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Rich’s Light New York Cheesecake

April 10, 2012 by Mary Anne Rittenhouse 24 Comments

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Mary Anne here. Or should I say, Rich Doscher here! Rich is a registered dietician at the hospital where I work. Together with a physical therapist, the three of us give seminars at local senior centers and churches, instructing folks on keeping one’s joints healthy. For such a young “kid,” Rich has an amazing grasp on eating well and can recite, without hesitation, the absolute best foods to eat if one is looking for an anti-inflammatory, joint-healthy menu. I have to say, the 70+ set love his portion of our seminars, but I think it might have something to do with his boyish good looks and that twinkling, twenty-something smile! Just sayin’, Rich…

Anyway, since I’m the oldster in this joint union, I boss him around as much as possible. When he shared this recipe with me I didn’t ask, but rather I told him I needed his bio. So here’s a bit about the smart lad who figured out how to make cheesecake with half the calories (only 300 per slice) and a quarter of the fat – 10 grams as opposed to 40! Rich, creamy, and deceptively non-decadent, I defy my own mother to say this isn’t just as good as our own family Cheesecake recipe!

From his bio: Rich started in the food-service industry working in a German Butcher shop on Long Island when he was 12 years old. One day, one of the butchers didn’t show up and his boss needed a hand. He showed Rich how to hold the knife and filet the meat…and the rest is history. While in high school, Rich studied culinary arts and restaurant management. Upon graduation he attended Johnson and Wales University where he received an Associate’s degree in Culinary Arts and a Bachelor’s in Culinary Nutrition.

After college, Rich worked at Mario Batali’s restaurant, Babbo, as well as at Chelsea Piers where he was lead banquet chef for Abigail Kirsch Catering. It wasn’t long though before he decided to chase his passion for nutrition – his second love – and go back to school for a dietetic internship with Sodexo.

Rich is a tremendous asset whether he’s creating new menus for our patient population (80% fresh, homemade hospital fare!), instructing Baby-Boomers and beyond on how to keep their joints healthy, or dishing up delicious desserts such as this one. He does his mama proud, I am certain. Cheers, Rich and thanks for this fantastic recipe. We’ll be expecting more from you!

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Rich’s Light New York Cheesecake
Serves 12

Serve with fresh blueberries glazed with melted jam or our Raspberry puree, if desired.

Ingredients:
For the Crust
9 Whole graham crackers, broken into rough pieces and processed in a food processor to fine even crumbs (about 1 ¼ cups) – $1.01
4 Tbsp unsalted butter (1/2 stick), melted – stock
1 Tbsp sugar – stock

For the Filling
1 pound 1% cottage cheese (small curd) – $2.29
1 pound light cream cheese, room temperature ( I used Neufchatel Cheese) – $1.50
1 ½ cups sugar (10 ½ ounces) – stock
1-cup (8 ounces) low fat strained, plain Greek yogurt (only Greek yogurt!) – $0.75
¼ tsp salt – stock
Grated zest from 1 lemon – $0.50
1 TBSP vanilla extract – stock
3 Large eggs, room temperature – stock
Grand Total Assuming a Well-Stocked Pantry: $6.05
Total Per Serving: $o.5o

Directions:
1. Prepare the crust. In a medium bowl, combine the graham crackers crumbs, melted butter and sugar.

2. Transfer the mixture to a 9-inch spring-form pan and press evenly into the pan bottom and about halfway up the sides.

3. Line a bowl with a clean dishtowel or several layers of paper towels or cheesecloth. Spoon the cottage cheese into the bowl and let drain for 30 minutes. At the same time, strain the Greek yogurt through a fine-mesh colander placed over a bowl, also for 30 minutes. Discard the run-off liquid.

4. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees.

5. Process the drained cottage cheese in a food processor until smooth and creamy and no visible lumps remain, about 1 minute, scrapping down the work bowl as needed.

6. Add the softened cream cheese and strained yogurt and continue to process until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

7. Add the sugar, salt, lemon zest and vanilla and continue to process until smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

8. With the processor running, add the eggs one at a time and continue to process until smooth.

9.  Pour the batter into the crust.

10. Bake for 10 minutes. Without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees and continue to bake until set, about 1 ½ hours.

11. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and run a paring knife around the edge of the cake to loosen.

12. Cool the cake at room temperature until barely warm, 2 ½ to 3 hours.

13. Wrap the pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours and preferably overnight.

14. To un-mold the cheesecake, wrap a hot kitchen towel around the pan and let stand for 1 minute. Remove the sides of the pan and blot any excess moisture from the top with a paper towel if the cake “sweats”.

15. Let the cheesecake stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes before slicing. Top with fresh glazed berries or berry puree, if desired.

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Filed Under: Holidays, Recipe Index, Recipes Under $10, Sweets & Treats Tagged With: Afternoon Parties, afternoon tea, Baking, bridal party, budget, cake, dessert, entertaining, family, food, healthy, recipes, Recipes Under $10

About Mary Anne Rittenhouse

The mother in this mother-daughter duo, Mary Anne is a registered nurse who has also worked for over two decades as a professional caterer

Comments

  1. Amanda @ Once Upon a Recipe says

    April 10, 2012 at 11:43 am

    Love this! I actually think I would prefer this lighter-tasting cheesecake to the typical heavy and rich variety. Way to go Rich (and thanks for sharing Mary Anne)!

    Reply
    • feastonthecheap says

      April 10, 2012 at 5:50 pm

      Our sincerest pleasure! It really blew me away…who would think that cottage cheese and yogurt could come close to heavy cream, sour cream, and 3 more eggs!?

      Reply
  2. Agnes Lepore Aliberto says

    April 10, 2012 at 3:11 pm

    One of the best cheese cake recipes EVER ! Also- enjoyed your intro. It made me want to attend your next seminar

    Reply
    • feastonthecheap says

      April 10, 2012 at 5:48 pm

      🙂

      Reply
  3. recipeland says

    April 10, 2012 at 5:23 pm

    Wow, love this cheesecake, looks so decadent but it’s actually a lot lower fat and calories than a slice of regular New York Cheesecake. This is definitely my piece of cake 🙂

    Reply
    • feastonthecheap says

      April 10, 2012 at 5:49 pm

      Truly! I could not believe how good this was. Serious indulgence sans the guilt! Rich is a genius 🙂

      Reply
  4. Rhonda says

    April 11, 2012 at 12:01 am

    There’s nothing about this cheesecake that screams LITE. I am already in love with Rich! It’s hard to believe that he has such amazing training and he works in a hospital…now if he could turn the rest of the hospital food around…

    Reply
  5. Sandra - The Foodie Affair says

    April 11, 2012 at 12:18 am

    Oh, thank you, Mary Anne and Rich! I need to cut a few calories here and there without compromising deliciousness. Looking forward to trying this recipe!

    Reply
  6. Lubna Karim says

    April 11, 2012 at 3:57 am

    Wow…love the sweet and soft texture of this cheese cake….it’s cheesy yum….

    Reply
  7. Mandy - The Complete Cook Book says

    April 11, 2012 at 5:34 am

    This is definitely worth the time to make – what a beautiful result. Well done on getting the recipe from Rich!
    🙂 Mandy

    Reply
  8. Liz says

    April 11, 2012 at 6:24 am

    Gorgeous slices…you’d never guess it was a healthier version! I’ll take a large slice, please 🙂

    Reply
  9. Charlotte Lord @ Weekends So Sweet says

    April 11, 2012 at 10:39 am

    Yum! I will definitely try this one out!

    Reply
  10. Lana @ Never Enough Thyme says

    April 11, 2012 at 11:10 am

    Be still my heart! Cheesecake is one of those things that I had mostly given up because of the high fat content. I thought I was content to indulge in a slice once a year or so, but no more! Now I can have my (cheese)cake and eat it, too.

    Reply
  11. Krista says

    April 11, 2012 at 3:12 pm

    That looks amazing! Rich is my new best friend.

    Reply
  12. Jen @ The Scrumptious Pumpkin says

    April 12, 2012 at 11:33 am

    This is just my kind of recipe. I also make cheesecake with Neufchatel and Greek yogurt and I think it tastes wonderful! 🙂

    Reply
  13. Steve @ the black peppercorn says

    April 12, 2012 at 6:11 pm

    wow – I so love cheesecake! This looks just outstanding!!!

    Reply
  14. Lauren@LittleYellowKitchen says

    April 13, 2012 at 1:11 am

    Um, this looks amazing. I have never attempted cheesecake but now I totallyyyy want to! YUM

    Reply
  15. Jeanette says

    April 13, 2012 at 7:50 am

    I would love to do a dietary internship – teaching people how to cook healthy to help prevent and fight disease is my area of interest. I can’t believe how rich and creamy this cheesecake looks – pinning it right now!

    Reply
  16. Barbara | Creative Culinary says

    April 14, 2012 at 4:50 am

    This looks amazing and I love the idea of ‘lighter’ allowing us the luxury of cheesecake still but with a bit healthier ingredients. Very nice.

    Reply
  17. Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says

    April 16, 2012 at 12:35 am

    I love cheesecake too much that I recently concocted a tofu cheesecake recipe.. So healthy, another reason to have more than a slice 😉

    Reply
  18. Rachel Cooks (formerly Not Rachael Ray) says

    April 16, 2012 at 9:27 am

    This looks so delicious!

    Reply
  19. Erica says

    April 16, 2012 at 3:49 pm

    I’m officially adding you to my google reader 🙂 Y’all have the most amazing recipes!

    Reply
  20. Sara says

    April 22, 2012 at 12:50 am

    Wow!
    What an awesome cheesecake. I was going to make the below version but I think I will attempt your version instead.
    http://www.wascene.com/food-drink/new-york-cheesecake-recipe/
    Many thanks,
    Sara

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Light New York Cheesecake | Baby Nutrition Guide says:
    April 10, 2012 at 12:00 pm

    […] from: Light New York Cheesecake Share and […]

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