Lemon Bar Cheesecake Recipe
Holy smokes you guys! You are about to be blown away. This week’s recipe for Lemon Bar Cheesecake is, hands down, my absolute FAVORITE cheesecake recipe. It’s creamy, rich, and darn delicious (as all good cheescakes should be), and it’s all capped off with a lemony layer of curd that perfectly meshes with the richness of the base.
It’s sweet, lemony and just about as decadent as one can get. Mom has made it for Easter the past couple of years, and without fail every time I see a photo of it my mouth begins to water. I love it! And I know you will too 😉
Lemon Bar Cheesecake Recipe
Author: NorCal Coupon Gal
Recipe type: Dessert
This lemon bar cheesecake recipe is by far my favorite cheesecake to make. It's super decadent, rich, lemony and delicious - all the things I love in a great cheesecake!
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 8 oz. vanilla wafers, finely crushed (2 cups of crumbs)
- 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 7 tbsp. butter, melted
For the Filling:
- 3 8-oz packages cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
- 1¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
- 1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
For the garnish:
- ¾ cup lemon curd (we like to use William Sonoma’s lemon curd, which is absolutely amazing! It’s so good we spread it on toast and eat it that way too!)
- Confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
To make the crust:
- Begin by crushing your vanilla wafers (I used my food processor to make quick work of this).
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the vanilla wafer crumbs and 3 tbsp. sugar.
- Mix in the melted butter until the crumbs are evenly moist and clump together.
- Transfer the mixture to a 9 inch springform pan and press evenly onto the bottom and up the sides, about 2 inches.
- Bake until the crust is fragrant and slightly darkened, 9 to 12 minutes.
- Let the pan cool on a rack.
- Lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees.
To fill and bake the cheesecake:
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, ricotta, flour and a pinch of table salt on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl and paddle frequently, until very smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Make sure the mixture has no lumps.
- Add the 1¼ cup sugar and continue beating until well blended and smooth.
- Add the lemon zest and vanilla and beat just until blended, about 30 seconds.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating just until blended. (Don’t overbeat once the eggs have been added or the cheesecake will puff too much and crack as it cools.)
- Pour the filling into the cooled crust and smooth the top.
- Bake at 300 degrees until the center jiggles like Jello when nudged, 55 to 65 minutes. The cake will be slightly puffed around the edges and the center will still look moist.
- Set on a rack and cool completely.
- Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 8 hours and up to 3 days. The cake can also be frozen at this point for up to 1 month.
Garnish and Serve:
- Unclasp and remove the sides of the springform pan.
- You can leave the cake on the base of the pan or run a long, thin spatula under the bottom and slide it onto a serving plate.
- Spread the lemon curd over the top of the cheesecake.
- Sift confectioners’ sugar evenly over the cake and serve immediately.
- To cut, run a thin knife under hot water, wipe it dry and cut the cake into slices, heating and wiping after every slice.
- Enjoy!