I was making desserts for an Easter get together and could not make up my mind what to make. Normally I would make something with chocolate because, well, chocolate. But given the fact that everyone was probably going to be gorging on chocolate eggs all day I thought something zingy would do the trick. So I made this Lemon Cheesecake. And a pavlova because I’m a feeder.

Then I realised that I have never shared my Lemon Cheesecake here. So here it is. Too late for Easter but still, keep it in mind for your next get together. As you can probably tell from my previous cheesecake recipes, I like a soft set cheese cake with a creamy texture. When I was growing up all the cheesecake recipes involved packets of jelly and while I loved them at the time, sometimes I feel they can be a little rubbery in texture.

And the great thing about Easter being so late this year is that there were Irish strawberries in the shops to decorate it!

Useful tips & links:

• I like a combination of mascarpone and cream cheese when making cheesecakes. The mascarpone cheese is richer and higher in fat but you need the tang from a cream cheese for that special cheesecake flavour.
• I make this cheesecake in an 8″/20cm cake tin. As you can see from the pictures I like a tall cheesecake with a thick base and filling. If you prefer the flatter style of cheesecake simply use a larger cake tin.
• I like to add lemon zest to the biscuit base so that the flavour is carried right through. Mix things up and use ginger biscuits for a different flavour.
• I also like Mary Berry’s suggestion of mixing lemon curd with cream cheese as a quick rich way to make a cheesecake.
• If you want to make a few portions of this and not a whole cake, halve the ingredients and make individual ones. If you don’t have small chef rings you can make and serve them in a nice glass.
• When baking or making anything that uses lemon zest, I like to use unwaxed lemons. If you can’t get them don’t worry, scrub your lemon under hot water to remove any wax.
• For more no bake cheesecake ideas have a look at my Malteser Cheesecake or Baileys Cheesecake. I often combine the two in one cheesecake!
• Have a look at Nicola’s beautiful Lemon Ginger and Passion Fruit Cheesecake on Simply Homemade. I love the idea of using pretty tart passion fruit seeds to decorate the cheesecake.

Lemon Cheesecake

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

• 250g of digestive biscuits
• 100g of butter melted
• The zest and juice of 2 large unwaxed lemons
• 300g of mascarpone cheese
• 250g of full fat cream cheese
• 150ml of double cream
• 100g of icing sugar

Method:

• Start by making the biscuit base. Melt the butter with about a teaspoon of the lemon zest. Use some of it to grease an 8″ springform tin and set that to one side. Crush the biscuits either in a food processor or put them in a freezer bag and bash with a rolling pin. You don’t want the texture to be too fine or the base will be too hard. Allow for some small chunks of biscuit.
• Pour the melted lemon infused butter into the crushed biscuit and mix well together to combine.
• Press this mixture into the base of the springform tin and use the back of a spoon to make it level. Put this into the fridge to set for an hour.
• Place the icing sugar, mascarpone, cream cheese and double cream into a large bowl. Gently beat them until they are combined and start to thicken a little. Add in the remaining lemon zest and the juice and gently fold them through. When fully combined taste to see if it needs more lemon or sugar. Keep in mind that flavours dull a little when food is chilled so you want a slightly stronger lemon taste at this stage than what you are ultimately looking for.
• When you are happy with the flavour, carefully whisk again to thicken up the mixture. Do not over do it or the lemon may cause the mixture to split.
• Spoon the lemon mixture on to the biscuit base and spread it out evenly. Put it back in the fridge to set for at least four hours.
• When you are ready to serve, gently release it from the tin, and decorate either with candied lemon or as I have here, with white chocolate shavings and strawberries.