No-bake lemon cheesecake (gelatin free)
You will need a 10 inch springform pan
Ingredients
For the base:
3 dozens ladyfingers
For lemon syrup:
½ cup sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice.
2-3 pieces of lemon peel, only the yellow part, not the white (bitter).
For the cheese:
16 oz cream cheese in room temperature .
1 cup sugar
Zest from 1 lemon.
Lemon curd - using this (link) recipe
1 cup heavy cream.
4 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding (make sure you get the instant and not the cook one - they look almost identical- otherwise the cake won't stabilize.
Directions
Make the cheese mixture:
Work the sugar and the lemon zest in your fingers to let the lemon fragrance infuse in the sugar.
In a mixer bowl place the cream cheese and the sugar with the lemon zest, and mix until creamy and well combined (stop the mixer occasionally and scrap the bowl to make sure it will mix evenly).
Add ¾ of the lemon curd to the mixture and mix till combined.
Remove the cheese from the mixer into different bowl and in the same mixer bowl (no need to clean) place the heavy cream and vanilla pudding and mix till you get stiff peaks.
Add the cheese to the mixer bowl and mix for another 2-3 min till well combined.
Place the cheese mixture the fridge to cool and stabilize while doing the rest.
Make the lemon syrup:
Place all the syrup ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and keep cooking and stirring occasionally for few more min, till the syrup thickens a little.
Assemble
Cover the sides and bottom of your pan with ladyfingers. Cut the side's ladyfingers to be just slightly taller than the edge of the pan, with the sugar coating facing out. Cut the bottom ones to fit and cover the bottom of the pan, with the sugar coating facing up.
Brush the surface of the ladyfingers with the syrup.
Pour half of the cheese mixture on top of the ladyfingers
Spread half of the remaining lemon curd on top of the cheese.
Place a second layer of ladyfingers and brush with the syrup.
Pour the cheese mixture on top and the remaining of the lemon curd on top of the cheese.
Refrigerate overnight.
Before serving can decorate with whipped cream, lemon zest, mint leaves, cherries, raspberries or candied/fresh lemon slices.
Enjoy! 😋