Hi friends! My first task on my 50 Things to Do When I am 50 is to try a new recipe once a week (or 4x in a month). Well last week I made TWO new recipes. One is the MOST AMAZING dessert recipe below and the other was a delicious soup from my teaching buddy Carmen. I will share the soup recipe in a separate post.

So I am working on #1 on my list and am excited to try some new things to get out of my cooking rut. So let me introduce you to the most amazing lemon cheesecake EVER. Seriously, if you are a lemon fan, this is for you!

Now ‘imagine’ as my plate says this is calorie free, hahaha! It is not but it is worth every single calorie!

I made this delicious lemon cheesecake with homemade lemon curd for some stamping friends who were coming to a regular event I host called ‘Scrapbook the Day Away’. It is an awesome group and I frequently try out new recipes on them.

To make this lemon cheesecake you will need a springform pan (I use a 9 1/2 inch size, that belonged to my mom), a double boiler for the lemon curd and the following ingredients:

Graham Cracker Crust:

1 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

5 tablespoons butter, melted

1/4 cup of granulated sugar

To make the crust you will mix the crumbs and sugar and then stir in the melted butter. Mix and press firmly into the bottom of your springform pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Lemon Cheesecake Filling:

1 1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp lemon zest

3 blocks of cream cheese (do not get light, who are you?) softened to room temp

1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup plain greek yogurt or sour cream, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs, at room temperature

To make the batter you will need a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix the cream cheese, lemon zest and sugar together on high speed (make sure to scrape the sides down) until creamy—about 2 min. Add the lemon juice, yogurt/sour cream, and vanilla extract. Mix at medium-high speed until fully combined. The eggs will be added one at a time and mix until just blended between each egg. After the last egg is mixed in quit mixing. Your cheesecake will have less a chance of deflating and cracking as it cools if you avoid over mixing the batter.

Add the filling to the graham cracker crumb base and bake at 350 for 55-70 minutes. When it is done (use the toothpick test—the middle may be slightly wobbly) you can turn off the heat but leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool for 1 hour. Leave the oven door slightly open. After you remove it from the oven, allow it to cool completely to room temperature.

Lemon Curd (the most delicious topping or just eat it on its own. Trust me):

1 whole egg

2 egg yolks

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp lemon zest

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1/8 tsp salt

6 tablespoons butter, soften to room temperature

Get your double boiler going (once it starts steaming, turn heat to low simmer). Add the egg, yolks, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt into the top of the double boiler. Using a silicone whisk, whisk until blended and continue to whisk while the curd is forming. Constant whisking prevents the egg yolks from curdling. Mix until mixture becomes thick like hollandaise sauce (approx 10 min).

Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the butter. The butter will melt from the heat of the curd. Pour curd into a glass container, let sit until slightly cool (it will continue to thicken) and then seal and refrigerate until ready to serve your cheesecake.