Desserts
Baked Lemon & Vanilla Cheesecake
Serves 8-10
Ingredients
For the base
- 75g (3 oz) (6 tbsp) extra for greasing, Kerrygold Pure Irish Salted Butter
- 225g (8oz) digestive biscuits, finely crushed
For the topping
- 450g (1lb) soft cream cheese, at room temperature
- 250g (9oz) (1 cup) sour cream
- 150g (5oz) ( ¾ cup) caster sugar
- 4 eggs, separated
- 50g (2oz) ( ? cup) plain flour
- 1 vanilla pod, split in half and seeds scraped out
- finely grated rind and juice of 2 lemons
- Icing sugar and finely pared rind of lemon, to decorate
- lightly whipped cream, to serve
Directions
If you are looking for your signature dinner party dessert, the search is over. Dessert is the grand finale and the last thing your guests will remember but fear not, this baked lemon cheesecake will wow everyone. Forkfuls of creamy flavour collide with a hint of crunch in a dessert that is unforgettable.
- Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F), Gas Mark 3. To make the base of the cheesecake, grease a 23cm (9in) loose bottomed cake tin.
- Melt the butter in a pan over gentle heat. Add the crushed biscuits and mix well to combine. Spread the mixture evenly over the bottom of the tin, pressing down with the back of a spoon to flatten into the corners. Chill for 15 minutes to firm up.
- Meanwhile, make the cheesecake topping. Place the soft cream cheese, sour cream, caster sugar, egg yolks, plain flour, vanilla seeds, lemon rind and juice in a bowl. Beat together with a hand held electric mixer until smooth and well combined. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Using a large metal spoon. Carefully fold the whites into a cream cheese mixture until just combined.
- Carefully pour the soft cream cheese mixture over the biscuit base in the tin. Using a palette knife, spread out evenly to cover the base completely. Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown and just set. It should be slightly wobbly in the middle so give it a gentle shake. Turn off the oven but leave your masterpiece to cool inside. This prevents it from cracking. Carefully remove from the tin and transfer to a flat plate.
- To serve, dust the cheesecake with icing sugar and scatter over the pared lemon rind just before serving. Cut into slices and arrange on plates with cream.
