Gloriously Gluten-free Lemon Bar Cheesecake with Eggland's Best Eggs

Celiac.com 02/01/2021 - Just about everyone loves a good cheesecake. According to common lore, the style of cheesecake currently popular in America came about by an accident of baking attributed to William Lawrence. The style was later made popular in New York by Arnold Reuben in the early 20th Century.

Remember, the eggs you choose make a difference. For both lemon bars, and most baked cheesecakes, eggs are the ingredient that helps the marriage of ingredients become a delicious dessert. Eggs hold it all together and make it more nutritious.

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Eggland's Best eggs are a great choice for this recipe, because they are rich in micronutrients and antioxidants essential to a celiac's diet. Eggland's Best eggs not only taste delicious, they have 6x the Vitamin D, and more than double the Omega-3s, of regular eggs. So when you reach for eggs, reach for Eggland's Best eggs.

Cheesecake can be made with a wide variety of toppings and ingredients. However, most cheesecakes rely heavily on eggs, along with sugar, and some kind of cheese. The type of cheese can also vary, but cheesecakes based on the New York style model usually rely heavily on cream cheese.

Gluten-free cheesecake and lemon bar recipes are consistently among our most popular dessert recipes. This recipe creates a decadent marriage of the two to deliver a glorious gluten-free lemon bar cheesecake. Like many of our favorite cheesecakes, this one is made with a delicious almond meal crust. But this dessert also includes zesty lemon bar filling that is certain to make it a gluten-free classic.

Gluten-free Lemon Bar Cheesecake Recipe

Preparation Time: 30-45 Minutes
Cooking Time: 70-95 Minutes
Servings: 14

Ingredients:

Cheesecake

• 1 pound cream cheese, 2 (8-ounce) blocks, softened
• 3 whole Eggland's Best eggs
• ⅓ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

Lemon Topping

• 4 Eggland's Best eggs
• ¾ cups white sugar
• 1 tablespoon potato starch or gluten-free flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• ½ cup lemon juice

Almond Crust

• 1 cup finely ground almonds
• 1 cup almond meal
• 1 tablespoon confectioner’s sugar
• ½ stick butter, room temperature

Directions:

Almond Crust:
Heat oven to 325F.

In a mixing bowl, blend almond meal, confectioner's sugar, and room temperature butter, until well mixed.

Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 8x8x2 inch metal or pyrex cooking pan with oil. Pour the almond meal mixture into the pan.

Use the bottom of a measuring cup or glass to press the crumbs down into the bottom and 1-inch up the sides of the pan.

Bake crust at 325F for 25-35 minutes, or until it is golden brown.

Remove crust, set aside to cool, and increase oven heat to 350F.

Lemon Topping:
Grate the skins of 2 lemons to make lemon zest.

Whisk together 4 eggs, ¾ cups sugar, 1 tablespoon potato starch or gluten-free flour, baking soda, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon lemon zest in a bowl.

Pour lemon mixture into the prepared crust.

Skim off any bubbles from the surface of the filling.

Cheesecake:
Add 1 lb. cream cheese to a mixing bowl, with ⅓ sugar, 3 Eggland's Best eggs, 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and use an electric hand mixer to mix everything for 1-2 minutes until it is blended evenly into a mixture this is the consistency of pancake batter.

Spoon the mixture into the pan with the crust until it is 1 inch below the top of the pan, as the bars will raise that much during baking. The layers will separate during baking, and the Lemon Topping layer will become the bottom layer, the Almond Crust will become the middle layer, and the Cheesecake rise to the top.

Put the pan into the 350F oven for 45-55 minutes, or until the entire surface rises evenly (especially the center), close to the top of the pan, and the top edges are light brown. Make sure that the cheese cake does not "jiggle" when you tap the side of the pan. 

Remove, set aside, and allow to fully cool.

To Serve:
Garnish with a fine slice of lemon, mint leaves, and your favorite fruit. Serve at room temperature.

To slice the cheesecake, dip a thin, non-serrated knife in hot water, make a cut, then wipe blade dry after each cut.