Today is the day that you throw your diet out the window, you settle down in your favorite, comfy chair and with your fork in one hand, your plate in the other, you sit back….and wait. Wait for what, you ask. A nice juicy piece of steak fresh off the grill? Maybe a perfectly fileted salmon, or a crispy piece of chicken. None of the above. You are waiting for something far juicier than a Filet Mignon, or far more savory, than a deliciously seasoned fresh Alaskan salmon. Or even more filling than a skillet of fried chicken.
By this time, you have been waiting for this delicacy for over 10 hours and 25 minutes, and the anticipation is by now getting the better of you! Then you think back on those hours and you relive the moments you submerged yourself into this quest.
You started off by combining 1 ½ cups of graham cracker crumbs, 5 tablespoons of melted, unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 1/8 teaspoon of salt. You smashed all of these together and spread them out inside of a pie pan. You set the pan aside and continued on your culinary adventure by opening the refrigerator and taking out a box of cream cheese, 32 ounces of which you scoop out and put into a large mixing bowl. Time for more sugar in the mix, so you throw in 2 cups of it on top of the cream cheese, and then proceed to gently kneed in 3 tablespoons of All Purpose Flour, making sure it is evenly disbursed within the cream cheese. You follow this up with 4 teaspoons of vanilla extract combined with 1 teaspoon of packed lemon zest. The part of the lemon that is the zest is also referred to as, the outer most layer of the peel where most of the nutrients are stored. Now, pour in 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice. Add 1 teaspoon of salt, and 6 large eggs, and ½ cup of sour cream for good measure.
Stir this concoction as many revolutions and as fast as you can until all of it seems to be dissolved into the batter. You are ready to gently, combine this rich blend with the graham cracker layered pan and place them into a 375-degree oven for 2 hours and 25 minutes.
While your surprise is cooking, you have enough time to clean up the mixing bowls, measuring devices, stirring tools and any electronic items you may have used in the creation of what will prove to be the most wonderful thing you taste buds have ever experienced! With the timer set, and the kitchen now clean, and what is likely the better part of an hour to kill, you can confidently go about your business in other parts of the house. A house that is quickly filling with the aroma of decadence and absolute delight coming from the kitchen. As that last 25 minutes slowly creeps a long, you are letting the desire to look in the oven tug at you, but you willfully resist the urge and preoccupy yourself with other tasks. It is really no use though; you have already envisioned yourself going to the kitchen, opening the oven door, and peering inside. As they say, resistance is futile! In this case, however, it is necessary. So, you resort to the only alternative you have, and you go outside. You look at your watch and if they are in sync, you have to wait another 12 minutes.
Boy, that plant over there could sure use some attention, you tell yourself. You go to it, and checking with your finger you try to gauge the dampness of the soil. Feels alright to you. It will be just fine you ascertain and walk to the slider door. As you reach for the handle, you see your watch. Only three minutes left. That’s close enough, you say to yourself, and you go inside. By the time you reach the kitchen and the oven, the timer goes off, and it is safe for you to open the door. Now, you hesitate. What if it is not like it smells. I mean what if your expectations have been too high and it is a failure? Nonsense! You tell yourself and you open the door. The rush of heat fogs up your glasses and when the mist disappears you see how perfect your creation is. Then, you remember. This has to sit in the refrigerator for 8 hours before you can touch it! No! No! It isn’t fair! How could you let yourself forget that? You sigh heavily and take out the baking sheet, you place it on a stack of wooden cutting boards on the counter and after you cleared a space in the fridge, you move your perfect, scrumptious New York Cheesecake from the cutting boards to the cold shelf, closing the door you patiently wait, again, for 8 hours to pass. Even though it is always observed on, July 30th, I suppose you can celebrate National Cheesecake Day tomorrow, or any other day. There is never a bad day for NY Cheesecake!
