Dessert: Lemon Ginger Cheesecake!

Lemon-Ginger Cheesecake

Calling all ginger lovers! This delicious cheesecake is light and creamy. It serves a crowd and can easily be prepared in advance. The recipe, one that I cut out years ago from Bon Appetit or Gourmet, says it can be refrigerated up to 4 days or frozen up to 2 months, defrosting frozen cake overnight in refrigerator.

Yields 12-20 servings, depending on size of serving...


Ingredients

For the crust:
2 cups finely ground gingersnap cookies (about 9 ounces)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
2 tablespoons peeled and finely grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 teaspoons grated lemon peel


Method

For crust:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter a 10-inch diameter springform pan with 2 3/4 inch high sides. Double wrap the outside of pan with heavy-duty foil.

Blend ground cookies (you can use the processor first to grind the cookies), sugar, and ginger in processor. Add melted butter and process until moist crumbs form. Press mixture onto bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of prepared pan. Bake until crust sets, about 10 minutes. Cool crust. Maintain oven temperature.





The prepared crust


For filling:
Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in sugar, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in sour cream and whipping cream, then crystallized ginger, fresh ginger, lemon juice and lemon peel.

Pour filling into crust. Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Pour enough boiling water into roasting pan to come 1 inch up sides of springform pan. Bake cheesecake until filling is set and golden brown on top (cake will rise slightly above edge of pan), about 1 hour 25 minutes. Turn off oven and prop oven door open. Let cake stand in oven 1 hour (cake will fall slightly).

Remove springform pan from water bath. Remove foil and cool cheesecake completely on rack. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Release sides of springform pan and transfer cheesecake to serving platter. Garnish with flowers and fresh lemon slices, sweetened whipped cream, fresh berries, etc.

P. S. I like crystallized ginger from The Ginger People -- it's fresh and soft and easy to chop and the packaging is very cute!