No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake With Limoncello

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No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake With Limoncello

Cheesecake is not my preferred dessert, in fact, it is something I’ll normally take a pass on. I don’t know if it is the heaviness of the dessert or the time it takes to bake it and then cool. I’ve just never been a huge fan.

That said, I’ve discovered the fun that is a no-bake cheesecake. I recently made a pumpkin no-bake cheesecake with a gingersnap crust that was mouth-watering. It was much lighter and fluffier than a baked cheesecake and, honestly, so easy to make that you feel you’re cheating (you’re not).

Following that attempt, I thought it would be fun to try a different flavor and settled on lemon. Why? Because I love lemon and one night, I was having some limoncello and thought to myself, this would be good in a cheesecake. Seriously, that’s how this whole recipe came about.

Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur that offers a serious pucker. It’s traditionally a drink served chilled after dinner, as a palate cleanser and digestive aid. It’s delicious so using it in this cheesecake recipe just made sense, but you don’t need much, a little bit goes a long way. The key to this cheesecake is the lemon flavor from the lemon juice, lemon zest and limoncello.

Some of the ingredients.

Making the Cheesecake

Start by pulsing the Biscoff cookie crumbs and brown sugar in a food processor until combined. Add the melted butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Pour this mixture into a 9-inch springform pan and press the crust into the bottom of the pan as well as around the sides.

Pressing the biscoff cookies mix into the springform pan.

Place the crust into the freezer to set while making the cheesecake filling. Using a stand mixer or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, limoncello and sour cream, and beat until smooth.

In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream and vanilla extract until stiff peaks form. Add the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture in thirds, folding carefully until combined. Continue this process until all the whipped cream is incorporated.

Remove the crust from the freezer and pour the lemon filling into the crust. Using a Spatula Spreader, spread the filling evenly across the entire crust.

Using a Spatula Spreader to spread the filling.

Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. When ready to serve, remove the sides from the springform pan and cut individual slices with the Spatula Spreader.

Slicing the cheesecake with a Spatula Spreader.

Serve with some raspberries and a sprig of mint, and enjoy! If you like lemon, you’ll love this No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake With Limoncello. It’s a light and fluffy alternative to traditional cheesecake, but still so satisfying.

No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake With Limoncello

Print Recipe

Ingredients

For the crust:

  • 3 cups Biscoff crumbs (approximately 45 cookies)
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 stick salted butter, melted

For the lemon cheesecake filling:

  • 3 8-ounce blocks full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • Finely grated zest of 3 lemons
  • 1/4 cup limoncello liqueur
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Garnish with raspberries, additional lemon zest and mint leaves

Directions

Make the crust:

  1. Place the Biscoff cookies and brown sugar into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the cookies are finely ground.
  2. Keeping the processor running, pour in the melted butter and process until the mixture resembles the texture of coarse sand, approximately 1 minute.
  3. Pour the crust mixture into an 9-inch springform pan. Press the crust into the bottom of pan as well as around the sides (approximately 2 inches). The crust should be even throughout. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to firmly pack the crust throughout.
  4. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Make the filling:

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer and big bowl), beat the cream cheese until smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl. Add the powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, limoncello and sour cream. Beat until combined and smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the heavy cream and vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer with a whisk attachment and whip the mixture until stiff peaks form. Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture in thirds, each time folding it gently until completely combined.

Make the cheesecake:

  1. Remove the crust from the freezer.
  2. Pour the filling into the crust, spreading it evenly.
  3. Cover the springform pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for at least 10 hours.
  4. Remove the siding from the springform pan, garnish with raspberries and mint leaves, and serve.

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