Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you go
Serves 10-12
For the cookie crust
- 200 g (7 oz) speculoos cookies (Biscoff)
- 100 g (7 Tbsp) melted butter
For the cheese filling
- 620 g (2½ cups) fromage blanc (or plain Greek yogurt)
- 150 g (5.3 oz) cream cheese, Philadelphia-style (גבינת שמנת)
- 100 g (3.5 oz) vanilla mascarpone cream
- juice (100 ml / ⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp) and zest of 1-2 lemons
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch (or flour) dissolved in 2 Tbsp water
- 4 large eggs
- 170 g (¾ cup + 2 Tbsp) light brown sugar
- a few drops of vanilla extract (optional)
A cheesecake is rarely light, but this one is the result of tweaking and testing several recipes, and everyone who has tasted it loves it. I wanted a cake that was creamy without being too heavy or too sweet. A delicious speculoos crust and a light drizzle of caramel sauce.
It’s really easy to get right if you follow the steps closely, and the baking is what makes all the difference in the texture. I’ve written down all my tips so you get a beautiful result.
Making the New York cheesecake
For the speculoos crust
- Blitz the speculoos cookies into a fine powder, like sand. Add the melted butter.
- Mix and press evenly into the bottom of a pan. You can use the back of a spoon or a glass to press lightly on the surface for a nice smooth crust. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Making the cheese filling
- In a large bowl, mix the fromage blanc with the sugar, lemon juice and zest, then the cream cheese, mascarpone and dissolved cornstarch. Finish by adding the eggs one at a time. Mix just until smooth and homogeneous, but no more.
- Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F), conventional (no fan). Pour about 1 to 2 cm (½ to ¾ inch) of water into the oven’s baking tray so you can set your pan in it; the cake will then bake in a water bath. Careful: if you’re using a springform or loose-bottomed pan, you absolutely must wrap the outside in foil so no water seeps into your cake!!
- Pour the cheese filling over the speculoos crust and bake for 1 hour. The filling should be set, almost firm but still slightly wobbly. It will set completely as it cools and then in the fridge. Turn off the oven and let the cake cool inside for at least 35 minutes.
Serve well chilled, plain or lightly drizzled with caramel sauce, berry coulis or homemade cherries in syrup.
Tips and planning
This cheesecake keeps for 3 days in the fridge, and it’s even better the next day. Once cooled, it freezes well, wrapped airtight (it will keep for 1 to 3 months). Just warm it in the oven for about ten minutes at 200°C (400°F).
The secret to a beautifully white cake is baking it in a water bath on the rack just above the bottom of the oven, in conventional (no fan) mode.
If you don’t have a springform pan and want a clean release, line your pan with parchment paper (I cut out a round for the bottom, then strips for the sides that I stick on with a little melted butter), then once the cake has cooled, put it in the freezer before unmolding (a hair dryer to warm the bottom of the pan works very well).
It’s the low oven temperature, together with the cornstarch, that helps you get a cake without any cracks.
To learn more about dairy product equivalents in Israel, take a look at my article on dairy products in Israel
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If you love cheesecakes, discover the traditional Ashkenazi cheesecake