How To Make Lemon Meringue Cheesecake, Step-by-Step Photos
Lemon Curd
Combine the sugar, eggs, lemon juice & zest, butter and salt in a small nonstick or enameled (NOT metal) saucepan over medium-low heat.
Whisk continuously until it thickens and reaches about 170F (77C), about 5 minutes. The curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
While it’s still hot, press the curd through a sieve into another bowl/jar, cover it and allow it to cool completely to room temperature. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
sugar rubbed with lemon zestingredients for lemon curd mixed togethermixture will look split until they the butter is fully meltedlemon curd thickenedlemon curd coats the back of a spoondiscarded chunks from lemon curd.finished lemon curd
Graham Cracker Crust
Prepare a 9” pan by removing the edge of the springform pan. Place a sheet of parchment paper onto the bottom of the pan so that it hangs off the edge. Then attach the side of the springform pan back to the bottom, so the parchment paper should be secure between the two pieces. Lightly spray the sides of the pan with baking spray.
Make the crust by placing the graham crackers cookies in a food processor and pulsing until you have fine crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse until it’s evenly distributed. Spread the crust into the prepared pan, coming all the way up the sides. Use a ½ cup measuring cup to make the bottom smooth and the corners sharp.
Lemon Cheesecake
Place the sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer and zest the lemons on top. Use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until they’re well combined.
Add the cream cheese to the sugar and cream together until it’s smooth, creamy and glossy. Make sure there are no chunks of cream cheese left.
Add the lemon juice, sour cream and vanilla and mix until it’s completely smooth. Then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed, just until each one is combined.
Pour into the prepared pan and swirl with the lemon curd and bake at 300F (148C) for 75 minutes. Then turn the oven off and use a knife to release the cheesecake from the edge of the pan. Let the cheesecake rest for 20 minutes in the oven with the door halfway open.
Cheesecake should still have jiggle in the center, let it cool on the counter for a few hours before transferring to the fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight.
It is normal for it to crack because of the lemon curd swirls.
If you want a sharper lemon flavor, feel free to spread a layer of lemon curd on top of the cooled cheesecake and before the meringue.
sugar rubbed with the lemon zestcream cheese beat with the sugarfinished cheesecake battercheesecake layered and swirled with lemon curdcheesecake finished baking
Toasted Meringue
Whisk sugar, cream of tartar and egg whites over a double boiler.
Sugar has to be fully dissolved in the egg whites before whipping & reaches 170F (77C).
Egg whites and sugar fully whipped into a fluffy meringue, about 10 minutes.
Use meringue to frost the top of the cheesecake and toast it using a culinary torch.
raw egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixeregg whites and sugar cooking over a double boilercooked egg whites with sugar dissolvedMarshmallowy Swiss meringue meringue on top of lemon cheesecake
Expert tips to get the perfect bake
Weighing your ingredients with a digital scale is always recommended.
Bake the cheesecake at a lower temperature than normal for a longer period of time. Bake until the edges are set and the center is still jiggly.
Allow it to rest in the oven for another 20ish minutes so that it can cool slowly to prevent sinking – cracking will be normal for this one because of the lemon curd swirls.
Allow the cheesecake to chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours (preferably overnight) so that it sets fully.
How to bake this cheesecake in different size pans
I tested my base cheesecake recipe in 4 different sizes. It’s pretty straightforward to adjust to whatever pan size you need. My traditional vanilla cheesecake uses 2 bricks of cream cheese and is baked in an 8 inch pan but the featured photos for this lemon meringue cheesecake use 4 bricks of cream cheese and is baked in a 9 inch pan so it’s taller. This exact amount can also be baked in a 10 inch pan but it will be slightly shorter in size (more average looking, not as tall).
You can adjust the quantity needed by what size pan you have and how tall you want your cheesecake.
I’ll list out the amount of cream cheese needed and you can just adjust the rest of the ingredients accordingly.
The amount of cheesecake batter you’ll need for each size pan:
10 inch pan: 4 bricks of cream cheese – bake for 65 minutes, rest in the oven for 25 minutes.
9 inch pan: 3 bricks of cream cheese for shorter cheesecake or 4 bricks for a taller cheesecake – bake for 55-70 minutes, rest in the oven for 20 minutes.
8 inch pan: 2 bricks of cheesecake for a shorter cheesecake or 3 bricks for a taller cheesecake – bake for 45-60 minutes, rest in the oven for 15 minutes.
7 inch pan: 2 bricks of cheesecake – bake for 55-65 minutes, rest in the oven for 15 minutes.
6 inch pan: 1 brick of cream cheese – bake for 30 minutes, rest in the oven for 15 minutes.
How to store cheesecake
To refrigerate, cover the cheesecake with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate it for up to a week. Serve cold or bring to room temperature 1 hour before serving if you like it softer.
To freeze the whole cheesecake, wrap it in plastic wrap and then wrap it twice in aluminum foil (or place it in an airtight container big enough).
To freeze slices, place them tightly in an airtight container and then place the container in a freezer bag, squeezing out all the excess air. Bring them back to room temperature by thawing at room temperature for a few hours before serving.
Thank you for reading, I hope this lemon meringue cheesecake brings a little sunshine to your day!
If you have any questions, please comment down below – those will get answered much quicker than email or through social media.
If you’ve tried this, I would very much appreciate a star rating or review as well.
225gramslemon curd, don't really have to measure, just swirl it in
Toasted Meringue
150gramsgranulated sugar
1/4tspcream of tartar
3largeegg whites
2tspvanilla bean paste
tiny pinch fine sea salt
Method
Lemon Curd
Combine the sugar, eggs, lemon juice & zest, butter and salt in a small nonstick or enameled (NOT metal) saucepan over medium-low heat.*
50 grams granulated sugar, 2 tsp lemon zest 1 large or 2 small lemons, 60 mL lemon juice, 1 large egg room temperature, 1 large egg yolk room temperature, tiny pinch fine sea salt, 42 grams salted butter room temperature
Whisk continuously until it thickens, about 5 minutes, just until it reaches about 170F (77C) – don't go over. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
While it’s still hot, press the curd through a sieve into another bowl/jar, cover it and allow it to cool completely to room temperature. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
Graham Cracker Crust
Preheat the oven to 300F (148C) conventional (no fan) and grease and line a 9 inch springform pan with baking spray and parchment paper.
Place the graham crackers in the bowl of your food processor and turn it to full speed, until they're finely ground.
200 grams graham crackers ground up
Add the melted butter and pulse until the butter looks evenly distributed.
84 grams salted butter melted
Dump the crumbs into the prepared pan and use something small and round with a flat bottom (like a 1/2 cup measuring cup) to press the crust down evenly, coming up only halfway up the edge of the pan.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, and then refrigerate, while you prepare the filling.
Lemon Cheesecake
It’s important that everything is softened to room temperature. If you need to, place the cream cheese (with the packaging) and the eggs in a bowl of hot water for 5-10 minutes and microwave the sour cream for 10-20 seconds.
Place the sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer and zest the lemons on top. Use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until they’re well combined.
266 grams granulated sugar, zest of 4 large lemons
Add the cream cheese to the bowl and use the paddle attachment (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), to mix at medium-low speed for a couple of minutes, scraping the edge of the bowl every so often to make sure the mixture is smooth and there are no chunks of cream cheese left.
32 oz cream cheese room temperature
Add the sour cream, vanilla and lemon juice and mix at low speed, until they’re all fully combined.
240 grams sour cream, 2 Tbsp vanilla bean paste or extract, 120 mL lemon juice 3-4 of the lemons
With the mixer still at low speed, add the one egg at a time, mixing just until each one is combined. Scrape the edge of the bowl well and give it one more good mix. Make sure to get smooth out any visible chunks and don’t increase the speed so you don’t incorporate air.
4 large eggs room temperature
Fold the batter a few times, scraping the edge of the bowl well. You can press the cheesecake batter through a sieve if you want to get out any chunks (but I don’t) before pouring it over the crust.
Pour HALF of the cheesecake batter over the crust. Swirl some lemon curd and then repeat with the rest of the cheesecake batter and some more curd. You can reserve some (about 1/2 cup should be fine) of the curd for the top of the cheesecake after it’s baking if you want a sharper lemon flavor.
225 grams lemon curd don't really have to measure, just swirl it in
Place the cheesecake in the preheated oven and place another pan full of hot water next to it (I just use another large cake pan). Bake for 75ish minutes. The edges of the cheesecake should be set but the center should still be jiggly and it should look pretty flat on top with a slightly golden color around the edge.
Turn the oven off and pull out the cheesecake just slightly so you can reach it. Run a knife around the edge of the cheesecake so it can release from the pan and prevent cracking as it cools. Put the cheesecake back in the oven and leave the door halfway open for 20 minutes.Remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow it to cool to room temperature before refrigerating overnight or for at least 6-8 hours.
Toasted Meringue
Bring a small pot with a little water to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer (keep it on very low heat).Wipe down your equipment with a tiny bit of vinegar or lemon juice (any edible acid) and then place the sugar and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer, whisking them together.
Bring a small pot with a little water to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer (keep it on very low heat).Wipe down your equipment with a tiny bit of vinegar or lemon juice (any edible acid) and then place the sugar and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer, whisking them together.
150 grams granulated sugar, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
Add the egg whites to the bowl and whisk the egg whites into the sugar. Place the bowl of egg whites and sugar on top of the simmering water (making sure it doesn’t submerge into the water) – you want the steam to heat the egg whites.
3 large egg whites
Whisk the egg whites frequently so they don’t coagulate around the edge of the bowl. Generally around 5 minutes, the sugar will feel like it’s dissolved in the egg whites but you want to take the egg whites to 175F (80C) in order to get that stable, marshmallowy texture, which is normally around 10 minutes for me. So make sure to check the temperature with a thermometer between the 5-10 minutes (it may take up to 15 minutes).
Once it’s at 175F (80C), turn the stove off, remove the bowl from the simmering pot and place it on the stand mixer fit with the whisk attachment. Beat at medium speed for a minute and then increase to medium-high for about 10 minutes.
Add in the vanilla extract and salt and mix, that just until it’s combined, making sure to scrape the edge of the bowl as well. The texture should be thick and marshmallow – not dry.**
2 tsp vanilla bean paste, tiny pinch fine sea salt
Spread on top of the chilled cheesecake and use a culinary torch to toast the top. Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving.
Notes
*Store bought lemon curd works fine as well! **If you’re concerned about your meringue deflating and need it to last a long time, you could consider adding gelatin to it. I dissolve just under a ¼ tsp of gelatin in 1 tsp of cold water. Let it set for a few minutes and then microwave it for 5 seconds. Add it in with the vanilla and salt, mixing just until it’s well combined. It’ll set once it’s refrigerated.
Hi Carol, I’m not sure what you mean. When I click the “print recipe” both at the top of the blog post and the recipe card it only prints the recipe card.
Thanks Bernice for your quick reply.
I found the print tab. I did not go on the blog and that’s why I couldn’t find it.
Many thanks
For some reason, my page does not have a print tab on it anywhere on the page.
Very weird.
Why do you not offer a way to print the recipe? I do not want to print 25 pages with pictures. I only want the recipe.
Many thanks.
Hi Carol, I’m not sure what you mean. When I click the “print recipe” both at the top of the blog post and the recipe card it only prints the recipe card.