Servings: 8-10

Cooking time: 45 minutes – 1 hour

Who doesn’t love a Cheesecake ! This Lemon & Vanilla Cheesecake Recipe is a real treat for any occasion and is best made the day before, so it is ideal for a party. It is a baked cheesecake so a bit tricker but worth the effort.

What you’ll need

8″ spring form cake tin. Line the base with greaseproof paper and grease the base and sides well.

Ingredients

• 160g digestive biscuits
• 70g butter – melted
• 700g cream cheese full fat – room temperature
• 175g caster sugar
• 1 small carton sour cream
• 2 lemons zested
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 medium eggs
• Pinch salt

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C.
2. Blitz the digestives to fine crumbs in a food processor and add the melted butter and blitz together. You could use a rolling pin and plastic bag alternatively.
3. Then press into the prepared cake tin. Smooth down with a metal spoon.
4. Put the cream cheese in the bowl of a food mixer; add the lemon zest, vanilla and a pinch of salt and the sugar and using the paddle attachment beat slowly to mix together.
5. One at a time add the three eggs.
6. Separate the last egg, adding the yolk to the mixture and put the egg white in a clean bowl. Do not over beat the mixture (incorporates too much air).
7. Whisk the egg white until stiff and fold in.
8. Pour into the tin (the mixture will come almost to the top), place on a tray and bake for 45 minutes – 1 hour.
9. It should be a little bit golden on top and should still have a wobble. It will continue to set as it cools down.
10. Open the oven door for a bit and leave the cake to cool for 30 minutes before removing – leave to cool completely on a wire rack and remove the sides of the tin by first running a knife around the edge, remove the tin edge while still warm.
11. Refrigerate over night.
12. Use a palette knife to remove the tin base.
13. To decorate this Lemon & Vanilla Cheesecake cover with fresh raspberries or fresh strawberries in season are also delicious.

Notes

Which cream cheese to use for cheesecake ?

I use Philadelphia full fat cream cheese for any baked cheesecake.

I like a slightly deeper cake for this Lemon & Vanilla Cheesecake Recipe and use an 8″tin but a 9″ tin would also work well.

Use a mixer with a paddle attachment to make the filling. Or by hand use a large spoon or spatula. Don’t use a whisk as this will incorporate too much air and your cake may sink.

When making a cheesecake all ingredients should be at room temperature before you start. Just leave them out of the fridge for 30 minutes or so beforehand.

Use a hot knife to loosen around the edge of the tin and also for cutting if you want a clean edge.

If you would like to learn more about how to make your own delicious cakes join us for one of our baking Classes

Find other seasonal recipe inspiration on our Journal