Cheesecake, as compared to other cakes, is not particularly complicated: cheese, eggs, sugar, cornstarch, salt, vanilla. There are no egg whites to whip, no leavening agents, it’s fairly forgiving in the oven, and even if it doesn’t set completely, it still tastes phenomenal. It takes chocolate, fruit, nuts, and caramel with a je ne sais quoi. It even freezes. People love it.
People who move to Israel sometimes lament the things they’ve had to give up. Not that the global supply chain hasn’t beaten a path to the local stores here in Israel, but the cost for getting things here is still somewhat ludicrous. So either we splurge, we forego, or we adapt.
In Israel, they make something that they call cheesecake. Suffice it to say that it’s a mockery of real cheesecake. And when I say real cheesecake, I mean New York Style Cheesecake. Artery-clogging, sugar-rocketing, cholesterol-heightening, dense, creamy cheesecake.
Fuggetaboutit.
The Cheese
It’s no secret that the secret to cheesecake starts with the cheese. The problem is that good quality New York style cheesecake requires Philadelphia Cream Cheese. And enough Philly cream cheese for a cheesecake recipe requires a home owner’s loan. So the first problem to tackle was how to get dense, creamy cheese with the cheese available in Israel. Fun fact: ‘Philadelphia’ was adopted as the brand name, after the city that was considered at the time to be the home of top quality food; it was always made in New York [source]. Yeah, and we stole their pretzels, too.
At first I started with making my own cheese from milk. Without a souring culture to thicken milk into sour cream, I opted to make an Indian paneer-style cheese. The yield was pitiful. One liter of milk produced less than 250 grams of cheese, and it wasn’t at all creamy. It was good, but not what I was looking for. I blended some whey back in and turned it into ricotta. No loss.
Leben is one of the the most common fresh cheeses on the market in Israel. It’s a soft white cheese, not as dense as sour cream, and a little tangy. It’s also cheap. So I bought 14 containers of 200ml each, 4.5% fat.
I emptied the leben into a cheesecloth bag. A small pillowcase or fine mesh sieve will work as well.
At first I hung the bag over the sink, but it was taking too long. So I opted to press the whey out. From bottom to top, I used a bowl to catch the whey, a fine mesh strainer to hold the bag up out of the whey, the bag with the leben in it, a plate, and my sugar jar to weight it all down. I did it in two batches of 1200ml and 1600ml.
It took a while. The whey leaks out slowly, and if you squeeze the bag, all you’re going to do is force the cheese curds through the mesh. But once you’re all done, you should have 900 grams of thick, creamy cheese.
I spent ₪22.12 at my local makolet on the cheese. That’s the equivalent of ₪80 of Philly.
Welcome to the revolution.
Oh my bob! Silan instead of melted butter! I cannot wait to try that trick! Thank you, and Shavu'ot sameach!
As a founding member of the Lucky Elite Testers Association (LETA), I can personally testify to the amazingness that is this confection. Seriously, the BEST cheesecake I have ever eaten.
Someone should add that to NBN's list of great reasons to live in Neve Daniel: Marc's taste tester!
אפשר להזמין אצלך עוגה? כי גם במתכונים של צעד אחרי צעד אני לא כל כך טובה…
Yes. You're going to be her efor Chag?
Yum! And looks great too! I want to try a piece before running out to buy 2800 g of cheese! Oh, and I'm very happy to join the LETA too!
Come over, if you're not stuffed with biltong, that is…
I never would have thought to add silan to the biscuits! Yes, just about every (American) recipe for cheesecake… calls for the graham crackers. Your crust even looks like the real thing. Thanks for providing us with great ideas to cook/bake our good old favorites while meriting living here!
Being a cheesecake snob (like most Shavuot-observant homemakers) and a newcomer to the LETA, I was a little skeptical. (I know, I know… it's Marc and all… but cheesecake is sacrosanct.) Verdict: It was pretty much "to die for." And the real proof: the Dearly Beloved (who never likes anybody's cheesecake but mine) said that it was nearly perfect — and cheesecake for a third of the price makes it even more delicious! We may just be able to afford our rent payment next Sivan…
that is disgusting, send to me and i will eat it to spare you the trouble! lol
What about The Rebbetzin's Cheesecake?
Ah, Tzadik. This is one of your "rodef shalom" moments, am I right?
If you seriously want me to make you a cheesecake, get in touch with me 991-9443.
Keren where do you live?
Being a cheesecake snob (like most Shavuot-observant homemakers) and a newcomer to the LETA, I was a little skeptical. (I know, I know… it's Marc and all… but cheesecake is sacrosanct.) Verdict: It was pretty much "to die for." And the real proof: the Dearly Beloved (who never likes anybody's cheesecake but mine) said that it was nearly perfect — and cheesecake for a third of the price makes it even more delicious! We may just be able to afford our rent payment next Sivan…
Mm
That last was a typo and got commented when I was trying to delete. Worked as a comment, I guess. The real one: my NY recipe uses a shortbread crust. Much nicer than graham cracker or cookies and you just need flour, butter, sugar, so you're not depending on a US product. Can I email the recipe to you?
You're right about the pastry, but the convention is graham cracker crust. Maybe it's a Jewish thing because short pastry used to be made with lard.
(Between you and me, it isn't really about the crust now, is it? ;-) )
Hey Marc, I tried the "New York style cheesecake" that was in the Gad recipe book they had at the Makolet….did u see it? I think it's pretty similar….will let you know how it came out….and maybe I'll have to have a piece of yours for comparison….if there's any left!
The silan tip was pure genius. It worked beautifully (different cheesecake, same concept). Thank you!
Glad to help!
I made it & it was amazing! Thanks for the recipe.