(Courtesy of Yad Ezra V’Shulamit) Every Jewish holiday comes with its traditional dishes and customs. Hot on the heels of Pesach, a holiday that is nothing short of a labor of love, comes Shavuot. Instead of weeks of cleaning and shopping, followed by long sederim and heavy meat meals, Shavuot is a welcome change for many.
With its light dairy meals and traditional holiday preparation that consists of decorating your home with spring flowers, Shavuot is a fan favorite—especially since it provides a good excuse to indulge in heavenly dairy dishes, especially a traditional cheesecake dessert.
Unlike Pesach’s obligatory matza consumption, cheesecake isn’t Torah mandated. But, just like matza—paradoxically called poor man’s bread—milk products are a pricey grocery item, which many families living in the land of milk and honey simply can’t afford. On the other hand, the creamy deliciousness that is cheesecake goes a long way toward enhancing simchat yom tov.
Simchat yom tov is an obligation Yad Ezra V’Shulamit takes seriously. Year round they provide boxes of food for impoverished families in Israel, and when the holidays come around the need and requests increase significantly, adding about 3,000 food baskets to their regular weekly rounds.
In addition to food staples like fruits, vegetables, flour, sugar and other dried and canned goods, the Yad Ezra V’Shulamit Shavuot food baskets include milk, yogurt, sliced cheese, cottage cheese, cream cheese and more. This enables needy families in Israel to celebrate with the dairy-centric dishes and treats craved when Shavuot comes around. Cheesecake included!
The following cheesy dessert recipe is easy on the wallet and just as easy to make. In fact, these very ingredients can be found in the Shavuot Yad Ezra V’Shulamit food basket, making the fluffy dessert goodness that’s become so central to the holiday accessible to all!
Cheesecake Filling Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups cream cheese
- ¾ cup sour cream
- *Optional: fruit or grated chocolate
- Dessert Crust Ingredients
- 1 package of vanilla cookies or graham crackers, crumbled
- 1 stick of unsalted butter (or margarine), at room temperature
Directions
- 1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- 2. With a fork or mixer, combine cookie crumbs with butter or margarine.
- 3. Grease a 9-inch round pie pan and press the cookie-crumb mixture evenly on the bottom of the pie pan, then set aside.
- 4. Combine the cheesecake filling ingredients in a bowl and pour evenly onto the piecrust.
- 5. Bake for 45 minutes.
- 6. Cool on the counter, then refrigerate to set.
*Optional topping
Step it up and still keep it simple by placing sliced fruit on top or garnishing with grated chocolate.
Providing for needy families in Israel isn’t only about delivering the basics, it’s also acknowledging that everyone deserves happiness and the good things in life. Shavuot is the best time of year to spread the happiness of sweet and creamy cheesy goodness for dinner, and lunch… and breakfast!
