Sunday, April 12, 2009

Lemon Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

For Easter dessert, I decided to make a cheesecake since the one I made for Valentine's Day was so good. I used lemon zest in the batter and swirled in 2 layers of raspberry jam, and the flavor was fantastic.

Lemon Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake
adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Tall and Creamy Cheesecake

Crust:
2 packages of Chocolate Graham crackers (out of a box of 3), crushed
1 1/2 sticks of butter, melted

Filling:
4 8 oz. bricks of Cream Cheese
1 1/3 c. sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 c. sour cream
1 lemon, zested
1 c. Rasberry Jam

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt butter in a bowl, toss in graham cracker crumbs and sugar.
Line the springform pan with a parchment paper circle.
Spray a springform pan wrapped in foil with nonstick spray.
Press graham cracker mixture into the bottom and up the sides, about 2" (I use a glass to help me press in the sides).
Bake for 10 minutes.
Remove, set aside.
Reduce oven temp. to 325 degrees.
While crust bakes, prepare filling.
Boil a kettle full of water.

Beat the cream cheese at a medium speed until soft and creamy (about 4 minutes).
With the mixer still running add the sugar and salt and continue to beat for another 4 minutes or so, the cream cheese should appear light and creamy.
Add the vanilla and the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition, about 1 minute.
Reduce speed to low, add the sour cream and lemon zest and beat for 1 minute.
Pour the water into a large roasting pan (I used a steel sautee pan with high sides)
Place the spring form pan in, then pour half the batter in the crust.
Put the jam in a piping bag and make a swirl of it over the batter.
Pour the remaining batter in, it will go above the crust.
Pipe a cross-hatch pattern on the top with jam, use a toothpick to swirl at a 45 degree.
Bake the cheesecake for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. It will be a little golden on top, and will puff up above the rim.
Turn off the oven, prop open, and allow to cool gently for a further hour.
Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature on a cooling rack, about another hour.
When the cake has cooled to room temperature refridgerate for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.

5 comments:

kitchenbelle said...

This looks delicious. I love raspberry jam!

Mrs.D said...

It looks amazing. Such pretty colors.

What's Cookin Chicago said...

Gorgeous job Ashlee! :)

Macaroni and Cheesecake said...

Absolutely gorgeous! My husband would love this so much!

Elyse said...

Mmm, I love cheesecake. But, it's totally a heavy dessert. Soooo, I love that you've done the lemon and raspberry thing to "lighten" it up for spring. Great flavors, great dessert!