German Cheese Cake (Käsekuchen)
A classic German cheesecake with a buttery crust and creamy quark filling, baked until golden. Rich, tangy, and deeply satisfying—authentic café-style comfort.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Servings
- 8
- Calories
- 385
- Protein
- 11g
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup butter, cold, divided
- 1 lb quark or Greek yogurt
- 3 whole eggs, room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 pinch salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- 1
Set the oven to 350°F and wait until the indicator light or beep confirms it has finished heating, about 10 minutes.
- 2
Cut 4 tablespoons of the cold butter into small cubes about the size of peas, then add to the flour in a medium mixing bowl.
- 3
Press the flour and butter together with your fingertips, rubbing them until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs with no large butter chunks visible.
- 4
Press the crumbly dough firmly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan, covering the base evenly, then set aside.
- 5
Crack the 3 eggs into a large mixing bowl, then whisk them with a fork or whisk until the yolks and whites are fully blended and look uniform.
- 6
Add the 0.75 cup sugar to the whisked eggs and whisk vigorously for 2 minutes until the mixture becomes pale and foamy.
- 7
Scoop the quark into the egg mixture and stir gently with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until no white streaks remain and the filling looks creamy and uniform.
- 8
Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, watching until it turns golden and smells nutty, about 2 minutes.
- 9
Drizzle the melted butter into the quark mixture and fold it in gently using a rubber spatula, lifting from the bottom and turning the bowl a quarter turn with each fold, until no streaks remain.
- 10
Pour the filling into the springform pan directly over the crust, spreading it level with a rubber spatula so the surface is smooth and even.
- 11
Place the springform pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake until the top turns light golden and the center jiggles very slightly when you gently shake the pan, about 35 minutes.
- 12
Remove the pan from the oven using oven mitts and set it on a cooling rack or trivet to cool completely, at least 1 hour, before opening the springform clasp and slicing.
Tools you’ll need
- 9-inch springform pan
- medium mixing bowl
- large mixing bowl
- small saucepan
- fork or whisk
- wooden spoon
- rubber spatula
- oven mitts
- cooling rack or trivet
Cook smarter
Get matched recipes for what’s in your fridge
CookSnap is a free iOS app that finds real recipes from the ingredients you already have. No more grocery-list aspirations.
