Like Your Cheesecake Extra-Tangy? Add A Bit Of This Ingredient For The Perfect Punch

Cheesecake is one of the most underappreciated baked goods. This cake — which toes the line of being a pie — is rife with flavor, and there are so many unconventional ingredients you can add to the batter or the crust to give it your own personal spin. From adding some spices and herbs to your pie crust to playing with different dessert sauces, there are a seemingly infinite amount of ways to customize and improve its flavor. One of the biggest ways you can impact the taste and consistency of your bake, though, is experimenting with different types of cheese, namely goat cheese.

Cream cheese is a staple in cheesecake, and you will also find other types of cheesecake made with farmer's cheese (quark) and ricotta. However, that's far from the only type of dairy you can add. For a tangy and tart take on classic cheesecake, try adding crumbled goat cheese to the filling. Goat cheese is a natural pairing for other sweet ingredients used in cheesecake, like honey, and its firm-but-soft consistency will do wonders for the creamy structure of the dessert. 

If you really want the funky goat cheese to be a dominant flavor, you may want to use equal parts cream cheese and goat cheese in your recipe; although if you're after something a bit more approachable and more akin to classic cheesecake, try using even less of it or opting for a less aged variety.

Goat cheese has a naturally funky flavor, which many people describe as being "goaty," though you shouldn't let this discourage you when deciding how to integrate it into your cheesecake recipe. Pairing it with ingredients that balance this unique flavor profile, like honey and lemon, is important. You can also give your dessert a savory spin by adding a bit of dried thyme to the pie crust and swapping out the traditional graham cracker crust for one made with more neutral-tasting (rather than sweet) cookies– like shortbread. Our no-bake apricot goat cheese cheesecake is a great place to start for beginners; plus, it doesn't require a finicky water bath!

Another important consideration when adding goat cheese into your cheesecake recipe is how you plan on integrating it into the filling. The last thing you want is a lumpy cheesecake. To prevent clumps from forming, make sure both the cream cheese and goat cheese are briefly left out at room temperature to soften. You should also cream the batter well in your stand mixer — an invaluable tool for making lump-free cheesecake — and regularly scrape down the sides to ensure that everything is well mixed.