Elevate this popular dessert with a few simple substitutions.
Oh, cheese cake, why do we love you, let's count the ways. From traditional to New York style and everything in between, there are cheesecake recipes to suit every palate.

If you want a seasonal twist, add pumpkin or apple for fall, eggnog or chocolate peppermint for winter, or lemon or lime meringue for summer. If you want to go even further, you can create masterpieces like Chocolate Cookie Cheesecake, Caramel Macchiato Cheesecake, or White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake. We've only scratched the surface with dozens of recipes on our site alone.

But for me, no matter which recipe I choose, there is an alternative to making the richest and creamiest cheesecake.

Upgrade your cheesecake with mascarpone cheese

I'm a big believer in using equal amounts of cream cheese and mascarpone cheese in my cheesecake batter. Mascarpone is an Italian cream cheese made from fresh cream and acid such as citric acid or tartaric acid (or lemon juice ). The cream is boiled with acid until it thickens, then cooled and drained to create a rich, spreadable cheese that can be used in classic tiramisu, French toast, savory pasta dishes and creamy French fries. he wanted

Since mascarpone is made from heavy cream, it has more fat than cream cheese made from whole milk. Relationships are 60-75% and 30-50% respectively.

As Chef John says in his homemade mascarpone recipe, "It's very similar to regular cream cheese, but much better in every way. It's not as spicy, it's richer and fluffier." That's why it's a great addition to cheesecake.

The rich mascarpone and tangy cream cheese are perfectly balanced, creating great texture and flavor in every bite.

Upgrade your cheesecake crust too

As for texture and flavor, my other trick is to use gingersnap cookies instead of graham crackers to create a colorful, chewy crust with plenty of spice-filled depth. If you don't like ginger, use your favorite crunchy cookie like Oreos, pecan sandwiches, or bisque cookies. Or you can stick to traditional graham crackers and spice things up by adding nuts like almonds, walnuts , pecans or hazelnuts. 

How to use mascarpone cheese in cheesecake 

This small upgrade can have big results and it couldn't be simpler. Just follow your favorite cheesecake recipe and replace half of the cream cheese with mascarpone. For example, to make this top -rated cheesecake recipe, substitute two 8-ounce containers of mascarpone and two of four packages of cream cheese. If using the recipe above, omit the sour cream and instead add 2 to 3 teaspoons of lemon juice in addition to the vanilla extract. You can also reduce the amount of sugar slightly to about 1/4 cup to account for the natural sweetness of the mascarpone. Keep 4 eggs for structure. Prepare your favorite dough and make sure all ingredients are at room temperature to avoid lumps and uneven cooking. When baking, I usually use a hot water bath as directed in the recipe. A water bath is used to cook the custard-like filling slowly and evenly and acts as an insulator for the cheesecake. Make sure to seal any cracks in the springform pan with aluminum foil. Otherwise, water may enter. You may have seen tips from other Allrecipes users like Esther Cho. "Instead of a water bath, I put a baking dish full of water next to the cheesecake and bake the cheesecake in the oven. It cooks perfectly every time without cracking," she says. I have not tried Yes.