Lemon Cheesecake

Bath the visual guide will assist you in this step. Boil a kettlepot of water. You need 1 inch of water in your roasting pan for the water bath so make sure you boil enough. I use an entire kettle of hot water. Place the pan inside of a large roasting pan. Carefully pour the hot water inside of the pan and place in the oven. Or you can place the roasting pan in the oven first then pour the hot water in. Whichever is easier for you.
Timesaving tip If topping with lemon curd which I highly recommend make the curd on the stove as the cheesecake bakes so it has time to cool before using in step 10.
Bake cheesecake for 5570 minutes or until the center is almost set. Note if you notice the cheesecake browning too quickly on top tent it with aluminum foil halfway through baking. When its done the center of the cheesecake will slightly wobble if you gently tap the pan. Turn the oven off and open the oven door slightly. Let the cheesecake sit in the oven in the water bath as it cools down for 1 hour.
Remove from the oven lift out of the water bath then cool uncovered cheesecake completely at room temperature.
Top with lemon curd After cheesecake has cooled completely at room temperature spread about 34 cup of lemon curd around 12 of the curd recipe on top nearing the edge of the cheesecake without spilling over. I use an offset spatula to spread.
Refrigerate the cheesecake for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Use a knife to loosen the chilled cheesecake from the rim of the springform pan then remove the rim. Add more garnishes like whipped cream lemon slices and berries if desired. I used Wilton 1M piping tip for the pictured whipped cream. Using a clean sharp knife cut into slices for serving. For neat slices wipe the knife clean and dip into warm water between each slice.
Cover and store leftover cheesecake in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.