Lemon Meringue Cheesecake Bars
The perfect summer dessert! These lemon meringue cheesecake bars are fresh, bright, and absolutely delicious. This recipe will be a showstopper during your summer parties!
Equipment
- Saucepan and heat-proof bowl for double boiler
- Hand whisk
- Electric or stand mixer
- 7" springform pan or pastry frame read notes for more pan details
- Blow torch
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 4 egg yolks
- 140 gs white granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 100 ml lemon juice
- 90 gs unsalted butter
Biscuit Base
- 200 gs digestive biscuits/graham crackers
- 20 gs brown sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 100 gs melted butter
Cheesecake Layer
- 360 gs full-fat cream cheese
- 75 gs white granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 15 ml lemon juice
- 30 gs sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 170 gs liquid whipping cream
Swiss Meringue
- 2 egg whites
- 100 gs white-granulated sugar
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- Fill a saucepan halfway with water and let it come to a boil. Meanwhile, take a heat-proof bowl that fits at the top of the saucepan. Add the egg yolks, lemon zest, fresh lemon juice, and sugar into the bowl and give it a quick whisk.
- Once the water in the saucepan has come to a boil, reduce the heat and bring the water to a simmer. Then, place the heat-proof bowl with the lemon curd mixture on top of the saucepan. Make sure that the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water.
- As soon as you place the bowl on the saucepan, start whisking the mixture and keep whisking continuously to stop the eggs from scrambling from the heat. Keep whisking until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 5-8 minutes.
- Once thickened, remove the lemon curd from the heat, add the softened butter, and whisk until it's melted and incorporated into the mixture.
- Cover the lemon curd with a cling film and chill it in the fridge for at least an hour. Make sure that the cling film is touching the surface of the lemon curd to stop a film from forming on top of the curd. Give it a quick whisk before using it to smooth out any lumps.
Biscuit Base
- In a blender, add the digestive biscuits, brown sugar, and lemon zest, and blend until you have a fine mixture. Then, add the melted butter and blend again until you have a wet mixture that holds its shape properly.
- Transfer the biscuit base to the pan and create the base by pushing the mixture to the bottom. Make sure you pack the base as tightly as possible and don’t leave any holes. I recommend using anything with a flat surface, like a measuring cup to push it down. This ensures that the crust does not break apart while cutting. Let the crust chill for 10 minutes.
Cheesecake Layer
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or an electric mixer, add the cream cheese and mix until it's smooth. Then add the sugar and lemon zest and mix on med-high speed until the sugar is fully incorporated and you cannot feel any sugar granules in the mix.
- Add lemon juice, lemon zest, sour cream, and vanilla essence and mix for 2-3 minutes on med-high speed until everything is well combined.
- Add the heavy whipping cream to a separate bowl and whisk until it reaches stiff peaks*.
- Add the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and gently fold it in with a silicone spatula. Make sure you’re taking your time and folding the cream in gently; you don’t want to knock any air off the batter. The whipped cream is what helps give the cheesecake a firm structure, so if you mix it too vigorously, you will end up with a loose cheesecake layer that will not set properly.
- Spread half of the cheesecake batter on top of the biscuit base, then add a few generous teaspoons of the lemon curd, spread it, then top with the remaining cheesecake batter. Add a few more spoonfuls of lemon curd and swirl it into the cheesecake layer. Don't worry if the lemon curd mixes with the cheesecake layer; that's what you want. Chill the batter in the fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Meringue
- Make the meringue only once the cheesecake is set. Prepare a double boiler. Add the egg whites and sugar to the heat-proof bowl off the heat, give it a quick whisk, and place it on top of the saucepan. Keep whisking until the sugar is fully incorporated into the egg whites. Check if it's done by rubbing a little between your fingers and mix until you cannot feel any sugar granules.
- Let the meringue cool down, then whip using an electric or stand mixer with a whisk attachment starting on low speed, then medium speed, then high speed. Whisk until the egg whites reach stiff peaks.
- Top the set cheesecake bar with the meringue, toast it using a blowtorch and serve.
Notes
Tips & Tricks:
- Stiff peaks: This term is used to describe how whipped the whipped cream should be. Stiff peaks refer to fully-whipped cream, where when you pick your whisk up from the cream, it creates stiff, stable peaks.
- Double boiler: When using a double boiler, make sure the bowl does not touch the water and whisk the mixture continuously to avoid the eggs from scrambling.
- This cake can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 2-3 days
- The lemon curd can be stored for up to a week in the fridge in an airtight container.
- The lemon curd can be made 2 days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the fridge.