For the last few years, I’ve been on a mission to upgrade my recipes with a nutritious twist.
My challenge has been to tweak rich and classic delicacies for extra nourishment, leaving you feeling light yet satisfied. I’ve virtually eliminated dairy, gluten, processed foods and almost all grains from my testing kitchen.
But this year my kids begged me for real, dairy-full, rich and decadent cheesecake. The so-good-you-drop-to-your-knees kind my Mom makes, with a crumbly, buttery crust and just a hint of cinnamon—when you take your first bite, your mouth glides effortlessly into a creamy cheesecake party topped with a tart and sweet raspberry topping.
I have modeled my gluten-free cheesecake on Marlene Sorosky’s favorite cheesecake recipe in The Dessert Lover’s Cookbook. This cookbook is a dessert book classic—almost everything she makes is divine.
So here it is folks. Since I know what’s in it (and now you do too) it’s hard for me to eat much more than a sliver. But for my kids’ sake this year, if I must, I’ll bake my cake and eat it too.
The Best Gluten-Free Cheesecake Recipe
The Best Gluten-Free Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 1/2 cups gluten free cookie crumbs*
- 1 stick plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Filling
- 19 oz cream cheese
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 5 eggs
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Finely grated peel of one lemon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- Pinch salt
Topping
- 2 cups sour cream
- 1/3 cup sugar
- Finely grated peel of one lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Pinch salt
- 1/2 cup raspberry jam**
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 150 C or as low as your oven will set.
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Prepare a 9 by 3 inch springform pan by greasing sides and placing a parchment paper round on the bottom. This makes sliding the cheesecake onto a platter effortless later.
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Process cookies to create crumbs and melt the butter. Mix in a bowl or process .
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Press crust mixture into the bottom of your pan and slightly up the edges. Set aside
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Beat cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, lemon juice, lemon peel, vanilla and salt. Beat until incorporated and creamy.
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Pour cheesy mixture into crust
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Bake on a low heat for about two hours. The outer two inch edges of the cake should bounce when you touch but the center should still feel slightly soft. Shut off oven and let cake cool in the oven. This technique will prevent the top of the cake from cracking!
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Remove from oven and cool. Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk the topping ingredients-sour cream, sugar, lemon peel, vanilla and salt.
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Cover cheesecake with a thin layer of the topping. You may have some leftover.
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Bake cheesecake again for about 8 minutes to set the topping. Remove from oven and cool.
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Refrigerate cheesecake (up to 4 days). To serve, melt jam and pour evenly over cake.
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Transfer cake to a platter and enjoy!
