Original-Style Restaurant Cheesecake (Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory, Not Official)
Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory's Original, not its official recipe: a thick graham crust up the sides, a filling of a full pound of sour cream with two pounds of cream cheese baked in a water bath at 325°F, and a sweet sour cream layer baked on top for a clean white finish.
Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory, not the restaurant's official recipe. Wikipedia says the story starts in Detroit in the 1940s, when Evelyn Overton, inspired by a cheesecake recipe from a Detroit newspaper, baked one for her husband's employer. In the late 1950s she opened a small cheesecake bakery in Detroit, then closed it to raise her children and kept supplying local restaurants from her basement kitchen. In 1971 her son David persuaded the family to move to Los Angeles, where they opened The Cheesecake Factory Bakery in Woodland Hills in 1972. In 1978 David opened the first restaurant in Beverly Hills, a small salad and sandwich place with ten cheesecakes on a one-page menu.
The plain one is still called the Original. This copycat is from Taste of Home's Test Kitchen, written up by Lauren Pahmeier, who calls it the closest thing to a slice from the pastry case. Its giveaway is sour cream: a full pound in the filling and a sweetened layer baked on top, which covers any cracks and adds a tangy white finish.
Why it works the kitchen science
Sour cream twice
A pound of sour cream in the filling makes it tangier and softer than a New York cheesecake, and the sweetened layer on top sets in 5 minutes into a smooth white cap that hides any cracks.
A water bath at 325°f
The hot water keeps the edges from overbaking while the deep, sour cream-heavy center sets, which is how the cake stays creamy all the way through.
Step by step
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 325°F. Mix the crumbs and sugar, stir in the butter and press it lightly (don't pack it) over the bottom and up the sides of a greased 9-inch springform. Set it on a baking sheet and bake 18 to 22 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on a rack.
- Step 2
Beat the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add the eggs and beat on low just until combined; overbeating causes cracks, Taste of Home warns.
- Step 3
Pour the filling into the crust. Wrap the outside of the pan in a double layer of heavy-duty foil about 18 inches square, set it in a larger pan and pour in hot water 1 inch deep.
- Step 4
Bake about 1 1/2 hours, until the top looks dull, the edges are set, a 3- to 4-inch circle in the center still wobbles when you nudge the pan, and the center reads 150°F to 155°F.
- Step 5
Lift the springform out of the water bath and let it stand 5 minutes on a rack; leave the oven on. Stir the sour cream and sugar together, spread it over the top and bake 5 minutes more without the water bath.
- Step 6
Cool 10 minutes, run a knife around the inside of the pan and remove the foil. Cool 1 hour more at room temperature, then refrigerate overnight, covering it once it is completely cool. Remove the ring and slice.
Original-Style Restaurant Cheesecake (Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory, Not Official)
Serves 16 · one 9-inch cheesecake · 2 hr 30 min total
Crust
- 2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
Filling
- 4 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
- 2 cups sour cream
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
Sour cream topping
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup sugar
Method
- Heat the oven to 325°F. Mix the crumbs and sugar, stir in the butter and press it lightly (don't pack it) over the bottom and up the sides of a greased 9-inch springform. Set it on a baking sheet and bake 18 to 22 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on a rack.
- Beat the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add the eggs and beat on low just until combined; overbeating causes cracks, Taste of Home warns.
- Pour the filling into the crust. Wrap the outside of the pan in a double layer of heavy-duty foil about 18 inches square, set it in a larger pan and pour in hot water 1 inch deep.
- Bake about 1 1/2 hours, until the top looks dull, the edges are set, a 3- to 4-inch circle in the center still wobbles when you nudge the pan, and the center reads 150°F to 155°F.
- Lift the springform out of the water bath and let it stand 5 minutes on a rack; leave the oven on. Stir the sour cream and sugar together, spread it over the top and bake 5 minutes more without the water bath.
- Cool 10 minutes, run a knife around the inside of the pan and remove the foil. Cool 1 hour more at room temperature, then refrigerate overnight, covering it once it is completely cool. Remove the ring and slice.
Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory, not official. Adapted from Lauren Pahmeier, "Copycat Cheesecake Factory Cheesecake", Taste of Home (recipe by and tested by the Taste of Home Test Kitchen; published August 23, 2024; updated March 25, 2025), 16 servings. We follow it as written: a crust of 2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 cup melted butter pressed over the bottom and up the sides of a greased 9-inch springform and baked 18 to 22 minutes at 325°F; a filling of four 8-oz packages cream cheese, 2 cups sour cream, 1 3/4 cups sugar and 1 tbsp vanilla, with 4 eggs beaten in on low; a double layer of foil and a 1-inch hot water bath; about 1 1/2 hours until the center is just set and the top dull; a topping of 1 cup sour cream and 1/4 cup sugar baked 5 minutes without the water bath; and overnight chilling. Taste of Home's doneness test is the wobble; the 150°F to 155°F check is ours. History from Wikipedia, "The Cheesecake Factory". Taste of Home. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (2)
Tips
- Taste of Home suggests a 1/4-cup measuring cup for pressing the crust evenly up the sides, and pressing lightly so it can be cut.
- Bring the cream cheese, sour cream and eggs to room temperature to avoid lumps.
- Taste of Home suggests whipped cream, fruit sauce, lemon curd or caramel instead of the sour cream topping, and crushed cookies or cereal instead of graham crackers.
- Slice it cold with a long, thin knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between cuts (our tip).
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- This is The Cheesecake Factory's recipe. Documented as false: it is Taste of Home's copycat, inspired by the restaurant's Original, not an official recipe.
- The Cheesecake Factory recipe came from a Detroit newspaper. Documented as Wikipedia's account: Evelyn Overton was "inspired by" a Detroit newspaper recipe in the 1940s; the original clipping was not found.
- A sour cream topping is cheating. Folklore: Taste of Home says the topping covers any cracks, but it is also part of the style's tangy flavor.
- Use a toothpick to test doneness. Documented as wrong for cheesecake: Taste of Home's Test Kitchen says to use the wobble test instead.
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