This baked lemon meringue cheesecake is rich and spring like. It has a buttery graham cracker crust, a lemon cheesecake, a tart lemon curd and a fluffy toasted meringue. Every bite is amazing!
Mix the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter together in a small bowl. Press the crust mixture evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes and then let it cool on a wire rack
Pour the cheesecake into the springform pan that is wrapped with aluminum foil. Wrap a crockpot liner around the springform pan and tie it. Place the springform pan into a larger pan and fill the larger pan with water until it is halfway up the springform pan. Bake for 1 hour, 15 minutes at 300°F.
Place 8 egg yolks into a medium sized bowl and set it aside. Add lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar to a medium saucepan, and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
Pour the boiled mixture into the eggs, whisking the eggs quickly to temper them. Pour everything back into the saucepan and cook until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Pour the curd into a fresh bowl and mix in the cold butter. Place plastic wrap over the surface of the curd.
Combine the sugar, cream of tartar, vanilla and egg whites into a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water. Whisk until the sugar has dissolved and reaches a temperature between 120°F - 140°F on a thermometer.
Spoon the meringue on top of the lemon curd. I piled it on in spoonfuls and then used the back of a spoon to make some peaks all over. Use a kitchen torch to lightly brown the meringue.