Polish Cheesecake, sernik, is a classic. You’ll find it in every restaurant, cafe, and coffee shop in Poland.
So just like szarlotka, it surprised me when I realized that I’ve never made a Polish cheesecake! Until now! 🙂 I looked at several recipes in English and in Polish, on the internet and in my collection of Polish cookbooks, and this cake is a compilation of those recipes, and a little bit of winging it.
In my study of sernik, I can say that twaróg, the Polish farmer’s cheese is the only constant, and most recipes call for two pounds or 1 kilogram of twaróg.
I found that this cheese is super easy to make, and that I love the taste and will be making it again. If you’re using my recipe for twaróg, you’ll need a triple batch to make this cheesecake.
One of the first choices you’ll have to make is what kind of crust to use. I made the short-crust pastry found in this recipe on About Food.
I’m sure that it is very traditional and it was tasty, but I don’t know that I’ll use it again. I’m an experienced maker of pie crust and I found it difficult to work with, especially in the size I needed to line a 9 x 13 pan.
I ended up making slabs for the bottom and sides and piecing it together. If I want a pastry crust in the future, I’ll probably try something else.
But in all honesty, I suspect that the next time I make this I’ll do a cookie crumb crust, maybe a digestive crumb crust, with just a wee bit of sugar. It’s a more modern spin on the traditional recipe, but it would be so much quicker and easier.
I realize the dichotomy in making my own cheese and looking for a quick and easy crust; it’s all about the effort in relationship to the benefit. I’m willing to go the extra mile, but only if the difference is noticeable.
As for the body of the cheesecake, it can be plain. It can be flavored with citrus zest and extract or candied citrus peel; it can have raisins and might even include mashed potatoes.
The key differences that I see between sernik and a typical American version of cheesecake is that it has much less sugar. You’ll really taste the cheese, and it uses less other dairy, like milk and sour cream, making a stiffer mixture.
Sernik might be topped with a lovely chocolate ganche or a layer of berries in gelatin, or it may be served au naturel.
I opted for a sauce made with a 12 ounce bag of frozen berries, a couple tablespoons of sugar, and a teaspoon of lemon juice and 1/4 cup of water. I simmered until the berries were breaking down and thickened with two teaspoons of corn starch dissolved in a 1/4 cup of water.
Marianna’s Piglet loves sernik!
I’d love to hear how you personalize your sernik.
Smacznego!
Lois
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Sernik (Polish Cheesecake)
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 mins
- Yield: 12-20 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Polish
Description
A traditional Polish cheesecake, you’ll notice the cheese in this cheesecake.
Ingredients
Crust:
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 5 ounces cold butter
- 2 large egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
Filling:
- 5 ounces butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 6 large eggs, separated
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon Kirsch (optional)
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 pounds twaróg, passed through a sieve or processed in a blender or food processor until smooth
Instructions
Crust
- Combine the 2 cups flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and baking powder
- Cut in the butter with a pastry blender (or use a food processor) until crumbly
- Mix together two egg yolks and 3 tablespoon sour cream, add to dry ingredients, only until combined, (if too stiff add a little water or an egg)
- Grease a 9 x 13 pan
- Roll pastry until large enough to line the pan, bottom and sides
- After fitting the dough to the pan, trim neatly crimp the edge
- You can use left over dough to create a lattice pattern on top of the cheesecake if desired
Filling
- Bring all ingredients for filling to room temp
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Cream together 5 ounces butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy
- Add 6 egg yolks, vanilla, and kirsch (if using), combining until well blended
- Process the cranberries and flour in a food processor or combine and chop with a knife
- Add the chopped cranberries and twaróg
- In a separate bowl, beat the 6 egg whites until stiff
- Stir one cup of egg whites into the cheese mixture to lighten
- Gently fold in remaining egg whites
- Pour filling into crust
- Add lattice decoration (optional)
- Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until center is only slightly jiggly
- Cool completely before serving
Notes
This is a dense cheesecake. I like to serve whipped cream along side to lighten it a bit.
David
This does sound amazing, Lois – the texture looks so different, too. This will be a good winter project for me – making the cheese, then making the cake!
polishhousewife
Good eye, David. Yes, the texture is different too. I’ll be eager to hear how yours turns out.
Bev Litynski
Can you freeze this cheesecake? Thanks
polishhousewife
I haven’t tried freezing them, Bev, but I have read about doing so on a Polish food blog. The author recommends slicing into portions and freezing on a cutting board before wrapping in foil or placing in individual containers. Her preferred method for defrosting is in the fridge for a day, although on the counter seems to work if the spot isn’t too warm. The worry about quick defrosting is that the cake will get watery. The best texture will always be while it’s fresh, but this is an option to keep things from going to waste or to have sernik when you know you won’t have time to bake.
Denise M Wheatley
I took a polish baking class with my son and polish cheesecake was one of the items we made. I did not care for the texture of the farmers cheese but we did not process it to make it smooth. Maybe I will try it again.
★★★★
polishhousewife
That’s great, Denise! Our youngest daughter and I took a baking class when I went to visit her in college. It’s the people you share it with that make food fun.
Mary
Try mixing the farmers cheese with creme chees. That’s what my mom did and it was sweeter
polishhousewife
Sounds good, Mary!
Leokadia
I just finished making my cheesecake for my daughter’s birthday. Her request was for babcia’s cake with my filling. So a little adaptation. I love the twaróg, childhood memories.
★★★★★
polishhousewife
Sto lat to your daughter!
Julie Umek
I’m just about to start baking and realised the list of ingredients states 1 cup sugar, and the instructions 2 cups. I’ll see how I go. 🙂
polishhousewife
Oops, I see what you mean, and I’ll correct. I think I went with one cup in the filling.
Dana Mietus wood
I’m going to attempt to make this cheesecake. My grandmother made it every year, she didn’t have cooking utensils so everything was mixed by hand. I’m hoping it turns out like her cheesecake, it’s so different than any cheesecake I’ve ever had. I don’t believe she made it with a crust, I don’t remember one. She never gave out recipes and when my Mom and Dad tried to duplicate her cheesecake it never tasted the same maybe it was the Polish pharmacy that made the difference. Is it possible she made it with lemon zest?
Dana
I meant polish cheese not polish pharmacy LOL
Wayne Ang
It taste a lot heavier after being in the refrigerator overnight.
After cooling the Sernik is not as heavy as what I expected. And I put the leftovers in the refrigerator I had a piece the next day, it was heavy!
Richard Harms
We grew up eating polish Cheese cake, The cheese cake we get at the market or restaurant, will never compare to the polish cheese cake.
great memories.
★★★★★