I would assume that putting a bowl of water below the pan would have the same outcome as using a water bath. Basically the water bath is used to prevent cracking on the top of a cheesecake by putting moisture in the air.

Using a water bath, I have never had a cheesecake crack. Now in my family, they could give a flip on the fact it's cracked or not, as long as it's my Mom's recipe. You could try one now without the bath and see what happens. One trick is to turn off the oven after the cake is done and set, open the oven door and allow the temp the drop with the cheesecake in the oven. Years ago this was a method in a place I worked. I was never comfortable with this, but it worked.

with my family recipe we don't use a water bath, sometimes it cracks, sometimes it doesnt. We don't care either way as long as it is tasty.

Water bath isn't simply to keep the cake from cracking - it is to give slow gentle, same temperature all around the cake so that it bakes at the same rate. It is not about producing steam. Can you make a cheesecake without one, yes. It might not be evenly cooked though and the results are simply better with the waterbath. With a waterbath it is impossible for there to be hot spots on the cake pan.

Adding moisture is only one of the reasons for using a water bath. The main reason usually is to regulate the temperature. You need to have the pan in the water. Having it nearby won't accomplish this function.

Now with cheesecake specifically, it does affect the texture of the cake. I've done it without and it comes out less moist which is fine if you want something cakier (which would be desired if, say, you beat the egg whites and fold them in) rather than creamy.

I made my first cheesecake a couple months ago and did not use a water bath. It came out fine - no cracking and it cooked evenly. I thought it turned out delicious! I followed this recipe from Epicurious: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/New-York-Cheesecake-102592

I've never used a water bath for my cheesecakes, but then again, I always make them on the thinner side, so they don't need to back as long, and they're usually baked evenly throughout.

If you really don't want to bake with a waterbath, I would suggest cutting down the batter.

I think that Ina Garten's recipe for her classic cheesecake is a possible solution - she starts baking at a very high temperature, and incrementally lowers the temperature at intervals. I have had great results with her technique - I am sure you could google her recipe.

What Astur and porktato said.

A water bath doesn't seem very cumbersome to me; the only extra step is wrapping the bottom of the pan in foil and sticking it into a slightly larger pan filled with water.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Libbys-Pumpkin-Cheesecake/Detail.aspx

best pumpkin cheesecake recipe ever, no water bath & if it cracks on top, the sour cream topping covers it all up. really really delish!

Ariel,
You can make a perfectly tasty cheesecake without the water bath. A waterbath doesn't primarily affect the moistness of the cake, it affects the temperature of the pan.

You know how on a normal cake, the edges cook faster than the center part of the cake? As the cake bakes, it rises in the middle and is usually domed during the cooking process?

This happens because the cake pan transfers heat to the batter faster than the air in the oven does, and the cake edges cook faster and 'set' as a result.

If the pan is in water in the oven, the pan cannot get as hot. (Without a water bath, it will reach the same temperature as the oven because metal conducts heat so easily). When in water, the pan's temperature won't get higher than the temperature of the water around it. Since water requires a lot of energy to rise in temperature (and, in particular, to rise above boiling temp), the pan will stay below 212 degrees (as opposed to 350).

This means that the edges of the cake will cook at a rate closer to the rate that the middle of the cake cooks. And, that your cheesecake will be less likely to stick to the edges of the pan. The cheesecake normally cracks as it cools and the center is pulled toward the edges which are stuck to the pan because they are so cooked.

So the water bath gets you two things:
1) a more even consistency, and
2) a cake less likely to crack .

Based on the fact that cheesecakes have been around a lot longer than molecular gastronomy, and assuming your guests aren't New York Food Critics, I think you'll be okay without perfectly even consistency.

And you can prevent the crack by cooking just until the cheesecake is done, and running a knife between the cake and the pan to loosen the edges when it comes out of the oven. The top of your cake will pull in a bit (meaning your sides won't be perfectly straight), but that's less likely to draw grandma's disapproval than a giant crack.

Good Luck and Happy turkey day!

I've made hundreds of cheesecakes over the last few years - all without a water bath. The most important thing I've found is to let all the cream cheese, eggs cream, etc. warm up to room temperature before mixing them. Then bake it with the temp starting around 350, then dropping after 10-15 minutes. Works great every time!

i love it when cheese cakes crack. They look like they're rumbling to be eaten.

I never use a water bath or anything of the sort, and my cheesecakes always come out perfectly!

I've heard that not over-mixing the batter will minimize cracking as well (ie, less air bubbles).

I have a silicone cheesecake mold (ceramic bottom, silicone sides), I do not use a water bath. I read that it's over beating the eggs that causes the crack, because eggs trap air (think egg whites and peaks) and as the air rises and gets released it causes a crack. So I add the eggs last, and only mix on low. I also like to let the cake cool down slowly in the oven with the door cracked before moving it to the counter.

Not all cheesecake recipes call for a water bath. One thing I've noticed about those that don't is that the filling often calls for a bit of flour...like a couple of tablespoons.
Don't overbake. IME that seems like the biggest thing, and then unhinging the pan while it's still hot.

do the sour cream/lemon/sugar topping on top and you won't know if it cracked or not :)

ABSOLUTELY. And its a million times easier! I used to do waterbaths and struggled with sealing the springform and soggy ruined cheesecakes when that failed. The water in a waterbath slows the outside from cooking too fast before the inside. A pan of hot water keeps steam in the oven, much like a pan of water for crusty breads (but the water there has an opposite effect) The steam helps prevent the cracking.

The using a pan of water as opposed to bath, I usually just cut my temperature in half and double the baking time (do the good ol giggle test on it to see doneness) Slow low cooking will consistently give you a crack free cheesecake.

And the cracking 9 times out of ten on any cheesecake is from it cooking just a bit too fast or cooling too fast. Stirring and adding same temperature ingredients is good practices, but no special stirring technique in the world will help if it cooks or subsequently cools too quickly. Cook it low for a longer time and let it cool in the oven with the door cracked.

Ive been a chef for 14 years working in a lot of restaurants and hotels all across canada. Every pastry chef I have ever worked with bakes cheese cakes in a water batch and all swear by it.
Yes you can cook a cheese cake with out a water bath just like you can cook chicken without searing it first, but since it does a make a difference i think the question should be why wouldn't you.
Cheese being the man part of the cake doest not do well with being cooked in dry heat for long periods of time and neither does eggs, they like the moist heat gentle cooking. Cook a cheese cake with out water bath and you end up with a tasty but more dense and less creamy finish, cook it in a water bath the cake will come out creamy airy and soft.
Both ways are tasty both ways have their use but at the end of the day its what you are looking for.