Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

Maida Heatter

• Ready In: 1 hr 38 mins
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• Crumb Crust

• 1 1⁄4 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1  tablespoon sugar
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1  pinch allspice
• 3  ounces unsalted butter, melted (3/4 stick)

• Filling

• 1  lemon, rind of
• 3  tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3⁄4 cup cream-style cottage cheese or 3⁄4 cup ricotta cheese
• 8  ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 3⁄4 cup sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2  eggs

• Topping

• 1  cup  whipping cream
• 1  cup sour cream
• 2  tablespoons sugar
•  chopped green pistachio nut, for garnish

Directions

1. Crust: mix together the crust ingredients; turn the mixture into a 9-inch pie plate; using your fingertips, distribute the mixture evenly and loosely over the sides first and then the bottom.
2. Then press the crust firmly and evenly on the sides, pushing it up from the bottom a bit to form a rim slightly (barely) higher than the edge of the pie plate.
3. After pressing the sides and top edge firmly, press the remaining crumbs evenly and firmly over the bottom; bake for 8 minutes at 375°, then cool to room temperature.
4. Filling: place oven rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 350°.
5. In a small bowl, mix rind and juice; set aside.
6. In a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade, process cottage cheese or ricotta cheese until it is as smooth as honey (it takes a full minute in a processor).
7. In the small bowl of an electric mixer beat the cream cheese until it is perfectly smooth.
8. Add the smooth cottage cheese and beat to mix.
9. Then add the sugar, vanilla, and the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula and beating until smooth after each addition.
10. When the filling is perfectly smooth, remove the bowl from the mixer; stir in the lemon rind and juice, and pour filling into prepared crust.
11. Bake for 30 minutes; remove from oven and cool completely.
12. Topping: in a chilled bowl with chilled beaters, whip the whipping cream until it holds a firm shape when the beaters are raised.
13. In another bowl, stir the sour cream until it is soft and smooth; stir in the sugar.
14. Then gently fold in the sour cream and whipped cream together.
15. Just pile the topping loosely on top of the pie, letting some of the filling show around the edges.
16. Refrigerate for at least a few hours.