Classic Cheesecake with Lime

This recipe is my version of the best traditional cheesecake with a twist of fresh lime.

The cake is super easy to make but takes a little time to bake and rest. So it's perfect to make the day before serving. The cake makes a really nice dessert or serves as a beautiful birthday cake. It's so delicious and my absolute favorite cheesecake recipe.

Classic Cheesecake with Lime Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 8 pieces

For the crust

230g graham crackers

2 tbsp sugar

A pinch of salt

60g unsalted butter (if using salted butter, omit the pinch of salt), melted

For the filling

600g cream cheese at room temperature

3 eggs at room temperature

140g cane sugar

½ vanilla bean

The zest from one small organic citron

The juice from ½ citron

For the sour cream topping

200g sour cream (18%)

30g powdered sugar

For the decoration

2 dl whipped cream

The zest from one organic lemon

A handful pistachios nuts, chopped

Directions

Prepare the crust

Preheat oven to 175 degrees celsius.

Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor or blender until finely grounded. Pour into a large bowl, and stir in the sugar and salt. Last stir in the melted butter.

Using your fingers gently press down the mixture into the bottom of a springform pan (ø 20 cm) and rise along the inside edges of the pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

How to make the filling

Mix together the seeds from ½ vanilla bean with a little bit of cane sugar. Stir the cream cheese, vanilla sugar, the rest of the cane sugar and lemon zest together in a bowl. Afterwards stir in the eggs one at a time - do not over whip, just carefully stir until the eggs are well incorporated. Finally stir in the lemon juice into the curd. Pour the curd into the prebaked crust and bake the cheesecake for about 55 minutes at 160 degrees (it's important that you don't over bake the cheesecake). Remove from the oven and let the cake rest for a few minutes while preparing your sour cream topping.

How to make the sour cream topping

To make the sour cream topping start by mixing the sour cream and powdered sugar together until no lumps remain. Carefully pour the sour cream on top of the cheesecake and smooth the surface with a spatula. Place the cheesecake back in the oven and bake it for another 8 minutes at 160 degrees. Switch off the oven and leave the cheesecake for 1 hour in the oven with the oven door half open. Take the cheesecake out the oven and let it rest on the counter for another hour. Afterwards place the cheesecake in the fridge for at least 6 hours (or overnight) before serving.

It's time to decorate your cake

To decorate the cake pour the whipped cream in a piping bag and decorate the outer circle of the cake with it. Sprinkle with lemon zest and a few chopped pistachio nuts.