Baking cheesecake--will it come out okay if I substitute a casserole dish for a springform pan?

Salt and Peppy

Yes, you can cook in that pan. However, you will have to serve it from that pan, as well. You're not getting a cheesecake out of it in one piece. Not a chance. But, if you're ok slicing and serving from the pan it was cooked in, then go ahead and use it. My suggestion is, if you plan on making more cheesecakes, to buy a springform pan. They're really not very expensive, and your cheesecakes will be more presentable in the future.

Nikki P

I think you would have better luck with a cake pan. Grease it. Line it with parchment and grease the parchment. When you make the crust bring the crust up the sides quite a bit. Make your cheesecake When it is done wait 30 minutes then run a knife around the edge of the pan to release the sides of the cake from the pan. Then allow the cake to fully cool. When you are ready to remove the cheesecake from the pan heat the bottom of the pan a bit this will soften the butter that is holding the parchment to the pan and run the knife around the edge of the pan again. Place a piece of cardboard on the top of the cake and invert the pan. You may need to run the knife around the edge again or heat the bottom again. Once the cake comes out invert it so the crust is on the bottom. If the edge looks a bit ragged press some of the crumbs against the side.

Janet: You don't really NEED a springform pan

You don't really NEED a springform pan: https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-to-use-if-you-dont-have-a-springform-pan-1388019

ckngbbbls

a spring form pan only makes them come out of the pan easier. You can use a regular layer cake pan in the correct size or even a deep dish pie pan.

Tavy

Put greaseproof paper in the bottom and up the sides. You can lift it out with that when cooked.

heart o' gold

You can do this, but you’ll be spooning the cheesecake out of the casserole like a ... casserole... you won’t be able to set it up like a traditional cheesecake. A springform pan has a catch that allows you to loosen and carefully remove the upright parts of the pan and leave the cheesecake sitting only on the bottom. I see them all the time, brand new ones, at thrift stores for a couple bucks each.

Clive

Of course it doesn't make any difference what you bake it in. You just need a container, that's all. And a casserole dish is a container that is safe in the oven. It will come out OK. But now, how do you get it out of the dish? The point is that cheesecake is fragile so how are you going to get it out of the dish without breaking it up? If you use a springform pan, it is MUCH easier to do that. You just spring the pan open and remove it from around the sides, and you have a perfect unbroken cheesecake you can slice up and serve to people. And will look good on the table. Same with sponge cakes - you could bake them in anything that's the right shape, but how do you get it out afterwards? My mother always used to make them in solid pans (or as I would say, being British, cake tins) and have to turn them out, but for that to work, you need to grease the pan REALLY well to make sure the cake will come out in one piece. It also helps to line the bottom with greaseproof paper or greased baking parchment so you know it won't stick to the bottom, then all you need after baking is to slide a knife round the edges in case they stuck. Fine, but still not good enough for a cheesecake - that's more fragile. A sponge cake will survive being turned upside down to get it out, a cheesecake won't. That's why you're being told to use a springform. Sometimes it is worth paying for what is only good for one thing if it's the only thing that works. And you could make cakes in it. For another example, this is my attitude to omelettes. It is crucial to have the right size of pan for those. For a two-egg omelette, it MUST be 6 inches across - too big and you get a thin rubber Frisbee, too small and it's too thick and spongy. So it was worth getting an omelette pan just for that or they won't ever be right. And you only pay once for a pan! Anyone who thumbs this down, have the courage to explain why.

IvaB

I think it would work.Lightly butter the casserole dish all over and place parchment paper on top of the the butter and press it down to the bottom and sides of the dish,covering the entire dish with the parchment paper (make sure it hangs over the edges of the dish too).Fill the dish as usual and bake.Lift out with the paper.Oh,set the casserole dish inside another larger pan with an inch of water or so to keep the cheesecake from drying out too much

Anonymous

Yes, the issue is with getting it out of the dish however. Possibly if you butter and flour the heck out if it and freeze it, it will slide out upside down...

hanuman

After is important, that you don,t make a mistake, that then has no really difference.

Karen L

If, by 'come out okay' you mean 'taste good', then yes, it will taste exactly the same no matter what pan you use. But if you mean will it physically come out of the pan okay, then no, it won't. At least some of it will come out of the pan mangled, because cheesecake is fragile and you have to support the whole slice or it will fall apart. That is why springform pans are used. You remove the sides and then you can slide a lifter under a whole slice of cheesecake.