Heat oven to 375, make your desired crust... for Gluten free I use Schar Gluten free honeygrams in place of regular gram crackers but that is up to you, pro tip use a little less butter if you go gluten free and the crust will be the best thing you have ever tried.
You need hot water so go ahead and get some boiling. This bakes in a waterbath so boil enough to cover the cheesecake pan about half way up. Also remember to cover the cheesecake pan with aluminum foil 3/4 up the side to prevent water from getting in. I recomment the HD wide stuff
Use an electric mixer, I prefer my Kitchen aid stand mixer. beat the room temp cream cheese on half speed until it takes on some air and becomes fluffy. Make sure to get the sides of the bowl as well. Slowly put in the sugar and keep it fluffy. Mix in salt and and lemon juice
Continue mixing and add your eggs one at a time then beat in your sour cream.
Now that you have your filling and your crust of choice, and your pan is wrapped in foil, set it in the container and pour boiling water about half way up the sides. (be careful here, I have lost one by dropping it)
Tell the kids and family not to run through the house for the next 1.75 hours as you bake this cheesecake. It can fall or crack in the center. The top should be slightly brown and puffy when done.
Remove the pan from the water bath and let sit to cool for about 30 minutes then cover and put it in the fridge overnight to fully set up.
The next day be careful not to tear the sides when removing the springform pan, use a butter knife to separate the sides. I also garnish with sliced strawberries that have been given a little (sugar kiss) as my grandma would say. Just slice them up and sprinkle a little sugar on them, then refrigerate overnight. They make their own red syrup. Pro tip, add some sliced bananas or another fruit of choice if you like.
