Raspberry Lemonade Cheesecake

A close-up of a slice of cheesecake on a cake stand, with visible swirls of raspberry and lemon.

Raspberry Lemonade Cheesecake

Raspberry Cheesecake has a crisp crust full of creamy raspberry cheesecake swirled with bright, tangy lemon cheesecake. Top this delicious dessert with raspberry sauce and raspberry whipped cream. This cheesecake tastes like a refreshing glass of raspberry lemonade!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Raspberry Cheesecake, Lemon Cheesecake, Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 1 45

Servings to 16 slices

Calories 672kcal

Author Stephanie Simmons

Ingredients

For the Raspberry Sauce

3 and 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen If using frozen, do not thaw first
1 tbsp water
2 tsp corn starch
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon zest

For the Crust

1 and 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 138 grams
7 tbsp salted butter, melted
2 tbsp granulated sugar

For the Cheesecake

32 ounces full fat cream cheese blocks, at room temperature
1 and 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large lemon, zested
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup raspberry sauce Use homemade or store bought raspberry preserves, strained
3/4 cup freeze dried raspberries, pulsed to a powder in the food processor measure while whole

For the Raspberry Whipped Cream

1/2 cup heavy cream, cold
2 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp raspberry sauce or preserves
fresh raspberries, for topping - optional
lemon slices, for topping - optional

Instructions

Make Raspberry Sauce: Stir together cornstarch and water in a small bowl to fully dissolve corn starch. Add this mixture and all the remaining ingredients except the vanilla and lemon juice to a medium pot over medium heat. Cook for 2 minutes over medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, and mashing lightly to help the berries release their juices. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook at a low boil for 3 minutes. The sauce should thicken during this time, but it shouldn't be globby. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and lemon zest. Pour into a shallow bowl and pop in the fridge to cool quickly. Taste and add 1-3 tbsp sugar if too tart for you. Make Ahead: This can be made up to 3 days ahead. Yield is 1 and 1/3 cup, but you will lose about 2-3 tbsp of volume after straining.
Note: You can skip this step and use a jar of raspberry preserves, if desired. I recommend straining it once to remove most of the seeds if they bother you.
Make the Crust: Heat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9 inch springform pan with nonstick spray and make sure the bottom is securely fastened. Stir together crust ingredients and press into prepared pan and up the sides a bit (see photos above). Bake this for 10 minutes. Set aside. Keep the oven on at 350. Fill a large pot with water and set it on your stove, and get out a large roasting pan – you'll need this for your water bath later.
Make the Cheesecake Filling: Remember that your cold ingredients need to come to room temp before you start. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened cream cheese until nice and creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar and mix until just incorporated. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on medium speed after each until just incorporated. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure no chunks of unmixed batter are hiding.
Add the vanilla and sour cream, and mix until just incorporated. Remove 2 & 1/2 cups of batter (560 grams) and add to a medium bowl. Fold in 2 tbsp of lemon juice & the zest with a silicone spatula. Fold the raspberry preserves & freeze dried raspberry powder into the larger bowl with the plain batter. Alternate adding dollops of the two batters to the baked & cooled crust until it's all been used. Use a butter knife to swirl the batters together for a pretty design.
Prepare the Water Bath + Bake: Bring the large pot of water to a boil. Set your springform pan on a rack positioned in the center of the oven, and place the roasting pan on the rack below, or wrap the base of the cheesecake pan in foil and place it inside a 10-inch cake pan inside the roasting dish. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan, so it comes halfway up the sides of the pan (the cake pan). Both of these methods ensure no leaks.Bake for 1 hour 40 minutes to 1 hour 51 minutes. When done, the cheesecake will have only a slight wobble in the center, and a knife inserted into the edge will come out clean, and will have a bit of thick batter when inserted into the center. Turn off the oven and crack the oven door open. Let the cheesecake cool in the oven for 1 hour before removing it.
Cheesecake Cooling: Once the hour is up, remove the pan from the oven. It should be cool enough to handle. Remove the foil and set the springform pan on a wire rack. Let cool completely at room temp, then cover with foil and refrigerate at least 6 hours or up to 1 day before removing from the pan and serving.
Make the Whipped Cream: Add the whipped cream ingredients to a medium bowl and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. If you want to pipe this, you'll need to stabilize it – see note below.
Serve & Store: Pour raspberry topping over the top of the cheesecake and top with the whipped cream, fresh raspberries, and lemon slices if desired. Slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Notes

Water Bath: The springform pan doesn't have to go inside a 10-inch cake pan, any oven-safe larger baking dish will work as long as the springform pan fits inside of it and it fits inside the roasting pan.

Stabilizing Whipped Cream: To do this, add 1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin (this comes in a little box, in the baking aisle at the grocery store) and 2 tsp cold water to a small bowl and let dissolve. Meanwhile, start mixing your whipped cream. Once it just starts to thicken, but before peaks form, stop mixing. Microwave the gelatin for 5 seconds to liquify it, then slowly stream it into the bowl while you beat the mixture on low speed. Once added, continue mixing on medium high speed until stiff peaks form. Now, you can pipe it!

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