If baking the crust, heat oven to 375ºF. See note below for no-bake crust.
For the crust, stir together cookie crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar and butter until completely combined. Press mixture into a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom (or pie plate) and place on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until crust is fragrant and just golden, 10 to 12 minutes; let cool.
For the filling, combine cream cheese, vanilla, lemon juice and ⅔ cup sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
In a separate bowl, whip cream to soft peaks, then gently stir into cream cheese mixture, until completely combined. Transfer filling into cooled crust, loosely cover and chill 3 hours or up to a day.
To serve, remove the tart ring and slide a spatula under tart to release it from the pan base. Transfer tart to a serving platter and scatter berries on top.
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Notes
•Nutrition estimation is for 10 servings.• You don't have to bake the crust at all though! If you choose not to bake the crust, simply press it into the pan and then refrigerate it for about 20 minutes to help solidify it before putting the filling in.•Make this gluten-free! Just swap in gluten-free shortbread cookies or animal crackers for the regular cookie crumbs. More tips:
The cream cheese should be beaten untilvery smooth before adding the cream. Mixing the sugar into the cream cheese helps smooth any cold lumps that might stay.
Don't under-whipthe cream. Whipping the cream aerates it and helps to stabilize the entire cheesecake.
Make sure to give the cheesecake enough time to chill. Letting the filling set in the fridge for at least three hours ensures you can slice it and it will hold the shape.
Chill the cheesecake longer if you make it in a pie dish. The pie dish is deeper than the tart pan so it needs that extra chilling time to get stiff.