Bright and sunny No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake is the ideal treat to cool the hot summer days. You’ll love the light and airy cream filling infused with a vibrant lemon curd on top of a crisp lemony crust. Whether you want to escape the sweltering heat or brighten a dreary day, this Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake, adapted from Cook’s Country, is sure to hit the spot!
Ingredients for No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake:
I used the following ingredients: Lemon sandwich cookies, unsalted butter, lemons, eggs, granulated sugar, salt, heavy cream, cream cheese, and unflavored gelatin. Although I used regular cream cheese, I suspect that low-fat cream cheese would have worked as well.
Making the Crust for No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake:
I started by adding broken pieces of lemon sandwich cookies to my food processor fitted with a steel blade. I used Lemon Oreos, but you could really use any lemon sandwich cookies. Then, I processed the cookies for about 30 seconds until they were finely ground. Next, I added melted and cooled unsalted butter, and lemon zest, and pulsed until everything was well combined. I pressed the cookie mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Here’s the “Almost No-Bake” – I baked the crust at 350° F for about 10 minutes until it was lightly browned and nicely set. After removing the crust from the oven, I cooled it completely on a wire rack.
Making the Lemon Curd:
You’ll need about 1/2 cup of lemon curd for this luscious icebox cheesecake. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any of my delicious Classic English Lemon Curd on hand. Therefore, I made some lemon curd using the Cook’s Country recipe.
First, I whisked an egg, egg yolk, sugar, and a pinch of salt together in a small saucepan. Then, I whisked in some freshly squeezed lemon juice. I set the pan over medium-low heat, and cooked the mixture, stirring constantly, until it thickened. This took around 5 minutes. After removing the pan from the heat, I whisked in some butter and cream.
I pressed the lemon curd through fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl. I always strain the lemon curd because I inevitably end up with pieces of scrambled egg. Before refrigerating it, I divided the lemon curd in half. I put half in a measuring cup, and the other half in a pastry bag fitted with a #7 round tip. I could have just as easily put the other half in a Ziploc bag.
Making the Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake Filling:
With my electric mixer, I beat room temperature cream cheese on high for about a minute until it was smooth. Then, I added the sugar and a pinch of salt, and continued beating the mixture for several minutes until it was smooth and creamy. Next, I added the cream, and beat the filling for several more minutes until it was light and fluffy. I added a mixture of gelatin and lemon juice, and 1/4 cup of the lemon curd, and beat the filling for about 3 minutes until it was light and airy.
After pouring the filling into the prepared lemon crust, I smoothed the top with an off-set spatula. This is where the other half of the lemon curd in the pastry bag comes in! I piped thin lines of the lemon curd on the top of the cheesecake. Finally, I dragged a small paring knife through the lemon curd lines to create a marbled effect.
I covered the cheesecake with plastic wrap, and refrigerated it until it was nicely set. The hard part was having to wait to taste this amazing (Almost) No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake. The light and airy cream filling infused with a vibrant lemon curd on top of a crisp lemony crust was out of this world good. Yum!
(Almost) No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake
Ingredients
Lemon Crust
- 10 lemon sandwich cookies broken into pieces (about 1-1/4 cups)
- 2 Tablespoons (1 ounce, 28 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Lemon Curd
- 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
- 1/4 cup (1.75 ounces, 50) grams granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 2 Tablespoons (1 ounce, 28 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon (0.5 ounce, 14 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon (0.5 ounce, 14 ml) heavy cream
Filling
- 1 envelope 2-1/2 teaspoons, .25 ounces, 7 grams unflavored gelatin
- 1/4 cup (2 ounces, 55 grams) freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 1 1/2 pounds (24 ounces, 680 grams) cream cheese, cut into 1-inch pieces, room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar 5.25 ounces, 149 grams granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 1/4 cups (10 ounces, 283 ml) heavy cream
Instructions
Lemon Crust
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Process cookies in food processor fitted with steel blade until finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add melted butter and lemon zest; pulse process until well combined, about 10 pulses. Press mixture into bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack, at least 30 minutes.
Lemon Curd
- Whisk egg, egg yolk, sugar, and salt together in a small saucepan. Whisk in lemon juice; cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in butter and cream. Press through fine-mesh strainer into small bowl. Place 1/4 cup of curd (about half) in a small bowl; place remainder in pastry bag fitted with #7 round tip or Ziploc bag. Place both in refrigerator until ready to use.
Filling
- Combine lemon juice and gelatin in small bowl. Let stand until gelatin is softened, about 5 minutes. Microwave on high until mixture is bubbling around the edges, and gelatin dissolves, about 30 seconds. Set aside.
- Beat cream cheese with electric mixer on high until smooth, about 1 minute. Add sugar and salt; beat on high until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add cream; beat on high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add gelatin mixture and 1/4 cup lemon curd. Beat on high until smooth and airy, about 3 minutes.
Finishing No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake
- Pour filling into cooled crust; smooth top. Pipe 4 or 5 thin lines of remaining lemon curd on top of cheesecake. Lightly drag paring knife or skewer through curd lines to form marbled appearance.
- Refrigerate until set, at least 6 hours.
- Carefully run paring knife around edges of cheesecake to release from sides of springform pan. Remove springform pan sides. Cut into slices and serve.
- Yield: 1 9-inch No-Bake Lemon Curd Icebox Cheesecake.
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