Anytime we pair the word “luscious” with the word “cheesecake”, rest assured we mean business. This time, we’ve created the perfect lemon baked cheesecake, and it’s just downright wrong how delicious it is. Rather than take our word for it, we want you to try it for yourself. Guaranteed, just one bite of your light and citrusy creation will have you drooling for more.
What are you waiting for? Get in that kitchen and get to baking, and come back to let us know just how sinful it feels to eat. Just remember, we make no claims as to the health benefits of this dish, only that you’ll feel like you’ve died and gone to heaven.
Ingredients (Crust)
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
6 tablespoons melted butter
¼ cup sugar
Ingredients (Filler)
4-8 oz packages of cream cheese (softened)
1 cup sugar
½ cup heavy whipping cream
¼ cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
5 eggs, lightly beaten
Instructions
Begin by preheating the oven to 325 degrees. In a bowl, mix together your graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar for the crust. Set aside momentarily while you thoroughly grease a 10 inch springform pan. Place pan on top of a baking sheet, and pile in your crust, pressing firmly into the bottom and sides of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes, and set aside on a wire rack to cool.
While your crust is baking, begin mixing your filling. In a larger bowl, combine cream cheese and sugar, and beat with a paddle mixer until smooth. Next, slowly beat in your cream, lemon juice, flour, vanilla extract, and lemon extract. Do so on low to preserve the fluffy quality of the mixture. Add in the eggs, again on low speed until thoroughly combined with the batter.
Now that your filling has been mixed, pour into the crust, and return the pan to the baking sheet. Bake for about an hour. Pull out of the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before carefully running a knife along the edges of the pan to loosen the crust. Allow to cool a second time, and then refrigerate overnight before serving.
If you’d like, garnish with the zest and shredded pieces of lemon and lime rinds.
The light, fluffy and citrusy filling paired with a crumbly graham cracker crust will have you and your family coming back for seconds and thirds without ever filling up in an uncomfortable way – quite a feat for such a luscious cheesecake.
Image Credit: istockphoto.com
