pie plate or a thin bottom in a 9 x 13 cake pan;
2 c. graham cracker crumbs AND 3 T. brown sugar AND 7 to 8 T. melted butter
For the filling – full recipe for a 9 x 13 pan, half recipe for a pie plate;
2 packages (250 g) cream cheese, room temperature
1 c. full-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt (I used sour cream) AND 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs AND 3 T. freshly squeezed grapefruit juice AND 3 T. grapefruit zest AND a pinch of kosher salt
sliced grapefruit for serving and garnish
Instructions
For the crust – preheat the oven to 325, combine the crust ingredients in a medium bowl and then firmly and evenly press them into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate – if you’re doubling the recipe, then the crust only needs to be pressed into the bottom of a 9 x 13 cake pan, it will be thin. Bake for 10 minutes and then leave the crust to cool a bit while you prepare the filling.
For the filling – using your electric mixer (or a food processor), combine the cream cheese, sour cream and sugar for a few minutes until very smooth and well blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in the egg(s), grapefruit juice and zest and a pinch of salt and beat again. Keep mixing until the filling is as smooth as you can get it, this will take a couple of minutes and you may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle a couple of times.
Pour the filling into your prepared, baked crust and bake until the filling is mostly set (it may jiggle a titch in the middle). For a pie plate this will be about 30 minutes, for a 9 x 13, check it at 20 (thinner filling), and then keep an eye on it until it’s done. In either case the filling should not brown at all. When you’ve reached this point, turn the oven off, open the door a crack and leave the cheesecake to sit in the oven for another 10 minutes (this should help it not to crack), then transfer it to a rack to cool completely before refrigerating. We prefer our cheesecake cold and if you do as well, then plan ahead so that it has a few hours to chill.
Garnish with sliced fruit and serve as you wish!