Walnut Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups walnuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup graham cracker crumb, crushed
• 2 lbs. cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

• Preheat the oven to 300F.
• Process the nuts in a food processor and blend until almost paste-like.
• Butter a metal cake pan 8" wide and 3" deep. Do not use a springform pan.
• Sprinkle the inside of the pan with the graham cracker crumbs. Shake around and shake out excess.
• Place the rest of the ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat at low speed and as the ingredients become blended, increase the speed to high.
• Beat until thoroughly blended and smooth. Add the nuts and beat until thoroughly blended.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shake gently to level.
• Set the pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan to reach up the cheesecake pan about 1/2". Do not let the edge of the cheesecake pan touch the larger pan. Set the pans into the oven and bake for 2 hours. At the end of the time, turn off the oven and bake for and let the cake sit in the oven for 1 hour longer.
• Lift the cake from the water bath and place on a rack for 2 hours.
• Turn the cheesecake out on a cake plate to unmold. Serve lukewarm or at room temperature.

Notes

• SERVINGS: 12
• SOURCE: Adapted from Craig Claiborne & Pierre Franny