Lemon Cheesecake

Name: Lemon Cheesecake
Yield: Serves 12–14
Cuisine: Italy
Ingredients: 1 cup (8 oz/250 g) fresh whole-milk ricotta cheese; ½ lb (250 g) cream cheese, at room temperature; ⅛ tsp salt; ¼ cup (2 oz/60 g) sugar; 5 Tbsp (2½ oz/75 g) unsalted butter, or as needed, melted; 6 oz (185 g) gingersnaps, plus more if needed; 1¼ cups (5 oz/155 g) walnut halves; 1 tsp pure vanilla extract; Finely grated zest of 2 lemons, plus ¼ cup (2 fl oz/65 ml) fresh lemon juice; Confectioners’ sugar for dusting (optional); ⅔ cup (5 fl oz/160 ml) heavy cream; 4 large eggs, separated, at room temperature; 1 cup (8 oz/250 g) sugar

Preparation info

Serves
12–14

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Cheese Obsession

By Georgeanne Brennan

Published 2013

About

Be sure to use whole-milk ricotta for this airy, Italian-style cheesecake. This is a favorite dessert at my house over the winter holidays, and I make it with the Meyer lemons that grow just outside my kitchen door. Lisbon or Eureka lemons work, too, and impart a little more tartness.

Ingredients

For the Crust

6 oz (185 g) gingersnaps, plus more if needed
1¼ cups (

Europe
Italy
Dessert
Mediterranean
Vegetarian
Winter

Method

To make the crust, preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). In a food processor, pulse the gingersnaps until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl. Add the walnuts to the work bowl, process until finely ground, and add to the cookie crumbs. (Alternatively, for a nut-free crust, omit the walnuts