Continue cooking, stirring and using a wooden spoon or spatula to smash the cranberries. Cook for about 10-15 minutes until the cranberries are broken down and the sauce is thickening. Once it is ready, pour the sauce into a heatproof bowl and set aside to cool to room temperature.

If desired, you can blend the sauce until smooth or push through a fine mesh strainer to remove the skin and seeds. It is easier to swirl this way, but not required.

Preheat your oven to 350°F / 180°C and spray a 9” springform pan with cooking spray or butter and set aside.

In a food processor, add 12 broken graham cracker sheets and pulse until you have small crumbs. Add ¼ cup white sugar and ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and pulse 3-4 times to mix. Finally, pour in the melted 6 tablespoons of butter while pulsing until you have a crumbly mixture that is the texture of wet sand.

If you don’t have a food processor, you can break up the graham cracker sheets into a large plastic storage bag partially sealed. Use a rolling pin to smash the crackers into small crumbs. Dump into a mixing bowl and stir in the white sugar and ground cinnamon, then pour in the melted butter, a little at a time, and mix until fully incorporated.

Pour the graham mixture into the springform pan and use your hand to evenly distribute the crumb mixture across the bottom and a little way up the sides. Use a measuring cup to gently pack the graham crust into the bottom and sides of the pan.

Place the springform pan into the center of the oven and bake for 10-14 minutes until lightly browned and you can smell it cooking. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool a little bit. Lower the oven to 325°F / 160°C.

While the crust is baking, start working on the cheesecake filling. Fill a saucepan with a couple cups of water and bring it to a low simmer.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, add four 8oz blocks of softened cream cheese. Beat on a low speed for 2-3 minutes, until smooth and creamy. Add ¾ cup white sugar and continue mixing for another 1-2 minutes until fully incorporated.

Now add in the white chocolate, ½ cup sour cream, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Mix at a medium-low speed for another 1-2 minutes until thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides and bottom once or twice while mixing.

Finally, add the 3 eggs and 1 egg yolk, one at a time and mix at low speed until just incorporated. Do not overmix or mix at a higher speed once you add the eggs.

Pour half of the mixture over the slightly cooled crust. Add a few randomly spaced dollops of the cooled cranberry sauce to the cheesecake batter. Use a knife or toothpick to swirl the cranberry sauce around. Fill with the rest of the cheesecake filling and repeat with the rest of the cranberry sauce.

Wrap some foil around the bottom and up the sides of the springform pan and place it into a deep roasting pan. Pour the hot water into the roasting pan and fill until no more than half-way up the outside of the springform pan. Place into the center of the oven and bake until only the center of the top of the cheesecake has a slight jiggle to it, about 75-95 minutes (1 hour 15 minutes – 1 hour 35 minutes).

Once the cheesecake looks done, turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside to cool for an hour. Prop the door slightly open during this time. I usually place the handle of a wooden spoon to block the oven door from closing.

After an hour, remove the cheesecake from the oven and place on a wire rack to finish cooling to room temperature, about another hour or so. After removing it from the oven, you can run a knife around the outside of the cheesecake to separate it from the pan before it cools completely.

Once cooled completely to room temperature, wrap the springform pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled and done setting, at least 4-6 hours. Overnight is best and the flavors will continue to develop.

While the cheesecake is baking or cooling, you can make the optional cranberry and rosemary (if using) decorations.

Place the reserved 4oz of cranberries and a few sprigs of rosemary into a heatproof, nonreactive mixing bowl and set aside.

In a saucepan, add ½ cup water and ½ cup white sugar and place over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a simmer and mix until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes. It should be warm to hot, but not boiling hot so that the cranberries don’t burst.

Once cooled slightly, pour the sugar-water over the cranberries and rosemary and stir to make sure everything is well coated. Let the cranberries sit in the mixture for 15-20 minutes and then use a slotted spoon to remove them and place on a lined baking sheet (I usually use wax paper).

Let the cranberries and rosemary sit at room temperature for an hour. They should be really sticky, but no longer wet to the touch.

In a mixing bowl, add the remaining ½ cup white sugar and a handful of cranberries at a time and toss in the sugar until fully coated. Return the sugar covered cranberries and rosemary sprigs to the baking sheet and let sit for at least another hour. If you find some with wet spots that weren’t coated well with the sugar, you can toss them some more.

The sugared cranberries and rosemary can sit at room temperature for a few days, so you can make this the day you make the white chocolate cranberry cheesecake, and then decorate the following day.

After chilling for a few hours or overnight, remove the cheesecake from the refrigerator. Open the springform pan gently, making sure none of the cheesecake is sticking to the sides.

Decorate the top with whipped cream and sugared cranberries and rosemary sprigs however you would like to. For clean slices, run a sharp knife under hot water, wipe clean, and make a slice. Repeat that process between each slice as you serve.