lemon cheesecake, anyone?

I decided to skip making another sweet dessert this week and opted for a more tangy alternative. I didn't really want to spend all that time keeping check of the oven in case my creation gets burned either. Hmm... time for a little no-bake cheesecake today.

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Recipe from: All Recipes website
Original recipe yield: 1 - 10 inch round pan or 9x13 inch pan.
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 3 Hours 20 Minutes
Servings: 24

Ingredients:
3 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
1 (3 ounce) package lemon flavoured gelatine mix
1 cup boiling water
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, butter and confectioners' sugar. Mix well and press into the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Turn off oven.

Dissolve lemon gelatine in boiling water. Let cool until thick, but not set. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, white sugar and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whip evaporated milk until thick and stiff peaks form. Pour in lemon gelatine and keep mixing until well blended. Fold in cream cheese mixture.

Pour filling into crust. Chill in refrigerator for at least 3 hours before serving.

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Wanna try making it? Read this first:

• Graham crackers are similar to our local cream crackers. Any brand will do.
• You can also use digestive biscuits instead to give it a more cookie-ish base instead of a crunchy one.
• Whipping evaporated milk for me was a 50-50 chance of success (read the reviews for the recipe). Mine turned out to be the bad 50%. It didn't peak after 10 to 15 minutes of whipping, so I quickly switched to whipping cream instead (thank goodness for a leftover pack from my previous food venture!).
• Make sure you chill the cream / evaporated milk (should you still opt for it) before whipping, along with your bowl and beaters. Helps peak faster.

I didn't beat it long enough for it to peak well, so my cheesecake wasn't a light, fluffy texture as it's supposed to be. The gelatine helped enough to set it, but I think you'd need more than 3 oz (maybe use 4 to 5 oz) to hold the cheesecake together better. Looked quite flat if you ask me, ha-ha!

Either way, it still tasted really yummy!