Gabbard’s Cheesecake

Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: August 2023

Andrea Gabbard and Nora

Andrea Gabbard, one of the powerhouse brokers at Highlands Sotheby’s International Realty brought this recipe for the classic cheesecake to me just in time for August celebrations.

Some years ago, Gabbard set out to become a culinarian. After graduating from the acclaimed Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, she worked stints behind the stoves in the Cayman Islands, the Florida Governor’s mansion and at a top security clearance operation in Connecticut.

Ultimately, she opened her own restaurant in Tallahassee in the late 1980’s. She called it The Grilled Tuna. Gabbard sold that restaurant in 1995 and in 1998 moved to the Plateau, or as she described it, “We drove up here from Tallahassee with all our stuff hanging out of the car and found home.”

For this spin on the traditional decadent dessert, Gabbard drew from the most popular dessert at her former restaurant. A recipe she developed, as she told me, after much trial and error. It is a recipe of distinction, a definitive rendition of the classic dessert – simple and rich with a smooth creaminess and contrasting crust, it’s easily accessorized with ripe fruit or flavors.

Gabbard warns that to bake the cheesecake without a water bath is to tempt faith – to risk curdling the filling.

Make it yourself as soon as you can. It is to die for.

Andrea’s Cheesecake

Ingredients

For the Crust: 
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
⅓ cup unsalted butter or margarine, melted

For the Filling:
4 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 ¼ cups sugar
½ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 large eggs

For the Topping:
½ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons sugar

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 475°F. Place a large pan filled with 1/2 inch water in oven.
2. Make crust: Mix graham cracker crumbs and cinnamon; add butter or margarine. Press crust onto bottom and 2/3 of the way up a 9-inch springform pan lined with parchment. Wrap a large piece of foil around bottom of pan. Freeze until filling is prepared.
3. Make filling: Use an electric mixer to mix cream cheese, sugar, sour cream and vanilla. Blend until smooth and creamy. Scrape down sides of bowl. Whisk eggs in a bowl; add to cream cheese mixture. Blend just until eggs are incorporated.
4. Remove crust from freezer and pour in filling. Carefully place cheesecake into preheated water bath. Bake for 12 minutes; turn oven to 350°F and bake until top of cheesecake turns golden, 50 to 60 minutes. Remove cake to a wire rack to cool.
5. Make topping: Combine sour cream and sugar; spread over cake. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours.