Lemon Cheesecake Squares

It's official: I'm ready for spring. The weather lately has been taunting me with unnaturally high temperatures, melting snow, and occasional sun shine. It's making it so that I can't bear the thought of one single snowy day until next December. So, to celebrate my summer-in-the-middle-of-winter, we decided to make some spring-y cheesecake. These little cheesecakes are baked in a square pan and cut into bite-sized pieces (ok, ours might have been a little bigger than bite-sized...but they were tasty and we couldn't help it).

Being the middle of winter (oh dreary, dreary winter, why aren't you spring yet?), we didn't exactly have access to the freshest of berries. Instead, we thawed some frozen strawberries, added a pinch of sugar, and made a thin sweet syrup. I can't wait til summer when I can afford to make these with some fresh blackberries.

Lemon Cheesecake Squares
Recipe from Bon Appetit July 2009
Pictures by Caroline

Crust
9 whole graham crackers
5 tablespoons butter

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with tin foil (leaving some extra on the sides). Grease well with butter.
2. Place graham crackers in heavy-duty plastic bag. Using rolling pin or mallet, crush crackers until very fine. Melt butter and add crumbs and toss to coat. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake crust until deep golden, about 12 minutes. Cool crust while preparing filling.

Filling
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
3 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Fresh berries

1. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until smooth. Beat in egg and sour cream, then lemon juice, lemon peel, and vanilla. Spread batter over crust.
2. Bake cheesecake until slightly puffed and set in center, about 30 minutes; cool completely in pan on rack. Chill cheesecake until cold, at least 2 hours. (DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled).
3. Using foil overhang as aid, lift cheesecake from pan. Cut into 16 squares; arrange on platter. Top each square with berries. Chill until ready to serve, up to 3 hours. Serve chilled.