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Lemony Lemon Cheesecake

All the brightness of lemon is found from top to bottom in this delightfully zesty lemon cheesecake. If you love lemon, you will love this cheesecake. Perfect topped with fruit, or whipped cream and lemon curd.
Course Dessert
Cuisine North American
Keyword cream cheese, gluten free, lemon, lemon curd
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cooling time 4 hours
Servings 10 slices

Ingredients

Citrus Graham Cracker Crust

  • 2 cups graham cracker crumbs, (240g)
  • 1/4 cup granulated white sugar, (50g)
  • 6 tbsp butter, melted (85g)
  • Zest from one lemon

Lemon Cheesecake Filling

  • 1 cup granulated white sugar, (200g)
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 32 oz (904) g or 4 packages cream cheese, room temperature
  • 3 tbsp all-purpose flour, (22 g) You can use a gf cup for cup replacement
  • 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature (120g) see Notes
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, (60ml)
  • 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3/4 tsp lemon bitters
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature

To Finish

  • Citrus Whipped Cream, see Notes
  • Fresh berries, pick your faves from what is in season. Slice and pat dry before placing on the cheesecake
  • Mint leaves, you can use these as the base for the berries. Remove before slicing, but serve on the side with each slice.
  • Lemon Curd, see link below for recipe

Instructions

Lemon Graham Cracker Crust

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line the bottom and the sides of a 9" (23cm) springform pan with parchment paper. Trap the paper between the bottom and the sides of the pan and trim away the excess (see photo) Use a small spray of non stick spray on the sides to hold lengths of parchment paper.
  2. Graham cracker crust: In a large bowl or in the bowl of a food processor, combine all ingredients and stir until evenly moistened. If using a food processor, don't worry about cleaning, you will use it below for the sugar in the filling.
  3. Transfer to the prepared pan and press crust up one inch or so along the sides and use the rest for the bottom, using the bottom and sides of a measuring cups. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool while you work on the filling.

Lemon cheesecake Filling

  1. Reduce the heat in the oven to 275F.
  2. Place the sugar and 1 tbsp lemon zest into a food processor. Blend until they have combined well, and some of the lemon oil has been released into the sugar. It will have the best fragrance!
  3. In a large mixing bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whisk the cream cheese, sugar, and flour just until combined no lumps remain.
  4. Add the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla and lemon bitters, and stir to combine.
  5. Add one egg at the time and mix on low speed until just combined before you add the next egg.
  6. Scrape down the bowl before you add the last egg. Mix to combine but don't over-mix at any step. Too much air in the filling can cause cracks while baking any cheesecake.
  7. Pour the filling into the pre-baked crust and spread evenly. Place the springform pan onto a rimmed baking sheet.
  8. Bake in the centre of the oven till the outer 2 inches of the edges are set, and the centre is still slightly jiggly, anywhere between 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 1/2 hours. Turn off the oven. Leave the cake in the oven to cool down as the oven cools.
  9. Remove the cheesecake from the oven to a wire rack, and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

To Serve

  1. Decorate with fresh sliced berries and mint leaves before serving, if desired. Use a sharp serrated knife rinsed under hot water to slice, cleaning and re-wetting between each slice.
  2. Serve with a spoonful each of Citrus Whipped Cream and Lemon Curd.
  3. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days.

  4. See blog post for more details.

Recipe Notes

I state that it feeds 10, but you can easily feed 12!

If at all possible, don't replace the sour cream with greek yogurt. The sour cream really does add its tang to the final flavour.

Citrus Whipped Cream
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 tbsp fresh lemon zest, or more!
Whip the cream in a stand mixer or use a hand held mixer. Start on lower speed and increase till medium high. As soon as it is fully foamy, add the sugar and zest and continue on high speed till firm and spoonable. This can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge till needed.
Lemon Curd link