Lemon Cheesecake With Gingersnap Crust And Berry Topping Recipes

LEMON CHEESECAKE WITH FRESH BERRY TOPPING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Wrap outside of 9-inch springform pan with foil to prevent leaking. Spray inside bottom and side of pan with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix crust ingredients. Press crust mixture on bottom of pan. Bake crust 5 to 7 minutes or until set. Cool 5 minutes at room temperature. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.
• Meanwhile, in large bowl beat cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. On low speed, beat in cream, lemon juice and lemon peel. Pour over crust.
• Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes or until edge of cheesecake is set at least 2 inches from edge of pan but center of cheesecake still jiggles slightly when moved. Run small metal spatula around edge of pan to loosen cheesecake. Turn oven off; open oven door at least 4 inches. Let cheesecake remain in oven 30 minutes. Cool in pan on cooling rack 30 minutes. Loosely cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight before serving.
• Just before serving, run small metal spatula around edge of pan; carefully remove side of pan. In chilled small bowl, beat whipping cream and powdered sugar on high speed until soft peaks form. Spoon onto cheesecake. Top with berries and lemon twists.

LEMON SOUFFLE CHEESECAKE WITH BLUEBERRY TOPPING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 9 inch springform pan. Cut an 18 inch square of aluminum foil, and wrap around the outside bottom of the pan.
• To make the crust, mix the graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar together in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter until thoroughly blended. Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
• Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Remove pan from oven and cool on a rack.
• To make the filling, place the cream cheese in a mixing bowl; beat until creamy, about 2 minutes. Continue beating while gradually adding 1 cup sugar. Beat until sugar is thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Mix in the lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and sour cream until well blended.
• Beat the egg whites in a clean bowl until soft peaks form. Continue beating while gradually adding 1/3 cup sugar in a slow stream, until stiff peaks form. Do not overbeat. Gently fold 1/3 of the meringue into the cream cheese mixture. Repeat twice more with remaining meringue, mixing carefully to not deflate the egg whites, until no meringue streaks remain. Pour the filling into the prepared pan, and place in a large baking pan. Pour hot (not boiling) water into the baking pan up to 1 inch on the sides of the springform pan.
• Bake in preheated oven until the top is almost set, 50-55 minutes. Turn off the heat, prop the oven door open about 2 inches, and allow cake to rest in the oven until completely set, about 1 hour longer. Refrigerate at least 4 hours, or overnight before serving.
• To make the topping, place 1 cup blueberries and sugar in a saucepan; cook over medium heat until berries begin to break, 6-8 minutes. While still hot, strain the berries through a sieve or cheesecloth placed over a bowl, reserving the juice. Discard berry pulp. Allow the juice to cool.
• Mix remaining 2 cups blueberries and lemon juice together in a large bowl. Stir in the strained blueberry juice. Just before serving, pour the blueberry topping over the cheesecake.

LEMON CHEESECAKE WITH GINGERSNAP CRUST AND BERRY TOPPING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grind gingernaps in a food processor. In a medium bowl, stir crumbs and butter until evenly moistened. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9" spring-form cheesecake pan. Bake crust until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Cool completely. Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth (no lumps). Slowly add sugar until fully mixed. Add eggs one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds each. Make sure not to overmix from this point on. Mix in lemon juice and the grated peel. Pour filling into crust. Cover the pan with foil, then place in a larger pan with high sides (jelly-roll etc.). Bring water to a boil and fill the outer pan with water, ensuring that none is getting into the cheesecake. Place in the oven and bake until the outer edges are set and slightly golden and the center is not fully set and is still glossy, about 75 minutes (make sure to keep watch though!). Try not to open the oven door, though, for this can cause cracks. When done, place in a wire-cooling rack until completely cool. Chill covered in the refrigerator overnight (at least 4 hours, preferably more). To make the topping, simply mash the berries in a medium sized bowl and add a minimal amount of water. Then add about a tablespoon of sugar, to taste, to counteract the bitterness of the berries. Serve chilled. Add berries individually to each slice, unless planning on eating the whole cake. Otherwise, it will get soggy. Garnish with a lemon or mint leaf. It generally makes 8 slices, but it is pretty rich, so it will likely serve more. Enjoy!

LEMON CHEESECAKE WITH GINGERSNAP CRUST

Steps:

• LEMON CURD (makes about 1 cup).
• In small cup, sprinkle gelatin over water. Allow to soften 10 minutes.
• In processor, mince lemon peel with sugar until lemon peel is as fine as sugar. Transfer to heavy small saucepan.
• Add in lemon juice and yolks, then butter; mix.
• Stir over medium heat until very thick, about 5 minutes; do not boil.
• Transfer to bowl. Add gelatin and stir to dissolve.
• Cool completely, stirring frequently, about 1 hour.
• CRUST.
• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350 degrees farenheit.
• Lightly oil 9-inch-diameter springform pan.
• Add vanilla wafers and gingersnaps with sugar and lemon peel to food processor and finely grind. Add butter and blend well.
• Make bottom crust by sprinkling crumbs over the bottom of pan and pressing down.
• Bake until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Cool.
• FILLING.
• In small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over cold water; allow to stand 10 minutes to soften.
• In processor, mince lemon peel and ginger with sugar and salt until lemon peel and ginger are the consistency of sugar.
• Add yolks and blend until light and fluffy.
• In heavy medium saucepan, scald milk.
• With processor running, add milk through feed tube and blend well.
• Return mixture to saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until mixture thickens, about 12 minutes; mixture should leave path on back of spoon when finger is drawn across; do not boil.
• Add gelatin mixture to custard and stir until dissolved.
• Strain into bowl, pressing on solids with back of spoon.
• Refrigerate until thickened but not set, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes.
• Add cream cheese and lemon juice to processor and blend until smooth. Add custard and blend until smooth. Transfer to large bowl.
• In medium bowl, whip cream until it forms soft peaks. Gently fold into filling.
• Pour half of filling over crust. Using a tablespoonfuls, spoon half of curd over filling. Swirl mixtures together using tip of knife.Pour remaining filling over.
• Using tablespoonfuls, spoon remaining curd over. Swirl mixtures together using tip of knife.
• Refrigerate cheesecake at least 4 hours or overnight.
• After running a knife around sides of cake, release pan sides.
• Garnish with mint.