New York Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 1 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 5 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoons Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel, if desired
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon peel, if desired
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 5 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 3/4 cup whipping cream
• 1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted, if desired

Instructions

1. 1

   --- Preparation ---

2. 2

   Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease 9-inch springform pan with shortening; remove bottom. In medium bowl, mix all crust ingredients with fork until dough forms; gather into a ball. Press one-third of the dough evenly on bottom of pan. Place on cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown; cool. Assemble bottom and side of pan; secure side. Press remaining dough 2 inches up side of pan.

3. 3

   Increase oven temperature to 450°F. In large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, flour, orange peel, lemon peel and salt with electric mixer on medium speed about 1 minute or until smooth. Beat in eggs, 2 egg yolks and 1/4 cup whipping cream, beating on low speed until well blended. Pour into baked crust. Bake 15 minutes.

4. 4

   Reduce oven temperature to 200°F. Bake 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 cooling rack away from drafts 30 minutes.

5. 5

   Without releasing or removing side of pan, run metal spatula carefully along side of pan to loosen cheesecake. Refrigerate uncovered about 3 hours or until chilled; cover and continue refrigerating at least 9 hours but no longer than 48 hours.

6. 6

   Run metal spatula along side of pan to loosen cheesecake again. Remove side of pan; leave cheesecake on pan bottom to serve. In chilled small bowl, beat 3/4 cup whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until stiff. Spread whipped cream over top of cheesecake. Decorate with almonds. Store covered in refrigerator.

7. 7

   --- Tips ---

8. 8

   Refrigerate egg whites in a sealed container for up to 4 days. They make great fat-free additions to scrambles, omelets and other egg dishes.

9. 9

   A collection of fresh berries and a few mint sprigs is a classic garnish. Or dress it up even more by drizzling with chocolate or caramel topping.