One year ago, during the Christmas holidays of 2009, I worked a lot of the time that my kids were out of school. Afterward (and during, if I’m completely honest), I really regretted not spending the time with my family. Finding balance in my life is sometimes challenging, and I let work win out during the Christmas holidays of 2009. I achieved better balance over this recent holiday season, working just one day during the week between Christmas and New Years. The time with my children, my husband, my home – and even with my cats – was just what I needed to regroup and refresh my mind and heart.
And, of course, I cooked and I baked, and I reveled in the quality time I spent in my kitchen.
Seriously, folks. If I could have hugged my kitchen, I would have.
One of the desserts that I baked over my break from work was this Meyer lemon curd cheesecake. Remember those Meyer lemons that I wrote about in this post? Turns out that Meyer lemon curd baked into a cheesecake is a very good idea.
Because I keep having darned oven calibration issues, it didn’t set up as well as I would have liked. Or perhaps it’s because I suck at making cheesecake. Regardless, it was a little less firm than I was going for, but that problem should be easy to fix next time. The taste? Light, fresh, bright, a bit of tartness, smooth and creamy on the tongue. Ethereal, in other words.
Yep. You want to make this. I can’t promise it will give you balance in your life, but it will make you happy.
Nothing wrong with happy.
Slightly adapted from Gourmet, July 2006. For this recipe you'll need a 9 to 9 1/2 inch springform pan.
Ingredients for Crust
1 1/3 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs (5 oz)
1/3 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Ingredients for Filling
3 (8-oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup Meyer lemon curd
Preparation of Crust
With oven rack placed in middle position, preheat oven to 350°F.
Invert bottom of springform pan (to make it easier to slide cake off bottom), then lock on side. Stir together the crust ingredients in a bowl, then press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of springform pan [Note: I use the bottom of a glass to press the crust in smoothly and evenly.]. Place springform pan in a shallow baking pan and bake for 10 minutes. Cool crust completely in springform pan on a rack.
Preparation & Baking of Cheesecake
Reduce oven temperature to 300°F.
Beat together cream cheese and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer (or in a stand mixer) at medium speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Beat in sour cream and vanilla until combined.
Pour 2/3 of the cream cheese filling into crust, then spoon half of the Meyer lemon curd over filling and swirl curd into filling with small knife, being careful not to touch the crust with the knife. Repeat with remaining filling and lemon curd.
Bake cheesecake until set 1 1/2 inches from the edge but center trembles when pan is gently shaken, about 45 minutes. Note that the center of the cake will appear very loose but it will continue to set as it cools. Transfer springform pan to a rack and immediately run knife around top edge of cake to loosen. Cool completely, about 2 hours, then chill, uncovered, at least 4 hours. Remove side of springform pan prior to serving.
