Lemon Cheesecake

This highly requested Lemon Cheesecake uses homemade lemon curd for a bright and sunny flavor. My recipe is simple and uses NO water bath with beautiful, smooth results. Watch the how-to video before baking for best results!

Lovely & Oh So Lemony Cheesecake

This lemon cheesecake has a sunny, perfectly tart flavor and a smooth, sweet custard filling set without a water bath (the only way we do cheesecake around here!). It’s accented by a crisp graham cracker crust and lush homemade whipped cream for a beautifully balanced dessert any cheesecake lover will absolutely adore.

I’ve received a lot of requests for a lemon version of my classic cheesecake. I tried many methods to achieve this, like adding lemon juice, zest, and even extract to the batter–but everything yielded flat-tasting, so-so results.

Finally, I had a breakthrough while making my lemon frosting; perhaps the best way to make lemon cheesecake was to build it on a lemon curd base! That method was a clear winner, and it’s the one I’m sharing with you today. It produces a brightly flavored lemon cheesecake with the perfect level of tartness and sweetness–exactly what I was looking for, and hopefully what you’re looking for too!

What You Need

Even with the extra step of making your own lemon curd, there are not many ingredients needed to make this lemon cheesecake; here are a few of the important ones:

• Lemon juice. Fresh squeezed is best. I typically need about three lemons, but you may need more or less depending on the size of yours.
• Egg yolks. You’ll need only the yolks for your lemon curd, so save your egg whites for Oreo cupcakes or confetti cupcakes–both use exactly three egg whites!
• Light brown sugar. I use a blend of granulated and light brown sugar in my crust for a richer flavor. You can use dark-brown sugar in a pinch (or homemade brown sugar), but just know it will impart a stronger flavor.
• Cream cheese. I only recommend using full-fat, brick style cream cheese. Anything else (tub-style, low-fat, etc.) won’t work the same and your cheesecake may not set properly.

One ingredient you’ll notice we’re not using today is vanilla extract. It subdued the lemon flavor of the cheesecake too much, so we’ll leave it out!

SAM’S TIP: You may notice the crust I’m using today has a little bit less butter than usual. This is intentional! The batter for this lemon cheesecake is somewhat wetter than the one for my classic cheesecake, so I reduced the butter in the crust just a tad to prevent a soggy crust and any leaks while in the oven.

Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!

How to Make Lemon Cheesecake

1. Combine all lemon curd ingredients in a pot and whisk constantly over medium-low heat until just beginning to thicken.
2. Pour the curd through a fine mesh strainer into a heat-proof bowl and let cool completely.

3. Combine the graham cracker crumbs and sugars, then add your melted butter and toss with a fork.
4. Press the crumbs into a springform pan, making sure to go up the sides of the pan at least ⅔ of the way.

5. Combine the cream cheese and sugar until creamy and smooth.
6. Scrape the bowl, then slowly drizzle in the cooled lemon curd with the mixer on low speed.
7. Add the eggs one at a time, then scrape the bowl and stir again until smooth.
8. Pour the batter into your prepared crust and bake for 45-60 minutes. Cool to room temperature, then chill completely before decorating, slicing, and serving.

SAM’S TIPS FOR AVOIDING CRACKS: Since we aren’t using a water bath today, make sure you’re taking precautions to avoid cracks, like not over-beating the batter (incorporating too much air) and not over-beating the eggs (can make the texture of the cheesecake funny). I’ve also learned that if you press the crust up higher than the cheesecake batter will reach, the crust will shrink with the cheesecake as it cools and will keep your cheesecake from cracking.

Frequently Asked Questions

I know so many of you have been anticipating this one, and I hope it exceeds your expectations. 💛

Enjoy!

Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook

Lemon Cheesecake

This highly requested lemon cheesecake uses homemade lemon curd for a bright and sunny flavor. My recipe is simple and uses NO water bath with beautiful, smooth results.

Watch the how-to video before baking for best results!

5 from 17 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Cooling Time: 7 hours

Total Time: 8 hours 20 minutes

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 421kcal

Author: Sam Merritt

Ingredients

For Curd

• ▢ ½ cup lemon juice fresh-squeezed is best! (118ml)
• ▢ 3 large egg yolks discard egg whites or save for meringues
• ▢ ¼ cup granulated sugar 50g
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon table salt
• ▢ 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter cut into 4 pieces (57g)

For Crust

• ▢ 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs 170g
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon light brown sugar firmly packed
• ▢ 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted

For Cheesecake

• ▢ 24 oz cream cheese softened (use brick-style, full-fat cream cheese) (680g)
• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar 150g
• ▢ 2 large eggs lightly beaten
• ▢ ½ batch homemade whipped cream for topping (optional)

Recommended Equipment

• ▢
  Small saucepan
• ▢
  Mixing bowls
• ▢
  Fine Mesh Strainer
• ▢
  Electric mixer
• ▢
  9" Springform pan

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Curd

• Prepare curd first so it has time to cool. In a small saucepan, whisk together lemon juice, 3 egg yolks, ¼ cup (50g) sugar, and salt until combined.
• Add butter and transfer saucepan to stovetop over medium-low heat. Stir or whisk constantly until butter is completely melted.
• Once butter is melted, continue to stir constantly and watch the mixture until it thickens slightly and becomes more opaque. The mixture will also likely begin to simmer just below the surface once ready. Remove from heat and immediately pour curd through a fine mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl.
• Allow curd to cool completely before adding to cheesecake batter (detailed below). To speed up the process, you can place a piece of wax paper against the surface of the curd (to prevent a skin from forming) and refrigerate, this typically takes about 30 minutes to cool. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 325F (160C) and prepare crust.

Crust

• In a medium-sized bowl, use a fork to mix together graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and brown sugar.
• Add melted butter and use your fork to toss everything together until all the crumbs are moistened. Press crumbs evenly into the bottom and up the sides of a springform pan (as high as you can, this crust should reach at least ⅔ way up the sides of the pan). I like to use a measuring cup or clean glass to press the crumbs into the pan. Set aside and prepare cheesecake filling.

Cheesecake batter

• (Note that your oven should be preheating to 325F/160C at this point) In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), combine softened cream cheese and ¾ cup (150g) sugar and beat until creamy and smooth. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula.
• With mixer on low-speed, gradually drizzle in lemon curd and stir until completely combined.
• Add eggs, one at a time, stirring until just-combined after each addition.
• Scrape sides and bottom of bowl again and stir until batter is uniform and smooth and pour cheesecake batter into prepared crust.
• Transfer to center rack of 325F/165C preheated oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. The center of the cheesecake should be almost set but will still slightly jiggle in the center when jostled once the cheesecake is finished baking.
• Allow to cool to room temperature for 30-60 minutes then transfer to refrigerator to chill for at least 5-6 hours before serving (I do not remove the collar from the springform pan until I am ready to serve).
• Serve topped with homemade whipped cream, if desired. I made a half batch of my homemade whipped cream and used an Ateco 848 piping tip to pipe around the edge of the lemon cheesecake.

Notes

Substituting store bought curd

I don’t really recommend substituting store bought lemon curd as it may contain different ingredients or more sugar and the taste and outcome may not be quite the same. However, if you are determined to try you will need about ½ cup of curd.

Storing

Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I store my cheesecake in the springform pan it was baked in and cover with foil or plastic wrap.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 421kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 156mg | Sodium: 310mg | Potassium: 123mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 1130IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

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