This low syn unofficial Slimming World vanilla cheesecake is an easy recipe for calorie-conscious guests who love a buttery biscuit base. It's cross between a German style cheesecake and New York made with eggs and low-fat quark, then baked in the oven.
The only problem you may find is sourcing quark, so I've included alternatives if needed, including tips and tricks for no-bake, Gluten Free and vegan diets.
When I first created this non traditional German cheesecake recipe a few years ago, I found three small tubs of vanilla quark calling me in the reduced section.
I was so excited, assuming they'd be "Free" on Slimming World and they inspired me to make this Slimming World cheesecake. Especially as this dairy product is low in fat and high in calcium. But no.
So since then, I've adapted the recipe, but using simple ingredients without vanilla sugar quark and using low fat digestive biscuits for better weight loss. I hope you enjoy it too!
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✔️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Perfect dessert for any occasion
- One of the easiest cheesecake recipes to make
- Satisfies your sweet tooth without feeling guilty
- A versatile recipe that you can customize to your liking
- No messing with beaten egg or well-floured work surface
- Healthier version of a German Käsekuchen recipe that doesn't compromise on taste
🛒 Ingredient Notes
Please see the printable recipe card with exact ingredient quantities and preparation instructions at the bottom of this post.
Lighter digestive biscuits - for a lighter German cheese cake, or if in the United States, try a Graham cracker crust.
Light margarine - melted to bind the biscuit crumbs as opposed to melting cold butter
Eggs - another essential ingredient, stirred into the soft cheese to help it set
Low-fat quark - if you're struggling to find this unique ingredient at your local grocery store in North America, then you can swap for a low fat Greek yoghurt cheesecake or purée cottage cheese
Vanilla extract - for a classic German cheesecake, or vanilla essence
Sweetener - this is a zero calorie stevia for an almost sugar free authentic Geman recipe as opposed to icing sugar
📋 Instructions
First, preheat your oven at 200 degrees.
Then spray a 9-inch clip release cake tin (springform pan), including the sides of the pan with Fry Light.
Then line with baking paper.
Next, blitz the low calorie biscuits in a food processor until a fine crumb with a smooth consistency.
Alternatively, you could place them in a plastic bag and bash them with a rolling pin.
Now transfer the biscuits to a medium bowl and pour in the melted margarine and mix well.
Or use a stand mixer for the this and rest of the recipe.
Now transfer the buttery biscuit crumb to the prepared tin and press down with a spoon or the bottom as a drinking glass until fully covered.
Place dough in the fridge while you work on the top.
For the New York style cheesecake topping, mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl or electric mixer until the quark mixture is smooth.
Note: no need to separate the egg yolks from the egg whites as we're not looking for stiff peaks.
Layer the German-style cheesecake topping on the biscuit base.
Then shake the tin slightly, side to side until the top is smooth and bake in your preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until firm.
Let the cheesecake rest and cool before serving.
Tip: If you're working with a large cake pan and want to spread the biscuits even further, place it on some round baking paper (the same size as the pan's base.
Then add another piece of baking paper on top to create a sandwich, that way you can roll it with a rolling pin to the right shape. Then use the base of the pan as a template and trim any excess off with a knife.
👩🍳 Substitutions
If you like the look of this inspired authentic German recipe, but are on a different diet, here's a few swaps you can make:
- Biscuits - swap for Gluten Free digestive biscuits with GF baking powder and flour if needed. Keto: or use 2 cups of almond flour with ⅓ cup of softened butter before melting and a pinch of salt
- Quark - a good substitution is thick Greek yogurt, farmer's cheese, mix 8 parts ricotta with 1 part sour cream or make your own quark. Vegan: use vegan quark if preferred refer to eggless version below:
- Eggs - for an easy no bake cheesecake version use 2 x 11.5g sachets of powdered gelatine or vege-gel for vegan, or 1 sachet mixed with 1 x 11.5g of flavoured jelly crystals
- Low fat margarine - swap for unsalted butter if not wanting low fat, or plant based for dairy free
- Vanilla extract - for a little bit more expense, you could scrape the seeds from a vanilla pod
⚖️ Variations
Here are a few different ways you can enhance this easy healthy cheesecake recipe:
- Extra healthy - instead of biscuits, crush 8 Weetabix for the base for a whole grain wheat option that is high in fibre
- Indulgence - try a chocolate ganache on top of the end result with chocolate shavings
- Deluxe - try some fresh berries, sour cherries or fruit compote mixed with lemon juice for toppings on the low fat cream cheese. Or mix lemon zest or lemon peel into the quark cheese
- Kid friendly - try some colourful sweet sprinkles to brighten it up or slices of mandarin oranges, but kids love this recipe already
- Festive - you can add some cinnamon or pumpkin spice to the cheesecake filling.
🔪 Equipment
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- Weighing scales
- food processor
- Measuring spoons
- Saucepan
- 9" round loose base cake tin
- Large mixing bowl*
- Parchment paper
*Or use a stand mixer with paddle attachment
❄️ Storage
Storing - we prefer eating these types of cheesecake once cooled. Then it can be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Freezing - cool to room temperature and again, store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.
💡Pro Tips
- If you find the biscuit base is hard to evenly press in the tin, then try sandwiching it between two pieces of baking paper and use a rolling to make make a circle and trim to fit the cake pan
- To prevent your cheesecake from cracking, add a tablespoon of sifted cornstarch to the quark or 2 tablespoon of all purpose flour
- Instead of corn starch, why not try cooking in a water bath (bain marie) and avoids potential cracking
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
Cream: if you want, you could serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream
Fresh fruit: for natural sweetness, enjoy with with some fresh berries such as strawberries and raspberries, or fruit on the side.
Sauces: a very simple touch can be a drizzle of caramel or chocolate sauce on top and cocoa powder to decorate
Nuts: top with chopped nuts or granola on top for some added crunch, or even Ferrero Rochers for chocolate and nut lovers!
❓ FAQ
An authentic German cheesecake recipe is traditionally made with German quark or sour cream, However, some use heavy cream whipped on high speed with a shortcrust pastry base. It's often confused with traditional American cheesecake, but this German style is much healthier.
It all depends on how large a portion your want. So for a quick and easy guide, I've created an estimated "pie chart" graphic below on how you want to cut it.
For the whole cheesecake, it is estimated up to 24 Syns, but you may find a zero-calorie sweetener like I have used in my recipe.
When cut up in to 8, each portion is estimated at 3 syns. Cut in to 6 = 4, or a quarter each = 6 syns each. 
Absolutely - a cheesecake is basically a crispy base with a creamy topping, so you could try other types of biscuits or cookies in the place of a traditional digestive biscuit. Maybe Oreos or bourbon biscuits for a chocolatey taste.
The main difference is that a German traditional recipe uses either quark or sour cream, whereas American cheesecakes usually use soft cream cheese.
➕ Related Recipes
Looking for more healthy recipes like this? Try these:
- Easy Healthy Oaty Unofficial Slimming World Apple Crumble
- 3 Ingredient Cottage Cheese Pancakes
- Slow Cooker Rice Pudding
- Healthy Eton Mess | Low Syn
- Low Carb Strawberry Cupcakes (1 Syn Each)
- Low Syn Chocolate & Apple Frozen Yogurt Bark Recipe
- Unofficial Slimming World Flapjacks - Low Calorie
- Oat Cinnamon Cookies | Unofficial Slimming World Recipe
📖 Recipe
Unofficial Slimming World Quark Cheesecake Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 75 g Lighter digestive biscuits *16.5 syns
- 40 g flora light margarine *6 syns
- 3 eggs
- 750 g quark *to be counted if using sweetened quark
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2.5 tablespoon sweetener *1.5 syns if not using 0 calorie sweetener
Instructions
- Preheat your oven on 200 degrees.
- Butter the base of a 9 inch cake tin or similar and line with baking paper.
- Blend the biscuits to crumbs and place in a mixing bowl.
- Melt the margarine in a saucepan and stir in to the biscuit crumbs until mixed well.
- Transfer the crumbs to the lined cake tin and press down with the back of a spoon. Note if this is too difficult, add a larger sheet of baking paper on top and spread with a rolling pin.
- In another mixing bowl, mix together the eggs and quark, vanilla and sweetener.
- Pour on top of the biscuit crumbs and smooth if needed to make level.
- Place in the oven for 30-40 minutes until set, but if browning on the egdes too soon, cover the top with some tinfoil until the time is up.
- Remove from the oven until cooled and place in the fridge until completely cold and serve.
Disclaimer
*This is an unofficial page and has no affiliation or endorsement from Slimming World. Slimming World's website can be found at https://www.slimmingworld.co.uk/. Any syn values are personal estimates and not verified by Slimming World.
Video
Notes
- If you find the biscuit base is hard to evenly press in the tin, then try sandwiching it between two pieces of baking paper and use a rolling to make make a circle and trim to fit the cake pan
- To prevent your cheesecake from cracking, add a tablespoon of sifted cornstarch to the quark or 2 tablespoon of all purpose flour
- Instead of corn starch, why not try cooking in a water bath (bain marie) and avoids potential cracking
Sarah Evans-Timms
Excellent recipe! I added lemon rind to the Quark, and topped with a raspberry glaze (150g raspberries with juice of half a lemon & 1 tsp arrowroot boiled and simmered till thick). Very happy with the result & will bake again.
Marjana
200 degrees Farenheit or Celsius?
Vikkie Lee
Celcius 🙂
Denise
Thanks for the recipe! 😊👍 ps I halved your recipe & made 3 x in little ramekin dishes instead so didn’t have temptation hanging around all week! Substituted Vanilla for lemon essence & crushed Tesco Nice Biscuits per ramekin (coconut goes with lemon beautifully and incidentally less fat than Light digestives too). Baked for 30 mins at 180 degrees - look & taste scrumptious!
Dawn
If I am using plain quark, how much sweeter and vanilla do I need to add?
Clare Austin
Looks amazing. Wonder if I could add lemon instead of vanilla? Anyone tried it?
Emma
Could I use bourbon biscuits?
Mandy Moss
Hi can you tell me how many sins the New York vanilla cheesecake is please .
Kaz
You haven't said how much vanilla or sweetner to use...
Eloy
What sweetener do you recommend and what quantity?
vikkie
Yes
Sandra
How much vanilla essence and sweetener should I use roughly? I couldn’t find vanilla quark.
Danielle
How much sweetener and valnila essence would i add doing it that way ?
A Norfolk Mummy
OMG I made this today and it was so scrummy!!! Thank you for the recipe, it was a great one to do with my little boy, he loved crushing the biscuits.
vikkie
So glad you enjoyed it x
Boyan Minchev
This New York Style Cheesecake is amazing. It looks very delicious I will definitely try this dessert. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us.
Frankie
Melted lo cal chewy cereal bars for the base and they can be your healthy extra
Glenys Dudley
This recipe is brilliant. I want to try something similar using raspberry quark. Would I be better using eggs and baking as this recipe, or would it be better using gelatine powder?
Heather
With the alternative method what would the recipe be would we still use digestives