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Instead of cake for his birthday, my husband asked me to make him a cheesecake with a tart lemon topping similar to the Lemon Cream Cheese pie they serve at Marie Callender’s. My wonderful son gave me a mini cheesecake pan for Christmas, so this was the perfect opportunity to give it it’s maiden voyage.
Jenny at Picky Palate is always creating fabulous desserts with her mini cheesecake pan. So I adapted her Shortbread Cookie Crusted Peanut Butter Mini Cheesecakes with Chocolate Ganache to create luscious lemon mini birthday cheesecakes. These little beauties were a wonderful combination of sweet and tart, creamy and crunchy. I bet you can’t eat just one!
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Mini Cheesecake with Lemon Curd
Ingredients
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (1 package)
- 2 Tablespoons melted butter
- 2 8 oz packages cream cheese softened
- ½ Cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 Tablespoons sour cream
- Pinch of salt
- LEMON CURD
- 3 large egg yolks
- Zest of ½ lemon
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter cold and cut into pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300º. In a medium bowl, combined graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. Spoon a heaping Tablespoon of crust into each mini cheesecake pan or mini muffin tin. With fingers or round end of a wooden spoon, press crust down evenly.
- In a stand or electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until well combined. Add in eggs one at a time following with the vanilla, sour cream, pinch of salt. Mix until just combined.
- Fill each crust filled cup ¾ way full of cheesecake batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until cheesecake is set. Remove from oven and let sit in pan at room temperature for 30 minutes before removing. Transfer mini cheesecakes to a cooling rack to cool completely, another 30 minutes or so.
- Refrigerate until serving. To serve spoon lemon curd over each cheesecake.
- LEMON CURD
- Combine yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar in a small saucepan. Whisk to combine. Set over medium heat, and stir constantly with a wooden spoon, making sure to stir sides and bottom of pan. Cook until mixture is thick enough to coat back of wooden spoon, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Remove saucepan from heat. Add the butter, one piece at a time, stirring with the wooden spoon until consistency is smooth.
- Transfer mixture to a medium bowl. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the curd to avoid a skin from forming; wrap tightly. Let cool; refrigerate until firm and chilled, at least 1 hour. Store, refrigerated in an airtight container, up to 2 days.
- If you want to bake a bigger version of this cheesecake in a springform pan, I loved Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake I made last year for the Daring Bakers challenge and then top it with the lemon curd recipe.
Memória
I love lemon curd AND cheesecake! Oh my goodness! This looks so fabulous!!! I also love the mini size.
Happy birthday to your husband! ¡Feliz cumpleaños! (have you been practicing your Spanish? :D)
shaz
Oooh, too pretty. I'm going to have to get a mini-cheesecake pan!
cindy
I love my little cheesecake pan. Lemon Curd looks delish. I must make it.
Lynda
This looks lucious, Barbara….what a lucky husband to get this for his birthday!
Sue Sparks
Mmmm Mmmm good! I've loved cheesecake since I was a little girl, and topped with lemon-YUM! I love the Marie Callender version too:)
Kim
Funny, I made a cheesecake for my husband today too. Yours looks ten times better though with that tart lemon topping. I could easily eat two of them 😀
Lauren
Oh my goodness. Lemon curd and cheesecake are a perfect combination! Yum =D.
Juliana
Barbara, what a nice cheesecake…I almost wanted to touch the lemon curd 🙂 Look so creamy and I just love tartness of lemon on it!
Cinnamon-Girl♥
What a gorgeous little dessert! I love tart and sweet. I bet this just melts in your mouth!
Asha@FSK
Oh B!! that is stunning.. Love the lemon curd on top!!! One of these days, am just gonna come and crash at your place!
Julie @ Willow Bird Baking
These are adorable and sound so delicious!! And I think I'll have some extra graham crackers here shortly . . .
Maybe I'll try this with mango curd as well! Mmm!
Deeba PAB
Just too darned luscious Barbara. I love mini desserts & these are gorgeous! I have a mini muffin pan too, but the graham crackers for 'you know what' were all devoured by the boy who loved them so! Until next time…mmmm
Margie
Gorgeous mini cheesecakes. Looks like cheesecake topped with sunshine! That's a compelling reason to dig out the mini muffin pans which I usually avoid.
HoneyB
I love mini foods!!! LOL. I really love lemon curd also. I could just sit and eat a batch of that. I might be sick later but it would taste pretty darned good!
scorpiowoman
oh it looks so easy. And I love cheesecake and lemon. I'm sure that both combined is a wonderful taste. Thanks Barbara for the recipe. I'll have to try that in the future. Maybe when I'll have lost 20-30 lbs LOL I'm keeping the recipe.
Jessica @ How Sweet
I've always wanted to make lemon or lime curd. Looks so tasty.
Barbara Bakes
Thanks for the comment Maryse. I updated the post for directions on making a larger version! Great idea!
Donald
Same ingredients for a large cake? I'm going to have to make this one. It's my favorite stuff: cheesecake AND lemon curd!
Maryse (still using hubby's Google accnt)
Erika from The Pastry Chef At Home
I never make cheesecake….I don't know why but your mini cheesecake is so cute – the lemon curd really makes it special!
Maria
I love the curd on top. I don't like cheesecake, but I will take one with lots of curd:)