I love cheesecake. It’s a decadent dessert that just feels like a special occasion but maybe that’s because you have to wait over eight hours for it to be ready to smash your face into. Worth it every time.

For me, the best cheesecake has a bit (or more) tang and some type of sharp fruity element to punch it up even further. Some of my favorites include a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake (like the one the restaurant I worked at in college outsourced which I’d sometimes shove down my pants at the end of the night to sneak a piece home - true story for another time), a key lime cheesecake (this one is the truly the best), and just your traditional plain NY cheesecake with cherries poured over top. Of course, all of these have to have a crust - graham cracker, oreo, I don’t care but a crust is a non-negotiable cheesecake element for me.

This cheesecake hits all the right notes. A cinnamon-orange spiced graham cracker crust, topped by a perfectly creamy, lightly orange-d cheesecake layer, with a cranberry sauce, poured over the top with just the right tang to bring it all together. To state very clearly, this isn’t an excessively orange cheesecake. It’s one that as you bite into it you think “Ah there’s some orange in there” but not “Wow this is orange!”

Yields: 1, 8.5” cheesecake

Ingredients:

FILLING:

• 24oz cream cheese, softened 

• ¾ cup fresh orange juice

• ½ cup sour cream

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 tbsp flour, sifted

• 3 large eggs

CRUST:

• 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs

• 6 tablespoons butter, melted

• 2 tbsp brown sugar

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1 orange zested

SAUCE:

• 2 cups frozen cranberries 

• ¼ cup granulated sugar 

• 1 orange, juiced

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 325F and line an 8.5”-sized springform pan with parchment paper and grease

• For the crust, blitz your graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground. Then pour into a bowl with melted butter, orange zest, cinnamon, and brown sugar, stir to combine. Press the mixture evenly into your greased and lined baking dish, using the flat bottom of a glass or measuring cup to press down firmly into the bottom of the pan. Freeze the crust for 15 minutes before placing it in the oven to bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is deeply golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan

• For the cheesecake, add your cream cheese to the bowl of a standing mixer and beat on medium-high until smooth. Add in your sour cream and orange juice and mix to combine 

• In a small bowl, combine your sugar and flour with a whisk. This will help ensure there are no clumps of flour in your mixture. Pour over cheesecake batter and mix until incorporated

• Crack your eggs into your batter, one at a time, mixing between each egg until combined.

• Pour your cheesecake batter over your cooled graham cracker crust; spread evenly in the pan with a spatula.

• Bring 4-6 cups of water to a boil. Place your cheesecake on the center rack in the oven. Place a large casserole dish on the rack below where your cheesecake will be and immediately (but carefully!) pour your boiling water into it until it reaches about halfway up your dish. Shut the oven as soon as possible, once you pour in your water. You want to trap all of that steam inside the oven!

• Bake your cheesecake at 325F for an hour and 10 minutes. When it’s done, there will be a slight wobble in the center of the cheesecake but the edges will look set. Turn the oven off but crack the door slightly, leaving the cheesecake in the oven for another hour.

• After an hour, remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow to cool completely at room temperature before covering it with foil and refrigerating it for 8 hours or overnight.

• For the cranberry sauce, place frozen cranberries in a pot over medium-low heat. Stir until slightly softened and juices begin to release. Pour in your sugar and orange juice, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and continue stirring until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has slightly thickened. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature before covering and storing in the fridge until ready to use.

• Once your cheesecake has cooled, carefully remove from pan and top with cranberry sauce. Slice and enjoy!

If you love this cheesecake, tag @accentgolden in your posts on social so I can see your bakes!