simple is best

Here is the cheesecake i bake:

grease and line bottom of 9" springform pan with baking paper.
all filling ingredients should be at room temperature.
preheat oven to 375'.

crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs (but i usually use almond biscotti crumbs, sometimes chocolate biscotti crumbs but they tend to be stickier)
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 Tablespoons butter, melted

combine and press into prepared pan and put in fridge to chill.

filling:
14 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Beat cream cheese and sugar just till smooth. Beat in whipping cream till incorporated. Beat in remaining ingredients, enough so that it's not lumpy but being careful not to overmix. Pour into prepared crust.

You can prepare a bain-marie by double-wrapping the springform pan in foil, placing it in a roasting tin and pouring boiling water into the roasting tin so that the cake bakes evenly. I can't be bothered with this so i just set a large pan full of hot water on the bottom level of my oven. It might not have all the benefits of a real bain-marie, but it does have some.

Bake for 25 minutes at 375', then lower oven temperature to 325' and bake for 25 minutes more. Turn off oven and let cake cool inside the oven for at least an hour. Chill for 2-3 hours before serving.