Junior's cheesecake, really fabulous!

The first time I visited New York in December 1995, my friend took me to Junior's in Brooklyn to stand on line (on a freezy day) for cheesecake. According to her, it was so fabulous.
Really? Would it be delicate enough for my French palate.
I took a bite and ... it was love at first bite!
Since then, when I have a cheesecake craving, I stick to this creamy and dense cheesecake.
I like it plain or with strawberries, but definitely not with the thick jelly they put on it.
I wait for the strawberry season, to make my Junior's strawberry cheesecake my way.
So here is Junior's recipe, which I found on this website.
I followed their recipe exactly and only made a pastry crust for the bottom instead of a sponge cake layer.
And what's really interesting with cheesecake is that you can "customize" the crust according to your taste, by using:

• a sponge cake (like Junior's)
• Graham crackers, like a lot of New Yorkers
• a pastry crust, like others (and like me!) 

The Pastry Crust:
The recipe:

Flour (pastry)	125g	1 ¼ cup	4.4oz
Butter (non-salted)	100g	½ cup (1 stick)	3.5oz
Salt	5g	1 teaspoon
Sugar	125g	½ cup + 2 tbs	4.4oz
Egg + water	1+ water for reaching 85g	1 egg + 3 tablespoons of cold water	1 egg + 1.2 oz of water Egg + Water = 3oz

Step by step:

You can see in this post how to make the crust step by step (It is the same method as the short crust pastry).
Because you are going to crush the crust, you don't need to refrigerate it once it's done.
Roll out the dough between two pieces of wax paper (so it doesn't stick to your rolling pin), and place on a cooking rack, without forgetting to take off the the wax paper that cover the crust.
Put in the oven and bake for about 25 minutes until it reaches a nice golden brown color.

The recipe:

Wait until it cools, crush with a rolling pin (or in a food processor).

Add to these crumbs:

one stick / 110g / 3.9oz of cold melted butter, and combine together.

Generously butter a 9-inch springform pan. Wrap the outside with foil, covering the bottom and extending up the sides. 

Pour the crumbs on the bottom of the pan, and press lightly.
Reserve in the refrigerator while doing the cheesecake filling.

The Cream Cheese Filling:

The recipe: 

Cream cheese	908g	(4) 8oz = (32oz)		Beat on low 3 minutes: an 8oz package of cream cheese + 1/3 cup sugar + cornstarch. Beat in remaining cream cheese, add sugar and increase on high speed until combined.
Sugar	315g	1 2/3 cup	11.1oz
Corn starch	30g	¼ cup	1oz
Vanilla extract (pure)	15g	1 tablespoon		Add.
Eggs	2 (extra large) = 140g			Add one at a time, beat well between each one
Heavy whipping cream	180g	¾ cup	6.3oz	Blend in and mix only until completely blended (don’t overmix).

Step by Step:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

Put in a bowl an 8oz package of cream cheese + 1/3 cup of the sugar, and the cornstarch. Beat with an electric mixer on low until creamy, about 3 minutes. Personally, I added lemon zest in the batter to give it a nice flavor.

Beat in the remaining packages of cream cheese. Scrape the bowl occasionally.

Increase the mixer speed to high and beat in the remainning 1 1/3 cups of sugar. 

Then beat in the vanilla and blend in the eggs, one at a time, beating the batter well after adding each one.

Blend in the heavy cream.

At this point, mix the filling only until completely blended.

Be careful not to overmix the batter.

Gently pour the cheese filling on top of the pastry crumbs.
Place the springform pan in a large shallow pan containing hot water that comes about 1 inch up the sides of the pan. Bake the cheesecake until center barely jiggles when you shake the pan, about 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Cool the cake on a wire rack for an hour. Then cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it's completely cold, at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the sides of the springform pan.

Enjoy!