By Carmel Karni — See the recipe
This delicious cheesecake has been a staple in my family and my requested birthday cake as a teen. It’s made from Greek yogurt, so it is lighter and fluffier than the standard cheesecakes. As a bonus, it packs a lot of protein! The filling has no flour, so you can bake a gluten free version by replacing the graham crackers with a GF cookie.
Notes: The cake is baked in a ten inch springform pan. It can be baked in a smaller pan but it will rise significantly and will need to bake longer. It can also be baked in a standard 10 inch pan, using parchment paper to cover the whole pan. Do not butter or flour the pan.
Use a Greek-style (strained) yogurt with no stabilizers, such as Fage (the ingredients should only be milk, cream, and cultures). While 5% fat works well, a higher fat content will yield a richer cake.
Yogurt Cheesecake
Ingredients: Crust
- 200 grams graham crackers (1 ½ sleeves)
- 50 grams slivered almonds (1/4 cup)
- 8 TB butter (one stick), melted
Instructions: Crust
Heat the oven to 350.
Pulse the crackers and almonds in a food processor until the mixture resembles sand. Pour the melted butter into the food processor and pulse a couple of times until the mixture looks like damp sand. Put the crumb mixture in a 10 inch springform pan (do not butter the pan) and pack it down (use a flat bottomed cup to help you). Set the prepared pan aside while you prepare the filling.
Ingredients: Filling
- 5 large eggs, separated
- 1 ¼ cups sugar, divided
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 200 grams (A generous 3/4 cup) sour cream
- 750 grams greek yogurt, 5% or full fat (3 ¼ cups)
- 50 grams corn starch (6 TBS)
Instructions: Filling
Put the egg whites in a stand mixer bowl and beat on high speed until foamy (about 30 seconds), add half the sugar and beat until the meringue is shiny and holds its peaks, about 3-4 minutes. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
In the same mixer, (no need to clean it) beat the yolks with the rest of the sugar and vanilla on high speed until very light and puffy, about 4 minutes. Slow the mixer down a bit and add the sour cream, then the yogurt and finally the corn starch. Mix until everything looks blended.
Fold the meringue into the yolks and yogurt mixture. Start with about a third of the meringue, mix until no streaks of meringue are visible and then fold in the rest. Only mix until color looks homogenous. Do not over mix.
Pour filling into your prepared pan with base. Bake for 60-70 minutes. The cake will rise a lot. When done, it will look appealingly golden-brown on top and will jiggle only slightly when shaken. Allow the cake to cool for about an hour before eating. The cake will fall when it cools and may crack. This is normal.
Keep leftovers covered (if you have any. This cake disappears fast!) but do not refrigerate
