Vanilla Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and bring 4 cups of water to a boil - turn off the heat on the water - you'll be using it later
• Place the gingersnaps in a food processor or blender. I used the Trader Joe's gluten free gingersnaps for this recipe, but any gluten free gingersnaps will work. You'll need a total of 2 cups of crumbs
  
• Blend the cookies until crushed
  
• Pour the crumbs into a bowl and and add the tablespoon of sugar
  
• Add the 4 tablespoons of melted butter and mix to combine. Be sure all the gingersnap crumbs are coated with the butter
  
• Place 1.5 cups of the moist crumbs into a 9 inch cheesecake or springform pan. (reserve the remainder of the crumbs to add to the top of the cake later, if you like)
  
• Use a small glass to spread the crumbs evenly across the bottom and slightly up the sides. Bake the crust for 8-10 minutes until slightly toasted, but not burned.
  

Make the Vanilla Cheesecake

• Place the 2 packages of cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer or into a bowl and get your hand mixer out
  
• Mix the cream cheese until creamy - scrape the sides down often to ensure all the cream cheese is soft
  
• Add the eggs one at a time. (I usually break the eggs into a measuring cup so I can be sure there are no shells in the cake and it's easy to pour the eggs in one at a time)
  
• Mix until the eggs are incorporated and the mixture is creamy - scrape the side often during the process
  
• Zest the lemon using a Microplane, or peel the skin and chop very fine
  
• Add the 2 cups of sour cream, the 1 cup of sugar, the teaspoon of vanilla and the lemon zest to the mixture
  
• Mix on medium speed until creamy. Scrape the sides one last time to be sure you've incorporated all the cream cheese
  
• Pour the cheesecake mixture into the prepared crust
  
• Cover the bottom of the cheesecake pan with foil and place it in a baking pan. Fill the baking pan with enough boiling water to come half-way up the side of the cheesecake pan
  
• Bake the cheesecake for 45 minutes and check it. It will take between 45 minutes and an hour. When the cake has a slight jiggle in the center, it's done.
  
• Let the cheesecake cool completely and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Use a knife to loosen the sides, or loosen the spring on the pan.
  
• Add some of the reserved ginger crust to the top of the cake, if you like and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.