Description
This recipe came from cook's illustrated. They have tried many versions of this recipe and concluded with this delicious recipe. I made it for easter this year and it got rave reviews. I changed the crust from animal crackers (which they thought worked best) to a shortbread crust. The homemade lemon curd is optional, but well worth the effort and very tasty! Do not let the lengthy directions scare you off. I promise it is well worth the effort!! Had i not made this myself, i would have sworn it was purchased- it was that good!!
Ingredients
- Shortbread Pie Crusts
- Sugar
- Lemon, Zest Of
- Lemon Juice
- Cream Cheese
- Vanilla Extract
- Salt
- Heavy Cream
- Eggs
- Egg Yolk
- Unsalted Butter
Instructions
- For the crust: adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees
- Press the crumbs firmly and evenly into the pan bottom, keeping the sides as clean as possible
- Bake until fragrant and golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes
- Cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 30 minutes
- When cool, wrap the outside of the pan with two 18-inch-square pieces of heavy-duty foil
- Set the springform pan in a roasting pan
- For the filling: while the crust is cooling, process cup sugar and lemon zest in a food processor until the sugar is yellow and the zest is broken down, about 15 seconds
- Transfer the lemon sugar to a small bowl
- Add the remaining 1 cup sugar
- In a standing mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on low to soften slightly, about 5 seconds
- With the machine running, add the sugar mixture in a slow steady stream
- Increase the speed to medium and continue to beat until the mixture is creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes
- Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed
- Reduce speed to medium-low and add the eggs one at a time
- Beat until incorporated-about 30 seconds
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl well after each addition as needed
- Add lemon juice, vanilla, and salt
- Mix until just incorporated, about 5 seconds
- Add the heavy cream and mix until just incorporated, about 5 seconds longer
- Give the batter a final scrape, stir with a rubber spatula, and pour into the prepared springform pan
- Fill the roasting pan with enough hot water to fill halfway up the sides of springform pan
- Bake 55 to 60 minutes and until the center jiggles slightly, the sides just start to puff, and the surface is no longer shiny
- An instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the cake should register 150 degrees
- Turn off the oven and prop open the oven door with a potholder
- Allow the cake to cool in the water bath in the oven for 1 hour
- Remove foil and the transfer the cake pan to a wire rack
- Run a small paring knife around the inside edge of the pan to loosen, and cool the cake to room temperature, about 2 hours
- For the lemon curd: while the cheesecake bakes, heat the lemon juice in a small nonreactive saucepan over medium heat until hot but not boiling
- Whisk the eggs and yolk in a medium nonreactive bowl
- Gradually whisk in the sugar
- Whisking constantly, slowly pour the hot lemon juice into the eggs, then return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture registers 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer and is thick enough to cling to a spoon, about 3 minutes
- Immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cold butter until incorporated
- Stir in the cream, vanilla, and salt, then pour the curd through a fine-mesh strainer into a small nonreactive bowl
- Cover the surface of the curd directly with plastic wrap refrigerate until needed
- To finish the cake: when cheesecake is cool, spread the lemon curd onto the cheesecake using an offset spatula
- Spread the curd evenly over the top of the cheesecake
- Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours
- To serve, remove the sides of the springform pan and cut into wedges
- This is a wonderful but rich cheesecake, so keep the portions small!