Greek Yogurt Cheesecake Tart

I know, it’s probably pretty obvious by now that I’m going to lean towards dessert options that are, let’s say, full-on, all in, you-only-live-once.  I’m not sure why I thought to try out this recipe one day. 

Likely because it just sounded delicious, and I’m all for delicious.  That, and I probably had some Greek yogurt that needed using up.  That, and sometimes I like to lighten things up.  

My dessert schedule ebbs and flows, can depend on the weather, the season, my mood; it feels like it’s one long continuous story that I’m telling here at home, as dorky as that sounds. 

Baking is love to me and each thing I bake is a story in itself but also told by how I bake it. 

What is in the air?  Wow.  Ok. 

Circling back, not that this treat is not any less-than; that is hardly the case at all.  In fact, I’d go so far to say, or almost say heh that’s the full-on version of me sneaking through, that this lovely tart thoroughly competes with any typical cheesecake any day of the week.

See?  It looks *exactly* like a cheesecake, right?!

Yeah.  For reals.

You can find out actually, with my New York Style Cheesecake secret-to-me-no-longer recipe.  Oh and in scrolling through, there’s oh my, oh, the one my family asks for quite frequently in quite strong need-it-now terms, the Blueberry Cheesecake Pie.

So yeah, several recipes here to test out my theory!  Heh, you’re welcome!

This cheesecake is delicate and light but yet creamy in exactly every way you’d expect a cheesecake to be so you’d seriously never figure it was made with yogurt instead of cream cheese. 

This is all you need for this fabulous tart.  Yep!

I know, you’re seriously doubting me here but seriously, I’m serious!  Hey, if secretly picky Mike enjoyed this, and he really really did, you know it’s a winner. 

Really, this is quite the treat, deceptively simple, and very worthy a fancy dinner with high-brow guests or a quiet night at home.  

Everything works so well together in this recipe from Kristine’s Kitchen Blog, it’s perfectly balanced between a tender, lightly crispy shortbread cookie crust and the luscious Greek yogurt filling….sigh.   Haha.

A mere simple drizzle of honey atop was the perfect finishing touch for me but definitely feel free to slip some fruit on, nuts, whatever tickles your fancy but keep it simple and keep it minimal.  Part of the dazzle in this is its simplicity. 

Too, this recipe is a great way to get cheesecake results without the seeming cheesecake “hassles” or cheesecake “heaviness” but truly, as an aside, cheesecake is not a hassle to make, and if you make the right one, ahem, nudge nudge, ones from The Bake Dept, they’re not heavy.

Ok!  Let’s get to this then, now that I’ve built it up so grandly!

First, make sure all your cold ingredients have come to room temperature meaning set everything out in the counter for about an hour or so before you plan to assemble this.  The butter stays cold though.

Oh but before that, make sure you pick up a Greek yogurt that is as smooth as glass.  Since it’s the focus, and we want this to be grain-, curd-, and clump-free.

Ok, start with the shortbread tart crust.  

You’ll need a tart pan for this, the kind with the removable bottom.*  Jeez, how many times I’ve accidentally pushed the bottom through one of those, I tell ya.  Heh, we’re all only human!  So note, be fully conscious of the removable bottom as you work through this. 

Toss the dry ingredients in a mixer, flip it on, and drop in pieces of the butter ‘til all in. 

This is after the initial mixing of three minutes.

Then seriously, all you do is dump it into your (removable bottom, haha) tart pan and press it gently but tightly into the sides forming about a quarter inch thick border.  Gently but tightly press the rest of the dough into the bottom and look at you, you’ve made a shortbread tart crust!

Just dump from the mixer straight into the tart pan.  It’s much finer-grained after the second mixing.

Gently smush it in there.  It is quite loose and crumbly but don’t over-cram it in there.   My tart pan was sliding the heck everywhere on the baking sheet so I put some shelf liner under it.  Don’t forget to remove the liner before baking!

Sides all done, time for the bottom!

Voila!  Let’s bake this bad boy up!

No need to dock it with a fork or anything, just bake it off and set it on a rack while you whip up the filling.  Oooooh nooooo, I accidentally deleted the baked crust photos!  Ah dammit!  Oh, so sorry.  Those were important to share, ugh!  It looks weird and strange, half-baked, a bit pocked, slightly cracked here and there, and a little bit barely golden.  Ah dammit.  So sorry.  Doh, bad form.

Clean out the mixer bowl and dump in the yogurt and sugar, whirl that around until everything is mixed up then add everything else blending it up until it’s smooth and well mixed.

After blending up the yogurt and sugar, add vanilla and eggs, blend that.  I mean, soooo simple I can barely stand it.

Be sure to scrape the bowl and give a few healthy bowl turns with a rubber spatula* to get everything up, off, and combined.

Looks like melted French vanilla ice cream, doesn’t it?  Yeah, you know it’s gonna be good then.

Pour that luscious filling into your shortbread crust and bake.  Could this be any easier?!

Losing my daylight here, apologies.  Filling all in, let’s hit the oven.

Once it’s baked, let it cool on the counter for an hour or two then pop it in the fridge for four hours.  I left it uncovered as there were no instructions but loosely covering it is fine too I’m sure.

Ha, it looks like the surface of the moon.  Ok, so baked and chilled, it’s not the prettiest but who cares, it’s what it tastes like.

Feel free to top it however you’d like with fruit or what-have-you but as I mentioned, a mere drizzle of honey was stellar.

So close to the moon, look Ma!

In thinking about it, you could probably spread some jam over the baked crust before adding the filling or toss mini chocolate chips into the filling or…..ok, yeah, let me know how you customize it!

Mike:  (not even turning to look at me) This is good.  This tastes exactly like cheesecake.

Me:  (cheering in my head)  Oh yeah?  (fist-pumping in my head)  Oh, very good. (more cheering in my head)

So there ya go, Mike’s (seemingly not but it very much is) ringing endorsement!

Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!  Mwah!

Note:  This content originally appeared on Flaky Bakers.

Greek Yogurt Cheesecake Tart

Yield

8 slices

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

40 Min

Total time

1 Hour

A simple, sublime, delicious, and lightened up cheesecake, without sacrificing anything cheesecake, this showstopper is perfect for your repertoire!

Ingredients

Crust

• 3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour (57 g) or use all-purpose (60 g)
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon (1.5 g) fine sea salt
• 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter cut into cubes (cold; 1 stick, 8 tablespoons)

Cheesecake

• 2 cups (454 g) whole milk Greek yogurt plain, full fat, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (99 g) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon, optional
• honey/fruit/nuts to top for serving, optional

Instructions

Crust

1. Set a 9” removable bottom tart pan on a baking sheet or pan and set the oven to preheat to 350° F (176° C). No greasing is necessary.
2. Add the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour if using, granulated sugar, and salt to the bowl of a mixer. Attach the paddle and switch the mixer to stir/low then add cubes of butter at a time. Mix the ingredients together for 3 minutes after all the butter is in.
3. Switch the mixer to medium/just below medium and blend for 2 minutes. The dough will be grainy, loose, and dry but this is correct.
4. Dump the mixer bowl contents into the tart pan and gently but firmly press the dough into the sides of the pan about 1/4” thick, give or take. Slightly more is fine. Spread the remaining dough evenly around the bottom and press flat and level.
5. Place the sheet with the tart pan on it into the oven and bake for around 15 minutes. The crust will appear half baked, slightly cracked, with just a hint of golden color.
6. Place on a cooling rack, wash out the bowl, then make the filling.

Cheesecake Filling

1. In the mixer bowl, add the yogurt and sugar then stir for a minute or two to mix well.
2. Scrape the bowl and add the remaining ingredients, the eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest if using, increase the mixer speed to low and combine everything until velvety smooth. Turn off the mixer and stir by hand with a spatula to ensure everything is thoroughly combined.
3. Pour the filling into the baked crust, lightly tap the pan once or twice on the counter to level the filling a bit, then bake for 35-40 minutes. The cheesecake will be just set, the edges puffy.
4. Cool on a cooling rack for 1-2 hours then place the tart pan in the refrigerator to cool and set completely for a minimum 4 hours.
5. Top as desired and serve chilled.

Notes:

Adapted from Kristine’s Kitchen Blog.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

361.52

Fat (grams)

17.84

Sat. Fat (grams)

9.29

Carbs (grams)

42.46

Fiber (grams)

2.07

Net carbs

40.39

Sugar (grams)

25.79

Protein (grams)

10.00

Sodium (milligrams)

116.21

Cholesterol (grams)

84.38

Please see the "info" section for nutrition details and information about gram weights.

cheesecake, tart, Greek yogurt

recipes

American

*The tart pan and spatulas are Amazon affiliate links.  Happy baking, thanks!  Please see the "info" tab for more, well, info.