Lviv cheesecake is not just a dessert, it is a symbol of Galicia, its culinary pride and hallmark. This cheesecake is known far beyond Lviv and Ukraine, it is loved for its delicate cheese base, chocolate glaze and unique taste.
The history of the Lviv cheesecake
There are several versions of the origin of the Lviv cheesecake. One of them connects its appearance with the name of the famous Ukrainian culinary expert Daria Tsvek, because it was her recipe for this dessert that became extremely popular. Daria Tsvek’s book, which published the recipe for Lviv cheesecake, was a great success, her recipes were rewritten and passed down from generation to generation.
However, there is an opinion that Lviv cheesecake was prepared long before Daria Tsvek’s recipe became known. There is an assumption that the recipe for this dessert could be transformed from the recipe for cheese Easter, because the technology of preparing these two dishes is very similar. Like the Easter cake, the cheesecake contained many different ingredients: eggs, raisins, candied fruits, butter, sour cream, starch, lemon zest and, of course, fatty and tasty cheese.
It was during the celebration of Easter that the classic recipe for Lviv cheesecake appeared. Housewives, wanting to surprise their guests with something special, began to experiment with the Easter recipe, creating a new dessert that no longer had a ritual meaning. That is why Lviv cheesecake can be baked at any time, regardless of holidays.
Who exactly came up with the idea to pour chocolate glaze over the cheesecake is not known for sure. Perhaps this was influenced by the peculiarity of Lviv as a city of coffee and chocolate. Lviv culinary experts sought to create something special and exquisite, so chocolate, which used to be quite expensive, became a wonderful decoration for a signature Lviv dessert.
Lviv cheesecake recipe
Today there are over thirty different recipes for Lviv cheesecake. This dessert has become so popular that almost every cafe in Lviv offers its own version of cheesecake, adding new and interesting ingredients to it.
We suggest you try to cook the classic recipe for Lviv cheesecake. For this you will need the following ingredients:
- 1 kg of cottage cheese (approximately 9% fat)
- 100 g of butter
- 5 eggs
- 70 g of sugar
- 30 g of sour cream
- 20 g of corn starch
- Zest of one lemon or orange
- Raisins or dried cherries
Preparation:
- The cottage cheese must be rubbed with a blender or mixer until a homogeneous and delicate mass is formed, so that there are no grains.
- Add sugar, melted butter, eggs, sour cream, zest and, at the end, starch to the cheese mass. Mix everything at a low mixer speed.
- After that, add raisins or dried cherries.
- Pour the finished mixture into a mold that is lined with parchment paper.
- Bake the cheesecake for 50-60 minutes at a temperature of 180 degrees.
- Pour the baked and cooled dessert with dark chocolate and sprinkle with coconut, chocolate chips or seasonal berries.
Lviv cheesecake according to this recipe turns out to be tender and fragrant. In addition, the dessert is quite easy to prepare and works the first time.
It is interesting that a similar dessert – cheesecake – is, so to speak, a “descendant” of the cheesecake. When the cheesecake recipe, which was often cooked in Europe, came to America, local culinary experts changed it, adding shortcrust pastry and berry mousse. This is how the well-known cheesecake appeared.
