For cheesecake newcomers, a water bath is the highly inelegant method of baking a cheesecake in a springform pan, inside of a roasting pan filled partway with boiling water.
While developing our Basque-Style Cheesecake, we searched for a failsafe method to achieve a burnished top without overcooking the center.
The solution: just chill the batter in the fridge before baking!! You'll get a creamy interior, without an overcooked exterior, and it works for most cheesecakes.
