BakeRecipes

Lemon & Blueberry Cheesecake

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Prep 25min (+ 1hr cooling and 3hr chilling time)Bake 1hr 10minMakes 10 serves

Bringing together sweet blueberries and sour lemons, this simple cheesecake is light but luscious. It's the perfect end to a lazy summer meal.

Ingredients

Melted butter, extra, to grease

375g cream cheese, at room temperature, cubed (see Baker's Tips)

3 eggs, at room temperature

185g (¾ cup) sour cream

125ml (½ cup) thin (pouring) cream

165g (¾ cup) caster (superfine) sugar

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

200g fresh or frozen blueberries (see Baker's tips)

Icing sugar, to dust

    Biscuit base
    • 100g plain sweet biscuits
    • 60g butter, melted

    Method

    1. Preheat the oven to 150°C. Line the base of a 20cm (8 in) spring-form cake tin with baking paper. Brush the side of the tin with a little melted butter to grease.
    2. To make the Biscuit base, process the biscuits in a food processor until finely crushed. Add the butter and process until well combined. Sprinkle the mixture over the base of the tin and use the back of a metal spoon or the base of a glass to press down to cover evenly. Put the tin on a baking tray and place in the fridge.
    3. Clean the food processor bowl and process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the eggs and process until smooth. Add the sour cream, thin cream, sugar, lemon zest and juice and process until well combined and smooth, scraping down the side and base of the bowl when necessary. Pour into the tin over the base. Scatter the blueberries over the top.
    4. Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes or until the cheesecake is just set but the centre trembles slightly when the tin is shaken gently. Turn off the oven, use a wooden spoon to keep the oven door ajar and leave the cheesecake in the oven for 1 hour (this helps prevent the cheesecake from cracking). Transfer the cheesecake, still in the tin, to the fridge and chill for at least 3 hours or until well chilled. Dust with icing sugar and serve.
    Variations
    • Orange & Raspberry Cheesecake – Replace the lemon zest and juice with orange zest and juice. Replace the blueberries with fresh or frozen raspberries.
    • Blueberry & White Chocolate Cheesecake – Replace the lemon zest and juice with 1½ teaspoons natural vanilla extract or essence. Melt 180g good-quality white chocolate and cool to room temperature. Add to the bowl of the food processor just before transferring the mixture to the tin and process until just combined.
    • Individual Lemon & Blueberry Cheesecakes – Line a 12-hole 80ml (⅓ cup) capacity muffin tin with paper cases. Divide the biscuit base, cream cheese mixture and blueberries evenly among the cases. Bake at 160°C for 30 minutes. Cool as per the recipe, then chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour before removing the paper cases and serving.
    Baker's Tips
    • Having the cream cheese at room temperature means it will easily become smooth and creamy in the food processor. If you use it straight from the fridge it will take longer and you’ll need to scrape the side and base of the food processor frequently so that no lumps are left after processing.
    • If using frozen blueberries, use them straight from the freezer – do not thaw.
    Recipe and image from BakeClass by Anneka Manning (Murdoch Books).
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