LEMON MERINGUE CHEESECAKE RECIPE AND VIDEO

This Lemon meringue cheesecake recipe is decadent and rich – a lemon cheesecake with a ribbon of homemade lemon curd running through the middle and another layer of lemon curd spread across the top. Baked in a Lemon cookie crumb crust and topped with a fluffy toasted meringue every bite is amazing.

HOW I CREATED THIS DECADENT LEMON MERINGUE CHEESECAKE RECIPE

In April my mom and I took a week long trip to PARIS!!!! yup – we spent one day at Disneyland Paris, and spent 6 days taking cooking classes in the morning and being tourists the rest of the day!

We saw all the sites and of COURSE ate all the food!  If you follow me on Instagram you might have seen some of the food!One of the favorite things we tried was a Lemon Meringue Cheesecake from Berko.  So of COURSE it became one of the recipes I had to recreate at home.

To create this I actually used my base Dense and Creamy cheesecake recipe, my Graham cracker crust recipe (but used lemon cookies instead), my homemade lemon curd recipe and my American meringue (aka marshmallow frosting aka 7 minute frosting) and put them all together!

Now my lemon curd is a little more creamy than some, so it’s also more pale and opaque – so if you want a more bright yellow, more gelatin looking curd don’t add the cream and maybe even a little less butter. Just a Personal preference!

JUST TAKE ME TO THE CHEESECAKE RECIPE ALREADY!

If you’d rather skip my tips and tricks for getting the perfect cheesecake, along with links to some of my other cheesecake recipes and get straight to this delicious lemon Meringue Cheesecake Recipe – simply scroll to the bottom of the page where you can find the printable recipe card.

TIPS AND TRICKS FOR BAKING THE PERFECT CHEESECAKE WITH NO CRACKING

– Room temperate ingredients are key for a smooth texture.

– Beat the cream cheese and sugar as much as you want, make it smooth, but once you add the eggs, do NOT overbeat, just mix on low until they are barely incorporated, beating after you add the eggs is what often leads to cracking.

– Make sure your oven is the correct temperature (I love my oven thermometer)

– TRY not to open the oven door, like ever, if you can help it.

– I used to hate water baths – the foil always leaks and I don’t like mushy crusts – but waterbaths keep cheesecakes more evenly baked and nice and flat – so now I recommend a silicone water bath pan!!!

– If you run out of water in the water bath pan make sure to boil any water you add so it doesn’t stop the baking process.

– Cook your cheesecake until it’s puffy and set on the outer edge but it’s still a bit jiggly in the center, like a loose jello jiggler, but not liquid, in the center 4-5 inches.  It will keep cooking afterwards a bit, and IMO better to be slightly under cooked than overcooked.

– Turn off the oven and crack open the oven door to let it cool slowly, this will help it finish cooking but not cool TOO fast and crack

– Do NOT eat it right away, cheesecake sets and gets BETTER with time in the fridge, at LEAST 8 hours

HOW TO ADJUST THIS CHEESECAKE FOR THE INSTANT POT

I use an 8 inch springform pan for my 8 quart pressure cooker, but I recommend a 7 inch for the 6 quart. So depending on your pan size you might need to change the recipe a little

Go to the “servings size” in the recipe card and adjust it until the cream cheese measurement is 1.5 lbs for a thinner 8 inch cheesecake or for the 7 inch pan.

For instant pot cheesecake tips and tricks and cooking times go to my instant pot cheesecake post! Or you can turn it into Instant pot cheesecake bites. (I have peanut butter bites, oreo bites and salted caramel bites already shared)

WHAT EQUIPMENT I USE TO MAKE THE PERFECT CHEESECAKE RECIPE:

• Candy Thermometer
• Zester
• Food Processor
• 9″ Spring form Pan
• 9″ parchment cake circles
• silicone water bath pan 
• 12 x 3 inch cake pan 
• Stand Mixer
• Hand Mixer – (I adore my bosch hand mixer but they are hard to find as they don’t currently sell them stateside)
• Culinary Torch

Lemon Meringue Cheesecake Recipe

This Lemon meringue pie cheesecake is decadent and rich – a lemon cheesecake with a ribbon of homemade lemon curd running through the middle, another layer of lemon curd spread across the top. Baked in a Lemon cookie crumb crust and topped with a fluffy toasted meringue every bite is amazing.

Ingredients

Lemon Curd

• 2 Tbsp lemon zest about 3 lemons
• 1/2 C lemon juice about 4 lemons – zest the 4th and save for the cheesecake
• 3 Lrg eggs
• 3 Lrg egg yolks
• 3/4 C granulated sugar
• ½ C butter cold and cut into cubes
• 2 Tbsp heavy whipping cream
• Pinch of salt

Lemon Cookie Crust

• 1 1/2 C lemon cookie crumbs
• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 6 Tbsp butter melted

Lemon Cheesecake

• 1 Tbsp lemon zest about 2 lemons
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice about 1 lemon
• 1 C granulated sugar separated
• 2 lbs cream cheese room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Lrg eggs room temperature
• 1 Lrg egg yolk room temperature

Meringue Topping

• 4 Lrg egg whites
• 3/4 C granulated sugar
• 6 Tbsp light corn syrup
• ½ tsp vanilla

Instructions

Lemon Curd

• heat the lemon zest and lemon juice in small saucepan over medium heat until hot but not boiling.
• Whisk the eggs, yolk and sugar in a bowl
• Whisking constantly, slowly pour hot lemon juice into eggs, this will temper the eggs – aka bring them up to heat without scrambling them
• Then return mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring, until mixture registers 170 degrees F (remember to adjust for altitude)
• Take off the heat and pour into a bowl
• Stir in the butter, cream and salt – note for a brighter lemon curd leave out the whipping cream
• Cover surface of curd directly with plastic wrap to avoid getting a “skin” on the curd – refrigerate until needed.

Lemon Cookie Crumb Crust

• preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a food processor process cookies until a fine crumb
• Add the sugar and melted butter and process again
• Press mixture into a 9 inch springform pan, along the bottom and up the sides
• Bake until fragrant 10-12 mins
• Set aside and let cool

Lemon Cheesecake

• bring oven temperature down to 300
• While crust is cooling, mix 1/4 cup sugar and lemon zest in food processor until sugar is yellow and zest is broken down, about 15 seconds
• In a mixing bowl beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth
• Add the lemon sugar mixture and beat until mixture is creamy and smooth, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed.
• Add the lemon juice and mix until just incorporated
• Reduce speed to medium-low and add eggs and yolk 1 at a time; beat until incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping sides and bottom of bowl well after each addition.
• Pour half the batter into the crust, then spoon on 1/3 of the lemon curd and swirl it slightly
• Spoon the rest of the cheesecake batter over the top
• Place in the silicone water bath pan – and place in a 12 inch round cake pan, adding water ½ way up
• Bake about 1 hour until the sides start to puff, the surface is no longer shiny and the center 4-5 inches jiggles slightly – like a jello jiggler
• Turn off oven and prop open oven door with potholder or wooden spoon handle; allow cake to cool in water bath in oven for 30 min to 1 hour.
• When the cheesecake has mostly cooled, spread the rest of the curd evenly over the top of cheesecake.
• Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or 8 to 24 hours.

Meringue topping

• Put eggs whites, sugar and corn syrup in a bowl over boiling water and beat with a hand mixer until the mixture turns white, thickens and ribbons form- about 4 mins.
• Transfer the mixture to a cool mixing bowl, add the vanilla and beat with electric mixer on Med high until soft peaks form- about 3 mins
• Pipe or Spread onto the cheesecake
• Use a culinary torch to toast the outside of the meringue
• Refrigerate until ready to serve