Sernik

Name: Sernik
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 10 servings
Cuisine: Polish
Ingredients: 2 cup gluten-free graham cracker crumbs; 6 tbsp butter, melted; 2 lb whole milk ricotta cheese; 8 oz cream cheese, softened; 4 large eggs; 1/2 cup sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 0.25 tsp salt; 1 cup sour cream; 1/2 cup golden raisins

Traditional Polish cheesecake with a dense, creamy ricotta filling and crispy graham cracker crust, baked until golden. This iconic dessert is rich, slightly sweet, and often studded with raisins.

80 minMediumServes 10380 cal/serving

PolishDessertOvenVegetarianGluten-Free

Ingredients

2 cup gluten-free graham cracker crumbs
6 tbsp butter, melted
2 lb whole milk ricotta cheese
8 oz cream cheese, softened
4 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
0.25 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup golden raisins

Instructions

1

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan.
2

Mix 2 cup gluten-free graham cracker crumbs with 6 tbsp melted butter until resembles wet sand. Press firmly into the bottom of the pan.
3

In a large bowl, beat 8 oz softened cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
4

Add 2 lb whole milk ricotta cheese and beat until well combined. Stir in 1 cup sour cream.
5

In a separate bowl, whisk together 4 large eggs and 1/2 cup sugar until light and fluffy.
6

Gently fold eggs mixture into ricotta mixture. Add 1 tsp vanilla extract and 0.25 tsp salt.
7

Fold in 1/2 cup golden raisins until evenly distributed.
8

Pour filling over crust, smoothing the top with a spatula.
9

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly when shaken.
10

Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for 30 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight before serving.

Questions

Can I make Sernik dairy-free?

Not cleanly. Here the dairy (6 tbsp butter, melted, 2 lb whole milk ricotta cheese, 8 oz cream cheese, softened, 1 cup sour cream) is the backbone of the dish, and plant-based substitutes change both its texture and its flavor. If you need strictly dairy-free, start from the dairy-free dessert collection instead.

How long does Sernik keep?

Store it airtight: two to three days at room temperature or up to a week refrigerated. It freezes for up to two months; thaw at room temperature.

Can I halve or double Sernik?

Yes. As written it serves 10. Every ingredient in this entry carries precomputed half and double quantities, and the app's batch dial rewrites them inside each step. Doubled, split it across two pans and rotate them halfway; one crowded pan bakes unevenly.

Serve it with

Moroccan Mint Tea drink
Tequila Sunrise drink

Cook this free in the app

Textual Chef is a plain-text cooking reference of 4,481 recipes, free to read and cook from, with no account and no paywall. In the app, this entry scales itself: half, standard, or double batch, every quantity recomputed inside the step that uses it. No ads, no life stories, no photos of somebody else's dinner.

The entries are curated and public-domain sourced, written to a fixed template and checked against it: tested quantities, one closed vocabulary of methods, and precomputed half and double batches on every line. Nothing here is a scraped blog post.

Cook this free in the appNo download needed. It opens in your browser, instantly. The kitchen tools (planner, shopping list, pantry, import) are $5.33 a month billed annually, and the first 30 days are free.