Hey,

I have a wedding this weekend with cheesecakes. We are doing a 10", 8" and 6" on a staggered stand and then additional 9" and 10" cheesecakes for serving. What I'm wondering is, I am planning on baking these on Thursday. A lot of recipes say to let the cheesecake sit in the oven with it turned off for an hour or so. Is this necessary or can I just bake and let cool on the counter?

Also, what is the best way to pre-cut the cheesecake? Do I need to have the knife wet or anything so it doesn't look messy?

THANKS! I really appreciate it!

Yes..it's necessary. Cheesecakes need to bake slowly and cool slowly. As for cutting, yes, wet a knife and then drive it off. Clean knife between slices.

Jodie

If you leave it in the oven it will not settle as much and will stay nice and tall.

Don't need a wet knife but if your get a class of hot water, dip the knife in, wipe it off and cut away. Wipe off between cuts.

HTH

The best cheesecake I ever made was baked in a water bath, but the recipe said nothing about standing in the oven for an hour. If your recipe says to do it, I would definately do it. My oven is not accurate and I have to be very careful. I would never use that recipe in my oven! :0

My recipe says leave on the counter for 2 hours, not in the oven. Then freeze 4 hours or over night. I have never seen one say leave in the oven. USE an OVEN THERMOMETER!! Temp is very important

I made my first cheesecake a couple weeks ago, and was quite scared! LOL... anyway, I used a water bath because I heard that it helped the cheesecake bake at a low temp since water only gets 212 degrees. Also, I left it in the oven until it was almost all the way cool. DO NOT EVEN PEEK IN ON IT BY OPENING THE OVEN DOOR! This will cause too big of a temperature drop and cause the cheesecake to crack, and you do not want that! I then left it on the counter for a while to get to room temp, and then in the fridge for at least 8 hrs and then took it out of the pan, it was very very good I was told! Yes, I sold the FIRST cheesecake I ever made in my life...LOL.

I made my first cheesecake a couple weeks ago, and was quite scared! LOL... anyway, I used a water bath because I heard that it helped the cheesecake bake at a low temp since water only gets 212 degrees. Also, I left it in the oven until it was almost all the way cool. DO NOT EVEN PEEK IN ON IT BY OPENING THE OVEN DOOR! This will cause too big of a temperature drop and cause the cheesecake to crack, and you do not want that! I then left it on the counter for a while to get to room temp, and then in the fridge for at least 8 hrs and then took it out of the pan, it was very very good I was told! Yes, I sold the FIRST cheesecake I ever made in my life...LOL.