Whether you visit the exquisite Gustav Klimt painting, The Woman in Gold at the Neue Galerie, in New York City, or not, you must try the Austrian cuisine downstairs at the Cafe Sabarsky, whose schnitzel, goulash and cakes are as finely wrought as any artworks in the building. Quark cheesecake, with a no-bake filling is one of these fine Cafe Sabarsky cakes.
Although I haven’t been to the Cafe Sabarsky since 2007, I remembered the cakes so fondly that I had to purchase Kurt Gutennbrunner’s 2011 book, Neue Cuisine: The Elegant Tastes of Vienna: Recipes from Cafe Sabarsky, Wallse, and Blaue Gans so that I could replicate some of these delicious tortes.
Read more: Quark Cheesecake – Win the County Fair with a Cafe Sabarsky Cake
This year I entered Gutenbrunner’s Quark Cheesecake in the San Miguel Basin’s Annual Dessert Contest and Tasting Party and, to my surprise, I won a reserve champion ribbon and carved spoon for my efforts in the frosted cake category. And if I’d made the cake the day before, perhaps I might’ve done even better, as cakes take an overnight in the refrigerator to marry together to perfection. But let’s not speculate. There were many fine bakers there entering their best cakes, pies, cookies and ice creams. The competition was intense. One woman won four aprons! The best part of the event was chatting with neighbors, meeting newly-born babies and indulging in a few of the best desserts around with our community.
Quark, or topfen, is described as a cross between Greek yogurt and cottage cheese and is known for its smooth texture. If you cannot find topfen or quark cheese, use plain Greek yogurt to make this cake.
The second time I made this cake I used Fromage Blanc starter culture and made my own quark cheese, which is easy to do. You heat milk that is only mildly pasteurized (I prepared 48 ounces of Alexandre vat pasteurized A2 whole milk which is made by Azure Standard), sprinkle the contents of one of the tiny packets over the top of the milk, stir it in, wait 12 to 24 hours covered at 72 degrees F and then strain through cheesecloth between 12 and 24 hours. I chose 12 hours of straining and it came out a bit drier than greek yogurt. It’s a wonderful tasting cheese that is packed with good protein, probiotics from the fermentation, B12 and K2 (if you use full fat milk). Using low-fat or no-fat milk also yields delicious results.
Other FFA cake recipes on this blog include:
- Bisquick’s Velvet Crumb Cake: A recipe for an easy-to-make cake using Bisquick.
- Quick Almond Cake: A gluten-free and protein-rich cake recipe that uses almond flour and can be prepared quickly.
- Sponge Cake (Biscuit de Savoie): A recipe for a light and airy sponge cake that can be enjoyed plain or with various sauce-y additions.
- Mom’s Chocolate Cake with Minute Fudge Icing: A recipe for a classic chocolate cake with a fudge icing.
- Kentucky Sourdough Jam Cake: An article on sourdough baking featuring a recipe for Kentucky Jam Cake.
Quark Cheesecake/Topfentorte
Ingredients
For Sugar Dough
- 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 1 large egg
- Pinch salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
For Genoise
- cooking spray
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tsp unsalted butter, melted
For Mousse
- 4 sheets gelatin
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup quark cheese
For Garnish
- 3/4 cup fruit preserves or jam
- 1 cup fresh berries
Instructions
Make the sugar dough:
- In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter with the confectioners' sugar until creamy, about 3 minutes. Slowly add the off and salt and beat at low speed until creamy. Add the flour and beat just until smooth.
- Remove the dough and pat into a thick square. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.
- Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper, line the sides with a long strip of parchment, and spray lightly with cooking spray. Cut the dough into 4 equal squares. Reserve 3 of the remaining squares for another use.
- Roll the remaining square into an 8 1/2-inch round, and transfer to the prepared pan. Bake the dough until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
Make the genoise:
- Spray a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray and dust lightly with flour.
- In a large bowl, set over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is frothy and very warm, but not hot, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and beat at medium-high speed until the mixture has cooled slightly and doubled in volume, 3 to 4 minutes. Sift the flour with the cornstarch over the batter and fold in. Fold in the butter until just smooth.
- Using an offset spatula, spread the batter in the prepared pan. Transfer to the oven and bake until the genoise is light brown and spongy, about 30 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and let cool completely on a rack. Remove the sides of the springform pan and carefully flip the genoise onto a cutting board.
Meanwhile, make the mousse:
- Soak the gelatin sheets in a bowl of ice water until softened, about 15 minutes. Drain, squeeze out as much water as possible, and put the gelatin in a small bowl.
- In a large bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk the sugar with the egg yolks and lemon juice until tripled in volume and very shiny, about 4 minutes. Add the gelatin sheets and beat until dissolved. Remove the bowl from the heat and let the mixture cool completely.
- Fold the quark into the egg-yolk mixture. Gradually fold in the whipped cream.
- Using a long serrated knife cut the genoise into 2 horizontal layers.
- Spread a thin layer of jam on the sugar dough in the pan. Set the bottom layer of genoise on the dough, cut side up. Pour in the mousse and gently tap the pan on the work surface so that the mixture flows down the sides. Set the second genoise layer on top, cut side down, and gently press it. Freeze overnight
- Release the sides of the pan and remove the parchment paper. Spread a layer of jam on top of the cake. Transfer to a cake plate, decorate with the fresh berries, and serve.
- To serve/cut beautiful slices: dip a smooth, 12-inch knife into very hot water and press straight down through the cake. Clean knife and re-dip into hot water for each slice.
Congrats on winning the award for the cheesecake. So proud of your efforts. Stay healthy BEVC
Thanks, Bev. It was a surprise with all the baking talent we are surrounded by in this town!