For the crust:
1 1/2 c Fine graham cracker crumbs
2 tb Sugar
1/4 c Unsalted butter, melted and
Cooled
For the filling:
1 1/4 lb Cream cheese, softened
3/4 c Sugar
1 c Sour cream
3 tb All-purpose flour
3 lg Eggs
3/4 c Key lime juice
1 ts Vanilla
1 dr Green food coloring, if
Desired
Whipped cream for garnish
Lime slices, quartered for
Garnish
Mint sprigs for garnish
Make the crust: In a bowl stir together the crumbs
and the sugar and stir the butter in well. Pat the
mixture evenly onto the bottom and 1/2 inch up the
side of a buttered 10-inch springform pan and bake the
crust in the middle of a preheated 375F oven for 8
minutes. Transfer the pan to a rack and let the crust
cool. In a bowl with an electric mixer, beat together
the cream cheese and the sugar until the mixture is
smooth; beat in the sour cream, the flour, the eggs, 1
at a time, beating well after each addition, the lime
juice, the vanilla, and the food coloring, and beat
the mixture until it is smooth. Pour the filling over
the crust. Bake the cheesecake in the middle of a
preheated 375F oven for 15 minutes, reduce the
temperature to 250F, and bake the cheesecake for 50 to
55 minutes more, or until the center is barely set.
(The cheesecake will continue to set as it cools.) Let
the cheesecake cool on a rack and chill it, covered,
overnight. Remove the cheesecake from the pan and
transfer it to a cake stand. With a pastry bag fitted
with a decorative tip, pipe the whipped cream into
rosettes on the cheesecake. Garnish the cheesecake
with the lime slices and the mint sprigs.
Yields
1 Cheesecake