German Cheesecake With Greek Yogurt (Käsekuchen)

Another winner, this German cheesecake (Käsekuchen) with Greek yogurt is creamy, not overly sweet, and so good with a great hint of vanilla. Made up of short crust pastry and filled with cheesecake filling that’s flavored with vanilla seeds from vanilla bean and thickened with cornstarch (cornflour).

German cheesecakes are normally made with quark. Quark is a basically German style fresh cheese. But this cheesecake is made with Greek yogurt, just like this one here and here, since not everyone has access to quark.

But my German family in law enjoyed it and couldn’t even tell if made it with or without quark. Since it tasted as authentic as the cheesecake that’s made with quark. Throughout the pictured recipe steps below, I’d like to show you how to make this easy-to-follow Käsekuchen that’s crack free.

What you’ll need to make Käsekuchen recipe

For the cheesecake crust

• 200 g (7 oz/ 1 2/3 cup) plain flour/ all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
• 65 g (2.3 oz) butter
• 65 g (2.3 oz/ 1/3 cup) sugar
• 2 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

For the cheesecake filling with Greek yogurt

• 200 g (8.8 oz/ 1 ⅛ cups) cream cheese
• 200 g (8.8 oz) sour cream
• 400 g (14.1 oz) Greek yogurt
• 40 g (1.4 oz/ ⅓ cup) cornstarch (cornflour)
• 125 g (4.4 oz/ ½ cup + 2 tablespoons) sugar
• 150 g (5.3 oz/ ½ cup + 2 tablespoons) butter, soft
• 125 ml (½ cup + 1 teaspoon) whipping cream
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 vanilla bean

!! All the cheesecake filling ingredients MUST be at room temperature!!

How to make German cheesecake without quark

Make the cake base

Start off by lining a 26 – cm (10.2 inches) spring form cake tin with a parchment paper at the bottom and grease the sides with butter. In a bowl combine egg whites, sugar, butter, flour, and baking powder. Using your hands mix all the ingredients together to form a firm dough.

Crumble the pastry into the prepared cake tin. Using your hands dusted with flour, press the cake base until the bottom of the cake tin is covered. Make the dough a bit high on the sides as well and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 180 ° C (356°F), with both top and bottom heat.

Make the cheesecake filling with Greek yogurt and bake

Using the tip of the knife split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the vanilla seeds and mix the scraped-out seeds with sugar very well.

Next add butter, vanilla sugar that you’ve just made, and egg yolks to an empty bowl and beat until creamy.

Add cornstarch, yogurt, cream cheese, cream and sour cream and whisk to a smooth cream.

Pour the filling into the cake base and for 60 minutes.

After half the baking time, take a sharp and long knife and make a small vertical incision at into the cake (at the center) (See photo). This prevents the cheesecake from cracking.

Then continue baking until done. Let the cheesecake cool completely and enjoy.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

German Cheesecake With Greek Yogurt (Käsekuchen)

Another winner, this German cheesecake (Käsekuchen) with Greek yogurt is creamy, not overly sweet, and so good with a great hint of vanilla. Made up of short crust pastry and filled with cheesecake filling that’s flavored with vanilla seeds from vanilla bean and thickened with cornstarch (corn flour).

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Total Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course: afternoon coffee, afternoon tea, Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: European, German

Keyword: baked cheesecake, cheesecake with yogurt, cheesecake without quark, German style cheesecake recipe, Käsekuchen recipe, Vanilla cheesecake

Servings: 12 Servings

Author: Ester | esterkocht.com

Equipment

• 26 cm(10 inch) spring-form (or cake tin with removable base)

Ingredients

For the cake base

• 200 g (7 oz/ 1 2/3 cup) plain flour/ all purpose flour plus extra for dusting
• 65 g (2.3 oz) butter room temperature
• 65 g (2.3 oz/ 1/3 cup) sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 egg whites

For the cheesecake filling

• 200 g (8.8 oz/ 1 ⅛ cups) cream cheese room temperature
• 200 g (8.8 oz/) sour cream room temperature
• 400 g (14.1 oz) Greek yogurt room temperature
• 40 g (1.4 oz/ ⅓ cup) cornstarch (cornflour)
• 125 g (4.4 oz/ ½ cup + 2 tablespoons) sugar
• 150 g (5.3 oz/ ½ cup + 2 tablespoons) butter soft
• 125 (4.2 fl.oz/ ½ cup + 1 teaspoon) whipping cream room temperature
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 vanilla bean

Instructions

• Start off by lining a 26 – cm (10.2 inches) spring form cake tin with a parchment paper at the bottom and grease the sides with butter.
• In a bowl combine egg whites, sugar, butter, flour, and baking powder. Using your hands mix all the ingredients together to form a firm dough. Crumble the pastry into the prepared cake tin.
• Using your hands dusted with flour, press the cake base until the bottom of the cake tin is covered. Make the dough a bit high on the sides as well and set aside. Preheat the oven to 180 ° C (356°F), with both top and bottom heat.
• Using the tip of the knife split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the vanilla seeds and mix the scraped-out seeds with sugar very well. Add butter, vanilla sugar that you’ve just made, and egg yolks to an empty bowl and beat until creamy. Add cornstarch, yogurt, cream cheese, cream and sour cream and whisk to a smooth cream.
• Pour the filling into the cake base and for 60 minutes. After half the baking time, take a sharp and long knife and make a small vertical incision at into the cake (at the center). This prevents the cheesecake from cracking. Then continue baking until done. Let the cheesecake cool completely and enjoy.

Notes

• All cheesecake filling ingredients MUST be at room temperature!!

Did you make this German cheesecake recipe? I’d love to hear from you! Simply write a review and add rating to it.