Lemon Cheesecake

 
A simple lemon cheesecake. Nothing better than a straightforward cheesecake and lemon seems to be the traditional flavour.

Ingredients:

1. 250g chocolate backed biscuits (e.g. chocolate digestives), crushed


2. 125g butter, melted


3. 750g of cream cheese ('Philidelphia' or similar)


4. 165g caster sugar


5. 2 tbsp vanilla essence


6. juice and grated rind of 4 lemons


7. 4 eggs, separated out into 4 yolks and 2 egg whites (you don't need the other two whites)


8. 180ml single cream

 

Method:

• Mix the crushed biscuits with the melted butter until they are well mixed.


• Press the biscuit/butter mix into the edges and bottom of a spring-form tin that's about 24cm across. Place in the fridge.


• Pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees.


• Mix the cheese, sugar, vanilla essence, lemon rind and juice, egg yolks and cream together in a big bowl until they are a smooth mixture.


• Separately whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.


• Fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture (fold by cutting through the egg whites with the edge of a metal spoon and folding some cheese mixture over the egg whites repeatedly).


• Pour the cheese mixture into the chilled tin with the biscuits in.


• Bake in the oven for 1 hour.


• When the hour is up, just turn off the oven and open the door slightly (I wedge the oven glove in the gap to stop it closing). This allows it to cool slowly so it doesn't crack.


• After a couple of hours the cheesecake should be cool enough to put in the fridge.


• After leaving in the fridge for a few hours (or overnight) it's ready to remove from the tin, serve and eat.

 
Makes a good sized 24cm cheesecake.