Fourth of July Firecracker Cheesecake
Kitchen Tested 
- Yield 20 servings
- Prep 20 mins
- Cook 200 mins
This creamy, not-too-sweet cheesecake is a perfect 4th of July dessert.
Mark Boughton Photography / styling by Teresa Blackburn
Be sure to cook this cheesecake in a water bath (bain marie) to prevent uneven baking and over heating. You’ll need a stand mixer to beat the cream cheese.
Ingredients
- Blueberry Sauce:
- 1 cup blueberries
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Crust:
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 5 tablespoons butter, melted
- Filling:
- 3 pounds cream cheese
- 1 1/3 cups sugar
- 3 whole eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Small strawberries and blueberries for garnish
Instructions
- To prepare sauce, combine blueberries, sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until blueberries begin to release their juices. Mash some of the blueberries against the side of the pan. Let cool.
- Preheat oven to 250F. Wrap the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan with foil.
- To prepare crust, combine all ingredients and press into the bottom of pan.
- To prepare filling, beat cream cheese with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth.
- Combine eggs and egg yolks in a small bowl. Beat lightly. Slowly add eggs to cream cheese mixture while beating. Add heavy cream and beat, scraping the sides of bowl occasionally, until smooth.
- Pour one-quarter of the batter into another bowl. Stir in blueberry sauce.
- Pour half the unflavored batter over crust. Pour fruit-flavored batter on top. Swirl with a spoon or knife. Top with remaining unflavored batter. Swirl again.
- Place springform pan in a larger baking pan. Place on the center rack of oven. Pour in hot water to a depth of 1-inch. Bake 3 hours. Remove from oven. Let cool. Refrigerate at least 8 hours before serving. Garnish with strawberries and blueberries.
Variations:
You can flavor this cheesecake with anything you like. Here are some variations we like:
- 1 cup chocolate mocha sauce
- 1 cup chopped peaches cooked in 1/4 cup water and 2 tablespoons sugar.
- 1/3 cup Grand Marnier or Kalua. (If making a liqueur-flavored cake, mix liqueur into all the batter instead of into one-quarter.)
—Recipe adapted with permission from Puckett’s Grocery, Franklin, Tenn.
