One simple recipe is your key to three delicious desserts.

This classic and decadent dessert can be made three different ways using one basic recipe to start. You can also easily make it as one cheesecake or four individual portions depending on your preference.

Preparation

Classic Cheesecake:

Heat oven to 350ºF.

For the crust, mix together graham crackers, butter and one tablespoon sugar. Press firmly into the bottom of a greased 9-inch spring form pan or 8, 4–ounce ramekins. Bake crust for 8–10 minutes until golden brown and set aside to cool.

Turn oven down to 300ºF.

In an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, mascarpone, vanilla extract and salt. Mix until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the eggs one at a time, completely incorporating before adding the next. When all the eggs have been added, pour batter into the spring form pan or ramekins. Bake 9-inch pan for 45–55 minutes or ramekins for 15–20 minutes. The cheesecake will rise slightly, should be a light golden brown on top and slightly wobbly in the center. Carefully remove from oven and cool for an hour. Then transfer to the refrigerator for an additional 2–3 hours or until completely cool.

Lemon Cheesecake with Cranberry Sauce: Combine all of the ingredients for the cranberry sauce in a small sauce pot and bring to a boil, simmer for 30 to 40 minutes or until the cranberries have broken down and the sauce begins to thicken. Puree and strain cranberry sauce and chill. For clean slices of cheesecake use a clean knife dipped in hot water before each slice. Serve chilled, drizzled with cranberry sauce.

Caramel Cheesecake: Make the caramel in a 2–quart sauce pot, combine granulated sugar, water, brown sugar and heavy cream. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until a candy thermometer reads 240ºF. Remove from heat, stir in butter and remaining heavy cream. Cool to room temperature.

For the individual portions, spoon the cheese filling into ramekins. Then spoon one tablespoon caramel into center and stir in a spiral one time to incorporate the caramel.

For a springform pan, place one dollup in the center and four circling it about one inch away from the edge. Then using a butter knife, incorporate the caramel by swirling through each dollup, spiraling from the center to the edge. Then bake.

Top finished cheesecake with additional caramel sauce before serving.

Cheese Cake with Chocolate Shortbread Crust and Mousse:

For the chocolate crust, follow the same preparation as the basic crust substituting the crushed chocolate shortbread cookies for the graham crackers and omit the sugar. 

For Chocolate Mousse, melt chocolate in the microwave or a double boiler. Combine egg yolks, sugar and water in a metal bowl and whip over a double boiler until it thickens and becomes pale yellow in color. It should be the consistency of soft whipped cream. Add the vanilla and remove from heat. Pour in the melted chocolate and fold together with a rubber spatula. The egg mixture will collapse and thicken when the chocolate is added. When the egg and chocolate are completely incorporated, fold in the whipped cream ¼ at a time. Transfer the mousse to a container to chill. Chill for 2 hours before frosting cheesecake.