Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars

Shortbread Crust:
1 cup butter
2 cups flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Cheesecake:
16 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon (about 2 TBSP)
1 pint of fresh blueberries

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Preheat oven to 350

Line a 9x13 baking dish with foil, lightly grease foil. Mix butter, flour and powdered sugar together until crumbly. Press in the bottom of prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until light golden brown. Let cool.

Reduce oven to 325

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese and sour cream. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Add in the sugar and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla, salt, lemon zest and lemon juice. Fold in the blueberries gently with a spatula until evenly incorporated. Pour the mixture over the cooled crust and gently spread into an even layer. Bake for 35 minutes or until just set and the center no longer jiggles when the pan is tapped. Let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before slicing and serving.

I made these for the first time yesterday and, OH MY GOODNESS, they're DELICIOUS! I was looking for a recipe to use up a lemon and some blueberries I had and this was a definite winner. The original recipe (found here on Annie's Eats) called for a graham cracker crust but when I went to make it I discovered that I had no graham crackers and no graham cracker crumbs in the house. That's when I went to plan B and substituted a shortbread crust. It was so good I'll never make these any other way. I'm planning on making them again twice this week, for 2 different potlucks.

No Bake Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake

Lemon Cheesecake Filling:
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
16 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2/3 cup whipping cream

Raspberry Mousse:
3 TBS cold water
1 cup raspberry puree
3 TBS sugar
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
3/4 cup whipping cream, soft peaks

Raspberry Gelee:
3 TBS cold water
1 1/2 cups raspberry puree
6 TBS sugar
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
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I adapted this recipe from the one I found on the Barbara Bakes Blog
Her's looked so unbelievably delicious I just had to give it a try! I'm always up for a delicious new cheesecake recipe and the fact that this was a no bake recipe, which required no eggs, was a double bonus for me. I have a nephew with an egg allergy and the poor kid always gets left out when we have cheesecake. I've been looking for a recipe that he can eat for quite some time now. The crust in the original recipe looked a bit more difficult and time consuming than I was willing to do, and it called for eggs, so I substituted a coconut crust and it was really good! I think an Oreo crust or a Nilla Wafer crust would also work well with this recipe.

Lemon cheesecake filling:
Put the lemon juice in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Let it stand until the gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Microwave the mixture until it is bubbling around the edges and the gelatin dissolves, about 20 seconds. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and salt until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the whipping cream and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the gelatin mixture. Beat until the mixture is smooth and airy, about 3 minutes.
Pour the filling into the prepared crust and smooth the top. Refrigerate the cheesecake until set, about 1 hour.

Raspberry Mousse:
Put the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Let it stand until the gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Microwave the mixture until it is bubbling around the edges and the gelatin dissolves, about 20 seconds. Add the gelatin to the raspberry puree.
Fold the whipped cream into the puree. Pour the mousse on top of the cheesecake layer and let it set in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Raspberry Gelee:
Put the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Let it stand until the gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Microwave the mixture until it is bubbling around the edges and the gelatin dissolves, about 20 seconds. Add the gelatin to the raspberry puree. Pour the gelee on top of the raspberry mousse and let it set several hours in the refrigerator before serving. If you're feeling really fancy you can melt some white chocolate and drizzle it on top once the gelee is set.

I think this dessert turned out really well. If I was really craving cheesecake it would not satisfy my desire but I think it's the perfect summertime dessert. It's very light and delicious!