Recipe of the month: Mini lemon cheesecakes

Recipe of the month, with Cooking4 Cookery School founder Ann Murray
ONE of the things I used to love, pre-covid, was if a friend phoned out of the blue and asked if they could drop round.
Because of what I do, I always felt I should be able to offer them a little goodie.
Now I usually have something appropriate in the freezer but if I didn’t, this was my go-to recipe.
Sadly, those spontaneous catch-ups are not happening now, but I know that they will happen again at some point in the hopefully not-too-distant future.
And frankly, anyway, when you do get that urge for a treat, these little zesty lemon cheesecakes go down a storm.
Cheat’s Mini Lemon Cheesecakes
Makes: 8
Ingredients:
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Shop-bought round good-quality shortbread biscuits (I like Bonne Maman) - 8
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Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
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Lemon curd – 3 tbsps
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Cream cheese- 250g tub
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Icing sugar- sifted, 3 tbsps
Here’s what you do:
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Put the biscuits on a board.
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Brush with the lemon juice.
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Use half of the lemon curd to spread over the base of each biscuit.
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Mix any left- over juice and the lemon zest into the cream cheese.
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Mix the icing sugar into the lemon mixture until well blended.
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Place a small plain-edged cutter around the biscuit and fill with the lemon cream cheese. Put a heaped tablespoon onto each biscuit (placing the cutter over each one in turn).
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Share out the mixture between the 8 biscuits. Smooth the top before removing the cutter.
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Chill in the fridge for 20 mins before serving.
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Decorate with seasonal sliced fruits if liked.
Cook’s Tips:
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You can ring the changes by using limes instead of lemons; passion fruit – especially when in season in early spring – works well and looks pretty.