Lemony Skyr Cake + Blueberry Compote
This is a unique recipe using the Icelandic-style yogurt called Skyr. It’s dense and velvety, comparable to a cheesecake, but much lighter and refreshing (Skyr contains nearly, or no fat). Slow baking and cooling in the oven is the secret to the smooth and creamy texture. This lemony treat is extra yummy paired with homemade blueberry compote.
I was inspired to develop the recipe from my time working at Arla -a Danish (and international) dairy, and also large producer of Skyr.
Ingredients
Cookie crust
- 260g (2 1/2 c) ginger-spice cookies or graham crackers
- 40g (1/4 c) flour
- 100g (1/2 c) butter, melted
Filling
- 600g (2 1/2 c -about 22 oz) sour cream or creme fraiche*
- 350g (1 3/4 c) sugar
- 40g (1/4 c) cornstarch
- 2 eggs + 4 egg yolks*
- 2 tbs lemon juice (about 1/2 a lemon)
- Zest from 1 lemon
- 1 kg (32 oz) plain Skyr*
Blueberry compote
- 150g (1 1/2 c) blueberries
- 50g (1/4 c) sugar
- 120ml (1/2 c) water
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 2 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 tsp cold water
- 2 tbs lemon juice
Instructions
For the crust:
- preheat oven to 50° C / 125° F. Grease bottom and sides of 23 cm/9" springform pan with butter. Use some flour to spread over the seam of where the sides and base of the pan meet. This creates a little seal and can help prevent butter from leaking out of any cracks.
- Using a blender or food processor, grind cookies to a fine powder. Mix cookies crumbs together with melted butter and flour to make a dough.
- Using the back of a spoon, press the cookies mixture into the bottom and to the sides of the spring form. The crust should reach close to the top edges of the pan. Place pan in the freezer to let the crust firm up.
For the filling:
- In a large mixing bowl, mix sour cream at lowest speed to soften. While this is mixing, whisk sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl until well combined.
- Add sugar mixture to sour cream a spoonful at a time, still beating at lowest speed. Mixing until sugar crystals are dissolved.
- Add eggs and egg yolks, one at time, waiting until the yellow has disappeared before adding the next. Then add the lemon juice.
- Now comes the interesting part: empty Skyr into a separate, large bowl. Soften gently with spatula, folding together until any lumps are gone. Using a soup ladle, or large cup, add several large spoonfuls of your batter to the Skyr, folding together with a spatula. Keep adding and folding until about half of the batter has been added to the Skyr.
- Start up your mixer again, still at lowest speed, and slowly pour the Skyr mixture back into your batter. Mix until just combined.
- Pour batter into prepare pan. Carefully tap the pan full of batter on counter to pop any bubbles. Place in oven, 2nd to bottom rack, and increase temp to 150° C / 300° F.
- Bake 1 hr 30 min. Once baking time is done, turn off the oven, but don’t open it. Leave the Skyrtaart in the oven to slowly cool -this takes at least 8 hours/overnight. After this, chill in the fridge for an additional 8 hours. (Don't skip this step! I know that's a long time to wait, but it's worth it!).
For the blueberry compote:
- In a small saucepan, combine blueberries, water and sugar. mix carefully so as not to crush the berries.
- Heat at medium heat until bubbling, then stir in vanilla.
- Reduce heat to low, and stir in cornstarch, stirring for about 30 seconds. The sauce should thicken pretty quickly.
- Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. If desired, add more lemon, sugar or water to taste.
- Serve on top of your cake, or on the side. If serving on top, allow compote to cool to room temperature first.
This sauce takes about 10 minutes to make! So easy, and is honestly best made the day you’re planning to serve your Skyr Cake. It’ll thicken significantly overnight and become more like jam. To thin, you can reheat it gently, and if necessary, add more liquid.
Notes
* These ingredients should be at room temperature.
--> This recipe works best using the paddle attachment on your mixer (that's the one shaped like a triangle).
--> For the Dutchies among us- I like to use Bastognekoek for the crust, and cornstarch is the same as Maizena.
--> I usually place the Skyr cake in the oven on top of a sheet of parchment paper. This'll catch any drips. Don't use anything other than parchment paper for this. Anything that conducts heat (a baking tray etc), will cause uneven baking and possible cracking on the surface of your cake.
--> I usually bake this the night before, turn the oven off and let the cheesecake cool in the oven overnight. This makes the waiting a bit easier!
--> Worried about leaving your cake in the oven for 8 hours? As crazy as it sounds, this is perfectly safe. The sugar quantity in this recipe is sufficent to act as a preservative.