Margarita Cheesecake
A good margarita cheesecake should resemble your favorite margarita. I love mine with Grand Marnier, a very good 100% agave tequila and fresh lime. I'm not a big fan of triple sec or sweet and sour in my marg - so those ingredients aren't in this recipe! Be sure to plan lots of time for baking, cooling and slicing. This is a soft cheesecake and it will require some patience and care. Cheers!
A good margarita cheesecake should resemble your favorite margarita. I love mine with Grand Marnier, a very good 100% agave tequila and fresh lime. I'm not a big fan of triple sec or sweet and sour in my marg - so those ingredients aren't in this recipe! Be sure to plan lots of time for baking, cooling and slicing. This is a soft cheesecake and it will require some patience and care. Cheers!
- Carbohydrate 0 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 0 g
- Saturated Fat 0 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (0g)
- Sodium 0 mg
- Sugar 0 g
- Trans Fat 0 g
- Calories 0 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Move oven rack to lowest position.
- Completely grease an 8 inch round cake pan with butter including all sides and the rim.
- In a small bowl, combine the lime zest, lime juice, Grand Marnier and tequila and set aside.
- In a standing mixer, beat cream cheese on medium-high until completely smooth. Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl while beating. Add vanilla and sugar and continue beating. Then add eggs (one at a time) .blend until well mixed but don't over do it. Using a wooden spoon, fold in juice mixture.
- Spray the buttered cake pan with some non-stick spray. Pour in the batter. To prevent cracking while baking, you'll want to bake the cake in a hot-water bath. This makes the baking process more gently and it will cook evenly. Place filled cake pan inside a second (and larger) 3 inch deep pan. Pour hot water into the second larger pan until it's about 1 inch full. Place on lowest oven rack and back until the top of the cake is lightly golden brown... approximately 1 to 1.5 hours. The cake will still be soft on the inside.
- Gently lift the cake pan out of the water-filled pan. Allow it to cool for 2.5 - 3 hours on a cake rack. Cover with plastic wrap, place a heavy flat plate on top and gently invert and remove the pan. The bottom of the cheesecake will be showing, add graham crackers to bottom to create crust and fill any holes in the crust with additional graham cracker crumbs. Place another plate on the crumbs, press gently and gently invert again so cake is upright on plate. Leave plastic wrap on and place cake in refrigerator overnight. When you're ready to serve, gently and carefully remove the plastic wrap then place in the freezer for 45 minutes. This will help you more easily cut the soft cheesecake so your slices are clean and elegant.
- Garnish with a thin and twisted lime slice on each piece of cheesecake and add a touch of lime zest sprinkles.
Baking a dessert that relies entirely on structural integrity without a heavy flour-based crust demands specific thermal management. This formulation requires an 8-inch round cake pan rather than a traditional springform vessel, which means you must master an inversion technique to properly finish the bottom crust using graham cracker crumbs. Because heavy spirits and fresh citrus juice add significant moisture to the batter, regulating the ambient humidity inside the oven is critical. Surrounding the cake pan with a secondary larger pan filled with one inch of hot water creates a gentle vapor shield that prevents the outer edges from overcooking before the center stabilizes.
Managing Moisture and Texture
Incorporating alcohol directly into dairy proteins can curdle the mixture if introduced too quickly, making it essential to fold the blended lime juice, Grand Marnier, and tequila gently with a wooden spoon after the eggs are fully integrated. Room temperature cream cheese—brought to 70 degrees Fahrenheit—mixes smoothly on medium-high speed without incorporating excessive air pockets that cause surface fissures during baking. When evaluating readiness, look for a top that turns lightly golden brown while the interior remains remarkably soft after roughly 60 to 90 minutes on the lowest oven rack.
The Chilling and Slicing Process
Allowing the baked dessert to cool undisturbed on a wire rack for nearly three hours halts residual cooking safely. Overnight refrigeration firms the delicate crumb structure before a final 45-minute stint in the freezer assists with clean slicing. Sharp blades glide effortlessly through chilled dairy fats when the temperature hovers just above freezing, producing uniform wedges worthy of a final garnish of twisted lime slices.
