CHEESE CAKES: This cheese cake is light and delicious and quite different from the basic cheese cakes that you might have come across. It is worth a try.

LEMON MARBLE CHEESE CAKE:

 

 

 

crust:  1 quantity of basic cheese cake crust, see recipe

lemon curd:

    grated zest of ½ lemon                    

    1/3 cup strained lemon juice

    5 tbsp sugar                                    

    1 large egg

    ½ tsp. vanilla extract

cheese cake filling:

    1 cup sugar                                     

    2 cups low-fat small curd cottage cheese

    8 oz cream cheese, softened                       

    3 large eggs

    1 tsp. vanilla extract                        

    1 ½ tbsp. strained lemon juice

    ¼ tsp salt

 

 

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Roll out pastry to ¼-inch thickness to fit an 8-9-inch spring-form pan. Bake blind for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

 

To make lemon curd:  Combine lemon zest, juice and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Beat egg until light-coloured; then beat some of the hot lemon mixture into it. Return egg mixture to the saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture starts to bubble around the edges. Continue cooking for about 15 seconds. Remove from heat and pour through a strainer into a clean bowl. Stir in vanilla. Allow to cool.

 

To make cheese filling:  Process cottage cheese in food processor for 2 minutes or until smooth. Add cream cheese and process together with on/off pulses until well mixed. Add the eggs, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice and salt. Pulse on/off a couple of times to incorporate, but do not over process. Pour batter into half-baked crust. Distribute slightly rounded tablespoons of lemon curd evenly over the cheesecake batter. With a knife or teaspoon and using circular strokes, marble the batter with the lemon curd until just  mingled but not well-mixed in.

 

Place cake pan in a large baking pan; then fill pan with enough boiling water to reach half way up the sides of the cake pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. When cake is completely cooled, remove from baking pan and transfer to serving platter or cake stand. Cover or wrap cake well in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 12 hours or up to 2 days before serving.