Frozen Lemon Cheesecake
This is a great summertime dessert. It is refreshing and very easy to make. No special equipment, other than a blender or food processor. No ice cream maker required. The result is sweet and creamy with just enough lemony tang.
Not too long ago I posted a recipe using cottage cheese to make a frozen dessert. I couldn’t call it ice cream, so I called it a frozen cheesecake. It kind of reminded me of cheesecake. The first was made with cherries and strawberries, but I wanted to try new variations. I have also made it with blackberry jam and another version with chocolate syrup and malted milk powder. Those recipes will be posted soon.
This is my lemon cheesecake version. It is a combination of cottage cheese and lemon curd, with a few other ingredients. Crumbled graham crackers are stirred in before freezing. It may be my favorite variation so far. I used homemade lemon curd, but you could use a jar of store bought. The recipe for the lemon curd is below the cheesecake recipe.
So here is the recipe.
Frozen Lemon Cheesecake
1 (28 oz.) carton of cottage cheese
Sugar to taste, I used about ½ cup
1 recipe lemon curd- recipe follows, or 2 cups store bought lemon curd
2-4 T. lemon juice
1 T. vanilla extract
6-9 graham crackers, crumbled
Combine first 5 ingredients in a food processor or blender until very smooth. Taste to see if you want to add more sugar or lemon juice. Pour into a 2 quart bowl and stir in the crushed crackers. Place mixture in a freezer safe container that has a lid. Affix the lid and freeze. Makes 5-6 cups.
Lemon Curd
1/2 c. lemon juice
zest from one good sized lemon- you should have 2-3 teaspoons
1/2 c. sugar
3 eggs
6 T. unsalted butter- cut into little cubes
In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients. Whisk the mixture until the eggs are well blended. Cook over medium low heat, whisking often, until the mixture thickens. This will take 5-7 minutes. Whisk more often as mixtures warms and starts to thicken. Better to heat over lower heat and take longer than cook over too high a heat. You don’t want the eggs to scramble. Once the mixture is thickened , transfer to a bowl or jar. Cover the surface with a piece of plastic wrap to keep the surface from developing a skin- like any pudding will do. Chill until ready to use. Makes about 2 cups. Will keep in fridge a week or two.
