1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup vanilla sugar (see note)
3 large egg, separated
8 oz cream cheese, softened
3 tsp lemon juice, fresh
1 lemon rind, finely grated
1/2 cup raisins or currants
1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped *
Directions
* comparable amount of dairy sour cream may be substituted.
Note: Vanilla sugar is made by placing a piece of vanilla bean in a
canister of sugar. Let it remain buried in the sugar several days or
until it perfumes and flavors the sugar. Also lovely to use over
fresh fruit in season.
Combine crumbs, butter and 2 tbsp sugar; press into bottom and sides
of greased 8" springform pan, reserving about 1/4 cup of mixture for
topping. Beat egg yolks well; gradually, beat in 1/4 cup vanilla
sugar, cream cheese, 2 1/2 tbsp lemon juice and lemon rind. Beat egg
whites until stiff but not dry; fold into cream mixture. Stir in
raisins or currants. Pile mixture into crust. Bake in preheated 300
degree oven for 50 minutes or until filling begins to brown on top.
Whip cream, add remaining lemon juice to sour it. Or use sour cream.
Add remaining vanilla sugar to cream. Spoon mixture over top; scatter
remaining crumbs over that. Bake 5 to 10 minutes longer. Chill well
until serving time. Makes one 8" cake.
Servings: 8 servings
Lemon Cheesecake Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Cheesecake; Dessert; Fruit
The History of Recipes
Transcribed cooking instructions as an idea can be observed way back into distant history, in truth as far back into history as the early Egyptians, and quite possibly further than that. Interesting though that maybe, in the main part, these early cook books were just very simple pictorial instructions for preparing meals.
Fascinatingly, the most ancient recipe in existence, according to Professor Solomon Katz, are a few tablets in ancient Sumerian which describe the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making those who drank it feel exhilarated and blissful. Moving our culinary historical trip onwards, there were a couple of interesting cookery books dating from the fourteenth century ; one book published under the title `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary entitled `Curye on Inglish`. Don`t be fooled by the titles though, these books are not about the indian food that appears on menues today, but instead accounts of the types of meals on the tables of the rich people of the time. During the next few hundred years, the upper-class families of the West competed with each other to lay on the most exotic meals, and as a consequence, the best cooks and their collection of recipes became highly prized. Notwithstanding that, it wasn`t until the nineteenth century that fine cookery and recipe publications reached a high level of popularity. Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, devoted their lives to assembling, testing, and recording recipes to allow everyone to enjoy them. By the time we get to the twentieth century, cookery publications were in high demand, mostly due to more people being able to read, more leisure time and disposable income. Like it or not, the introduction of TV brings us cooking programs and the recipe books that accompanied them. Which pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everyone to access thousands of recipes just like those on this site. |
We hope you enjoy this Lemon Cheesecake recipe.
