Gvina levana is an exceptionally soft and creamy cheese. Using gvina levana for cheesecake ensures a delicate cake. Tangy and slightly sweet, Israeli cheesecake is light and creamy.
For those unable to find this Israeli treasure, Quark cheese is similar in texture and is readily available in most stores.
To avoid cracks in the top of the cake it is best to cover the pan with foil and bake in a water bath, but it will taste amazing either way.
Israeli Cheesecake
Servings
8 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs or cookie crumbs
- ½ cup melted butter
- 5 tablespoons sugar
- 1½ pounds gvina levana white Israeli cheese
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- ½ cup heavy cream
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 whole eggs
- Pinch of kosher or sea salt
Instructions
- Crust:
- Mix crumbs, butter, and sugar together. Reserve half cup of mixture for topping cheesecake. Press remaining crumbs into the bottom of the springform pan. Chill the crust while making the filling.
- Custard:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Either by hand or in a mixer at low speed, combine cheese, sugar, sour cream, heavy cream, lemon zest and juice, vanilla, eggs, and salt. Try not to whisk any air into the custard.
- Pour into chilled crust. Place cheesecake into oven. Bake at 350°F for 40 to 50 minutes or until the center of cake is just a bit jiggly. Sprinkle reserved crumbs on top of cake and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
- Turn off the oven and crack open the door. Allow cheesecake to cool in hot oven for 30 minutes.
- Remove cheesecake and chill for 4 hours or overnight before serving.
I tried making gvina levana using these directions, but it did not work for me. From my research, I find that quark is the same, or almost the same, as gvina levana, so I looked up recipes for quark. I found one that is almost the same as this, except it turns the oven to 150F, then leaves it there overnight. I'll try doing it that way next time.
They used to have them at Trader Joe’s they may still and there may be some at health food stores or you can try a local kosher market.
Who makes Kosher refrigerated crescent rolls?
Hi,
so, is this a pudding? what do you use this buttermilk. after the refrigerator stage, then what?
No it’s not a pudding it’s a fresh cheese that you will use in the cheese cake recipe.
You can also make this same cheese and add different flavourings like green onions, or chives, or za’atar or oregano or whatever you would like, and eat it on crackers, bread etc.
so sorry to respond 7 months later, but I just saw this posting…. thank you for the feedback, happy new year….
Sorry about that, it is 1 cup, I added it in, thanks
*Tamar Genger MA, RD | **Executive Editor *
Kosher Network International | JOYofKOSHER.com [email protected]
904.580.7050 ext 250
Here’s a homemade recipe for Gvina Levana
Posted by : Ruth Heiges
You will need:
1 liter/quart of buttermilk
a glass baking dish with cover
cheesecloth
Yield: 1 liter/quart buttermilk yields 1 to 1-1/2 cups cheese.
1. Pre-heat the oven to 325 F/165 C.
2. Pour the buttermilk into the baking dish. Cover the dish.
3. Place in the oven for 30 minutes.
4. Turn off oven, and do not open for 12 hours.
5. Pour the cheese into the cheesecloth, to drain. This will take 4 to 5
hours, so, in warm weather, it would be best to refrigerate it at this
point. (I would place the cloth with the cheese into a colander, place that
in a larger bowl or pot, and put into the refrigerator that way.)
How much sugar in the batter? you left it out of the ingredients list