Creamy Lemon Cheesecake

I made this cheesecake when the Jenks family came over for Christmas. My sister in law Melanie made it for the Flyte family Christmas. It is time consuming but certainly worth the work and wait! The recipe calls for a water bath and only cook for 45 minutes but it took about 1 1/2 hours to bake. I used the juice of real lemons too instead of lemon juice from a bottle. This recipe is from Taste of Home Healthy Cooking magazine.

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 Tbsp. butter melted
Filling:
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) reduced fat cream cheese
1 pkg. (8 oz.) fat- free cream cheese
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 Tbsp. grated lemon peel
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Toppings:
1 cup (8 oz.) reduced fat sour cream
4 tsp. plus 1/2 cup sugar, divided
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup water
1 egg yolk, beaten
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. grated lemon peel

1. Place a 9 in. springform pan coated with cooking spray on a double thickness of heavy duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan.
2. In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs and butter. Press onto the bottom of prepared pan. Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 for 6-9 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack.
3. In a large bowl, beat cream cheeses and sugar until smooth. Beat in lemon juice and peel. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combine. Pour over crust. Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan.
4. Bake at 325 for 40-45 minutes (it took me 1 1/2 hours) or until center is almost set. Let stand for 5 minutes. Combine the sour cream, 4 tsp. sugar and vanilla; spread over top of cheesecake. Bake 10 minutes longer. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.
5. In a small heavy saucepan, combine the cornstarch, salt and remaining sugar. Stir in water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat.
6. Stir  a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolk; return all to pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat. Gently stir in the lemon juice, butter and lemon peel. Cool to room temperature without stirring.
7. Spread over cheesecake. Refrigerate overnight. Remove sides of pan.