Lemon Cheesecake goodness

I've been wanting something sweet this weekend, but didn't feel like eating anything store bought cause it's usually that buttercream stuff, which has lost its charms... So since it was Sunday, and I had some time on my hands, I turned to that Special Cookbook Edition of Canadian Living (mentioned a while back when I promised to make recipes from it).

Well... here it is - a recipe for Lemon Cheesecake Bars (well, mine was just a rectangular "cake"). I'll give you the amounts as the recipe lists them, but I will mention that I didn't have the proper bake ware, so I ended up cutting all of the amounts in half and making a smaller version of this delicious dessert. It turned out light and fluffy, unlike your usual "heavy" cheesecakes, and the hint of lemon added that much needed contrast in taste (kind of reminded me of a lemon meringue taste).

Enjoy!

Ingredients:
BASE: 
* 30 lemon social tea cookies - I used regular social tea cookies (again, remember, I wanted a smaller cake so I used about half of everything) 
* ½ cup of butter, melted

CHEESECAKE LAYER:
* 250 g (8oz) of cream cheese, softened
* ¼ cup of granulated sugar
* 1 egg - so here´s the only thing I left as is

EVERYTHING ELSE:
* 4 eggs * 1¼ cup of granulated sugar
* 2 tbsp of finely grated lemon zest
* ½ cup of lemon juice
* ¼ cup of all-purpose flour
* 1 tsp of baking powder
* 1 tbsp of icing sugar - personally, I think this one´s optional

Directions:

BASE:
1. In a food processor, crush cookies to make about 2 cups of crumbs (I used 15 initially, but then added 5 more).

2. Melt butter and add to the crumbs (still in the processor); pulse until moistened. Press into a 13x9" (about 3.5 L) cake pan (grease it, or line it with parchment paper first).

3. Bake at 325°F (160°C) until firm, about 12 minutes. Let cool on a rack.

CHEESECAKE LAYER:
1. In a bowl, beat cream cheese with sugar until smooth.

2. Beat in egg. Spread over the base (that's been firmed up). Set aside.

EVERYTHING ELSE:
1. In another bowl, beat eggs with sugar until thickened.

2. Beat in lemon zest, lemon juice, flour and baking powder until smooth. Pour this mixture over the cheese layer.

3. Bake on 325°F (160°C) until the edges are set and brown, about 35 minutes (I baked for longer... I initially took it out after about 30 minutes - middle of the bottom pic - but it felt like it needed more baking it, so I put it back for another 10 minutes).

The finished cake tasted awesome!!! My only mistake was using the "loaf" bake ware, which had a ridged bottom that made my cookie crust crumble. But who cares when it tastes sooooo good!

Make this and you won't be sorry! :)))

Bon Appetit,