No-bake Lemon Cheesecake
This easy-peasy, no-bake lemon cheesecake recipe is incredibly versatile (not to mention incredibly delicious!).
I find gelatin sheets more user-friendly than gelatin powder (gelatin sheets are available from most supermarkets). For ease, I use a non-stick loose bottomed 20cm round tin. To make the cheesecake gluten-free, simply use a gluten-free plain, sweet biscuit variety for the biscuit base. If you are feeling fancy, add the toppings below but feel free to use anything else you prefer instead (like a tangy lemon curd or no toppings at all).
Enough for a 20cm round cheesecake (about 10 - 12 servings)
BISCUIT BASE
plain, sweet biscuits, 150g - Marie or Vanilla Wine or Milk Arrowroot biscuits works well
unsalted butter, 50g
NO-BAKE LEMON CHEESECAKE FILLING
cream cheese, 500g - I use Philadelphia original cream cheese
cream, 250g (250ml or 1 cup)
caster sugar, 200g (250ml or 1 cup)
lemon juice, 30ml (2 tablespoons) - usually the juice of one small lemon
gelatin sheets, 5
PEACH MOUSSE
peach, 1 large
caster sugar, 25g
gelatin sheets, 2
cream, 125g (125ml or 1/2 cup)
RASPBERRY MOUSSE
raspberries (fresh or frozen), 120g
caster sugar, 25g
gelatin sheets, 2
cream, 125g (125ml or 1/2 cup)
An extra peach, fresh raspberries and fresh mint to serve - optional
To start, place the biscuits in a food processor fitted with a blade attachment and blitz until fine crumbs (or place the biscuits in a food safe bag and crush them with a rolling pin until fine).
Add the melted butter and combine until the mixture resembles wet sand, then transfer the mixture to the tin.
Press the biscuit mixture firmly onto the tin base (the bottom of a sturdy straight-sided glass works well).
For the filling, place the cream cheese, cream, sugar and lemon juice in a medium saucepan and set it over a low heat.
Allow the mixture to liquefy whisking by hand occasionally until smooth - approximately 10 minutes (it will look very lumpy and odd for a while).
Once the mixture is smooth and completely liquefied, remove the saucepan from the heat.
Place the gelatin sheets in a bowl of cold water to hydrate (add a few ice cubes to ensure the gelatin sheets do not melt when hydrating).
Once the gelatin is soft (allow a few minutes in the cold water), remove the soft sheets from the water and give it a gentle squeeze to remove excess water.
Place the soft, hydrated gelatin in the warm filling mixture and whisk gently until smooth and all the gelatin has melted.
Pour the filling mixture onto the biscuit base then place the tin in the fridge to set (3 - 4 hours, but ideally overnight).
For the peach mousse, halve the fresh peach to remove the pip, then remove the skin (if you peach is nice and ripe, the skin should peal off easily).
Puree the peach using a handheld blender or food processor then pass the puree through a fine sieve.
Place the fresh peach puree (approximately 100g) in a small saucepan and add the caster sugar. Set the mixture over a low heat to dissolve the sugar.
Place the gelatin sheets in a bowl of cold water to hydrate them.
Once the gelatin is soft (allow a few minutes in the cold water), remove the soft sheets from the water and give it a gentle squeeze to remove the excess water.
Once the sugar in the puree has dissolved, remove from the heat then add the hydrated gelatin and whisk until smooth.
Whip the cream to soft peaks. Gently fold the puree into the whipped cream.
Pour the mousse into a 6 medium dome silicone mould (flattening the tops with a spatula) then transfer the mould to the freezer to set (3 - 4 hours, ideally overnight).
For the raspberry mousse, puree the raspberries using a handheld blender or food processor (if using frozen raspberries, defrost them first or warm them in a small saucepan to make it easier to puree). Pass the puree through a fine sieve in order to discard the seeds.
Place the smooth puree (approximately 100g) in a small saucepan and add the caster sugar. Set the mixture over a low heat to dissolve the sugar.
Place the gelatin sheets in a bowl of cold water to hydrate them.
Once the gelatin is soft (allow a few minutes in the cold water), remove the soft sheets from the water and give it a gentle squeeze to remove the excess water.
Once the sugar in the puree has dissolved, remove from the heat then add the hydrated gelatin and whisk until smooth.
Whip the cream to soft peaks. Gently fold the puree into the whipped cream.
Pour the mousse into a 15 small dome silicone mould (flattening the tops with a spatula) then transfer the mould to the freezer to set (3 - 4 hours, but ideally overnight).
TO ASSEMBLE:
Unmould the cheesecake then transfer it to a serving board or plate.
Remove the silicone moulds from the freezer. Pop the frozen fruit mouse domes out (if frozen solid, they should unmould very easily) and arrange them on top to the cheesecake. As the domes return to room temperature (this happens fairly quickly), the texture returns to a soft, fluffy mousse.
Just before serving, decorate the top with ripe peach slices, fresh raspberries and fresh mint.
Serve at room temperature. Enjoy!
