Lemon Raspberry Cream Cheesecake

It never fails when I go to the Cheesecake Factory... I always find a new favorite.  This cheesecake starts with a crust made from raspberry soaked ladyfingers, then a layer of creamy lemon cheesecake, and it’s crowning touch is a light lemon mousse. Unbelievably delicious.

Last month I visited my daughter for a week to catch up on all my grandchildren’s cuteness.  I took another daughter with me to spend some time with her sister as well.  We did what mothers & daughters do best.  We played with the kids, enjoyed fresh country air, tried new recipes, and just let the days slip by.  Before we left to come home, we hired a babysitter so we could go shopping and out to lunch - which took an entire day.  It was delicious, in more ways than one.

Since we were celebrating my daughter’s birthday, we all had a different variety of cheesecake.  She tried this one, and when she took her first bite - she said ‘this makes me so happy!’  Of course we all sampled each other’s - but we agreed that hers was the best.  She asked me to find a recipe for it.  

Of course, there isn’t a copycat recipe out there for this one.  I googled it over and over again, and finally found several forums, Q&A sites, etc... where people were asking the same question... “do you have that recipe?”  I found bits and pieces of information, suggestions of where to look, and recipe ideas for the different parts of the cheesecake (such as the crust, filling, mousse, etc)  Nothing though that brought it all together.  

It was a fun experiment, and the results were great.  The crust is more simple than a graham cracker crust.  It makes it easy to move onto a serving plate.  Ladyfingers made it simple, but what to soak them in was a little trickier.  Many people suggested raspberry liqueur - which I preferred not to use.  I found a raspberry flavoring syrup - used for coffees and beverages - and it was just right.  The lemon cheesecake was light and creamy.  Next time I think I’ll make half the amount of the lemon mousse, and double the amount of raspberry-soaked ladyfingers.  

This is a rush of lemon with the sweet summer flavor of raspberries.  It’s a little time-intensive, but the results are worth the effort.  Save it for someone (or someTHING) really special.

You'll find the complete recipe here at:
www.changeabletable.com