Greek Yogurt Cheesecake
Published 11/14/2024
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Say hello to the most creamy Greek Yogurt Cheesecake! This healthy cheesecake is made with an easy graham cracker crust and topped with a homemade raspberry swirl.
We Love Greek Yogurt Cheesecake
Is there anything better than a bite of creamy cheesecake? Absolutely not! And that’s exactly why we developed this delicious healthy cheesecake recipe.
How can cheesecake be healthy? Let me tell you! For all of our cheesecake inspired recipes on Fir Foodie Finds like these chocolate chai cheesecake bars and these delicious pumpkin cheesecake bars, we replace part of the cream cheese with GREEK YOGURT.
Did you know that 5 oz. Greek yogurt has 14g protein in it? Greek yogurt adds a delicious tartness to any cheesecake recipe and is a great healthy alternative to cream cheese. We mix the two together and it is a match made in heaven.
what is the best kind of yogurt for this recipe?
We recommend a Greek yogurt that is higher in fat such – 2% – 5% plain Greek yogurt. Your favorite brand of Greek yogurt is Fage.
If you’d like to add even MORE protein — try using Skyr yogurt. This type of yogurt is thicker, creamier, and higher in protein than Greek yogurt. Our favorite is Painterland Sisters Plain. It has 18g of protein per 5 oz.!
Before Making this Healthy Cheesecake:
- Use a stand mixer: We highly recommend using a Kitchen Aid, but any brand will do. A stand mixer is best because it is consistent and your arm won’t get tired.
- Don’t have graham cracker crumbs? To make the crumbs, pulse the graham crackers in the food processor until they are a fine crumb – about 30-45 seconds.
- Make sure your cream cheese is softened: Starting with softened cream cheese will ensure that your filling is creamy with no clumps!
Don’t Skip These Tips!
- Be sure your cream cheese and eggs are room temperature.
- Do not over mix your batter.
- Don’t skip the 1 hour cooling down in the oven.
What You Need for Greek Yogurt Cheesecake
There are 3 elements of this Greek yogurt cheesecake — the crust, the filling and the raspberry sauce. Let’s see what you need:
Crust
- Graham cracker crumbs
- Melted butter
- Vanilla extract
Change Up the Crust
Graham crackers are used for a classic cheesecake crust — although, you can also use Oreos, gingersnaps, etc.
Raspberry Sauce
- Fresh raspberries
- Water
- Honey
- Vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- Cornstarch
Filling
- Full fat cream cheese
- Plain Greek yogurt
- Honey
- Vanilla extract
- Large eggs
simple
spring form pan
Always have your cupboards stocked with a spring form pan for cheesecake making!
How to Make Greek Yogurt Cheesecake
Need not be intimidated by the longer instructions for this Greek yogurt cheesecake recipe! We’ve split up the steps into 3 parts: the crust, the filling and the raspberry topping.
For the Crust
- Prep and preheat: First, preheat the oven to 350ºF and grease a 9-inch springform pan.
- Make Graham Cracker Crumbs: Place the graham crackers into a high-speed food processor and process until graham cracker crumbs are formed. Measure out 3 cups and then place back into the food processor. Add the melted butter and vanilla into the food processor and pulse until a crumble has formed — this will be your cheesecake crust!
- Form Crust: Pour the graham cracker mixture into the springform pan and use a spatula or a measuring cup to form a crust. Try to press the crust down and then up the sides of the pan about ½ inch so the graham cracker crust can hold the cheesecake filling.
- Bake Crust: Bake the graham cracker crust for 5 minutes at 350ºF and then remove and set aside to cool.
For the Raspberry Sauce
- Heat Raspberries: Prepare the raspberry sauce by placing the fresh raspberries, ¼ cup water, and 1 tablespoon of honey into a small saucepan. Stir everything together over medium/high heat and bring to a boil.
- Smash Raspberries: When the water has boiled, turn the heat to low and smash the raspberries down with a wooden spoon creating a jam.
- Add Vanilla: Add the vanilla and pinch of salt to the pot and stir. Then let the mixture simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add Cornstarch: Next, dissolve the cornstarch into the remaining ¼ cup of water so that there are no cornstarch lumps. Add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce pan and mix (the mixture should begin to thicken as you stir).
- Let Simmer: Let the mixture simmer over low heat for another 5 minutes. This will smell absolutely DELICIOUS 😀
- Sieve Sauce: Remove the raspberry sauce from heat and pour the sauce through a fine mesh strainer catching the seeds in the strainer and allowing a smooth raspberry sauce to be caught in a bowl.
- Set Aside: Set the raspberry sauce aside and discard the seeds.
Pro tip: If there is still sauce that isn’t moving through the strainer feel free to pour 1-2 tablespoons of water over the seeds and use a spoon to assist the sauce to move through the strainer.
For the Cheesecake
Prepare Water Bath
Place a roasting pan or baking sheet with sides into the oven and fill with about 1-2 inches of water. The pan will heat and the water will come to temperature while you make the cheesecake filling.
Do cheesecakes need a water bath?
We highly recommend a water bath because it helps prevent cracking.
Fill a roasting plan with 1-inch of water. Wrap the bottom of your spring form pan with aluminum foil so no water can get into the crack of the pan.
Place the spring form pan into the water bath and place the roasting pan in the oven.
Make Cream Cheese Mixture
- Make Cream Cheese Mixture: Prepare the cheesecake filling by placing the softened cream cheese into a stand mixer and mix on medium speed until the cream cheese is completely smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl and then add the Greek yogurt, honey, and vanilla to the cream cheese. Mix on medium/high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. Finally, scrape the sides of the bowl one last time and make sure that all of the ingredients are combined. Feel free to taste test 😀
- Add Eggs: Add one egg at a time to the cream cheese mixture beating over low speed. When each egg has been just incorporated into the mixture you add the next egg. When you add the third egg, turn the mixer off when it is mixed into the batter.
- Wrap Springform Pan: Prepare the cheesecake by first wrapping the springform pan with aluminum foil. Why? You do this step to keep water from leaking into the bottom of your pan when your cheesecake is baking in the water bath in the oven.
- Pour Cheesecake Filling over Crust: Then, pour the cheesecake filling into the springform pan. Pro tip: Shake the pan to be sure the filling is evenly distributed.
- Drizzle & Swirl Raspberry Sauce: Set aside ¼ cup of the raspberry sauce for later and then drizzle the rest of the raspberry sauce over the cheesecake in a checkerboard-like design. Use a toothpick to swirl the cheesecake and sauce together into a fun swirl design. Have fun with this!
How long do you bake Greek yogurt cheesecake?
Place the springform pan into the water bath in the oven and bake for 60 minutes.
How can I tell if it’s done? When the cheesecake is done there will be a slight jiggle to the cheesecake but it won’t be liquid-y.
Once your cheesecake is done baking do these 3 things…
Cool Cheesecake in the Oven
Turn the heat off in your oven and crack the oven door so that the cheesecake can cool slowly with the oven (about 60 minutes). This will ensure you won’t end up with a crack on top of the cheesecake!
Let Set in Fridge
Remove cheesecake from the oven and remove the tin foil from the springform pan., and then place in the fridge to set for at least 1 hour.
Drizzle & Enjoy
Remove the cheesecake from the fridge, take off the sides of the springform pan and serve each slice with a drizzle of the leftover raspberry sauce.
Toppings for Greek Yogurt Cheesecake
We love topping this healthy cheesecake with MORE raspberry drizzle!
Other topping ideas:
- Whipped cream
- Fresh berries
- Chocolate syrup
- Caramel drizzle
How to Store Cheesecake
To store this Greek yogurt cheesecake, cover the it with plastic wrap right in the spring form pan, and place it in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
How to Freeze Cheesecake
Freezing a cheesecake is very simple! If you’d like to freeze your healthy cheesecake for later, let the cheesecake cool completely in a spring-form pan. Wrap the cheesecake (and springform pan) in plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To thaw the cheesecake, remove it from the freezer and let it thaw completely before serving.
Best Healthy Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients
Crust
- 3 cups graham cracker crumbs, ~25-30 full sheets
- 8 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Raspberry Sauce
- 1 pint fresh raspberries
- ½ cup water, separated
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- 2.5 teaspoons cornstarch
Filling
- 24 oz. 3 bricks full fat cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup plain, 2% or 5% Greek yogurt
- ½ cup honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
Instructions
For the Crust
- First, preheat the oven to 350ºF and grease a 9-inch springform pan.
- Place graham crackers into a high-speed food processor and process until graham cracker crumbs are formed. Measure out 3 cups and then place back into the food processor. Add the melted butter and vanilla into the food processor and pulse until a crumble has formed.
- Pour the graham cracker mixture into the springform pan and use a spatula or a measuring cup to form a crust. Try to press the crust down and then up the sides of the pan about ½ inch so the graham cracker crust can hold the filling.
- Bake the graham cracker crust for 5 minutes at 350ºF and then remove and set aside to cool.
For the Raspberry Sauce
- Prepare the raspberry sauce by placing the fresh raspberries, ¼ cup water, and 1 tablespoon of honey into a small saucepan.
- Stir everything together over medium/high heat and bring to a boil.
- When the water has boiled, turn the heat to low and smash the raspberries down with a wooden spoon creating a jam.
- Add the vanilla and pinch of salt to the pot and stir. Let the mixture simmer for 5 minutes.
- Next, dissolve the cornstarch into the remaining ¼ cup of water so that there are no cornstarch lumps.
- Add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce pan and mix. The mixture should begin to thicken.
- Let the mixture simmer over low heat for another 5 minutes.
- Remove the raspberry sauce from heat and pour the sauce through a fine mesh strainer catching the seeds in the strainer and allowing a smooth raspberry sauce to be caught in a bowl. If there is still sauce that isn’t moving through the strainer feel free to pour 1-2 tablespoons of water over the seeds and use a spoon to assist the sauce to move through the strainer.
- Set the raspberry sauce aside and discard the seeds.
For the Cheesecake
- Place a roasting pan or baking sheet with sides into the oven and fill with about 1-2 inches of water. The pan will heat and the water will come to temperature while you make the cheesecake filling.
- Prepare the cheesecake filling by placing the softened cream cheese into a standing mixer and mix on medium speed until the cream cheese is completely smooth.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl and then add the Greek yogurt, honey, and vanilla to the cream cheese.
- Mix on medium/high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Finally, scrape the sides of the bowl one last time and make sure that all of the ingredients are combined.
- Add one egg at a time to the cream cheese mixture beating over low speed.
- When each egg has been just incorporated into the mixture you add the next egg. When you add the third egg, turn the mixer off when it is mixed into the batter. You do not want to over mix!
- Prepare the cheesecake by first wrapping the springform pan with aluminum foil. You do this to keep water from leaking into the bottom of your pan.
- Then, pour the cheesecake filling into the springform pan. Shake the pan to be sure the filling is evenly distributed.
- Set aside ¼ cup of the raspberry sauce for later and then drizzle the rest of the raspberry sauce over the cheesecake in a checkerboard- like design.
- Use a toothpick to swirl the cheesecake and sauce together into a fun swirl design.
- Place the springform pan into the water bath in the oven and bake for 60 minutes.
- When the cheesecake is done there will be a slight jiggle to the cheesecake but it won’t be liquidy.
- Turn the heat off in your oven and crack the oven door so that the cheesecake can cool slowly with the oven (about 60 minutes). This will ensure you won’t end up with a crack on top of the cheesecake.
- Remove cheesecake from the oven and remove the tin foil from the springform pan.
- Place the cheesecake in the fridge to set.
- Remove the cheesecake from the fridge, take off the sides of the springform pan and serve each slice with a drizzle of the leftover raspberry sauce.
Watch It
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This recipe was way too complicated and the portions were wild. Would not recommend making the batter for a store bought crust – I made 2 pies with all the ingredients it called for. And what a messy experience! Probably will never make cheesecake again after this.
I had a couple issues. First, it took longer than 60 minutes to bake so the cheesecake wasn’t so jiggly. Second, the raspberry component didn’t turn out as a jam but more like raspberry juice. At least it tastes good.