The reason your cheesecake is cracking. The common mistake you should avoid before opening the oven

A Christmas celebration is incomplete without a cheesecake, be it Vienna, Royal, or New York style. Each one of these should be fluffy and perfectly moist, but sometimes a significant mistake can cause your homemade cheesecake to develop cracks.

The holiday season is a time of happiness, family gatherings, and delicious meals. Sweet desserts are a staple on the Christmas Eve menu. Even though preparing a cheesecake is not the most demanding task in the kitchen, sometimes the cake may crack and collapse after baking. So, how do you prevent that? Here's the method for making a tasty, fluffy cheesecake.

Firstly, you should pay close attention to the quality of your ingredients. Curd cheese needs to be ground through a meat grinder or pressed at least three times. Fresh eggs, cream, and natural curd cheese aren't the only items that will protect your cheesecake from cracking.

The best way to avoid unpleasant cracks on your cheesecake is to bake it in a water bath. This technique helps prevent the filling from sinking and ensures the cake is evenly baked and moist. To do this, put your cheesecake pan in a larger ovenproof dish or a deep baking tray filled with boiling water. This method will ensure the steam keeps the cake moist, protecting it from drying out, scorching, and cracking. If you don't have a sufficiently large dish, you could use a smaller mold for the cheesecake and put an ovenproof dish filled with boiling water on a lower rack in the oven.

If you're using a cake pan with a detachable rim, you should wrap the bottom of the pan with aluminum foil before putting the cake in the oven. This step prevents the boiling water from seeping into the cake mixture.

It is crucial to bake the cheesecake at the right temperature. It isn't advisable to bake the cake beyond 356°F, and for some recipes, even 302°F could be the limit. It's preferable to set the oven to the non-fan mode and place the cake on the middle rack. If your cheesecake is baked at a temperature below or at 356°F, select the "top-bottom" mode. Lastly, resist opening the oven unless necessary — this can also help you avoid cracks on your cheesecake's surface.