TOC: Cheesecake is a cheesy Greek dessert made by mixing soft and cream cheeses like Ricotta and mascarpone with eggs and sugar. If you love sweets, you might crave cheesecake during pregnancy often. But before taking a piece of that white delight on your plate, ascertaining its safety is vital. Cheesecakes have several varieties, some of which are made with unpasteurized dairy. Eating unpasteurized dairy and its products can increase the risk of foodborne illnesses such as food poisoning. Read on as we tell you more about the safety of cheesecake for pregnant women and the types of cheesecake you can eat during pregnancy.
Is It Safe To Eat Cheesecake When Pregnant?
It is safe to eat cheesecake if it is not made of unpasteurized cheese, and if it is baked so that it does not contain raw eggs. Pregnant women can also eat basic cream cheesecakes. You should avoid cheesecakes made of unpasteurized cheese because unpasteurized products contain harmful bacteria listeria, which may cause listeriosis. This condition resembles meningitis or influenza, and if not treated on time can cause miscarriage, illness, and fetal death. Unpasteurized dairy products also contain E.coli bacteria, which leads to diarrhea. If this condition is not treated on time, it can cause anemia, which affects the healthy growth of your baby (1). It is also not safe to eat cheesecake made of raw eggs. They contain harmful salmonella bacteria which may lead to salmonella poisoning. Though it does not harm your baby in any way, it can affect your health.
What Kind Of Cheesecake Can You Eat?
When unpasteurized cheeses and raw eggs are not the right options, you may be wondering about the kinds you can consume.
When pregnant, baked cheesecake is the best to opt as it contains pasteurized milk and cooked eggs. It will thus not cause any risk of listeriosis, E.coli or salmonella infections. You can eat the delicious treats of strawberry, chocolate or blueberry flavors in baked form.
Cheesecake with no eggs and pasteurized cheese is another option.
Cheesecakes containing ricotta and mascarpone cheeses are also good choices as they are pasteurized before using.
Mass-produced cheesecakes, available in supermarkets, are also a good option. They always contain pasteurized milk and cooked eggs. However, check for its ingredients before buying.
Remember that cheesecake is a high-calorie dessert. So, have it in limited quantities. A healthy weight gain is always important for the mother and baby.
Nutritional Benefits Of Eating Cheesecake During Pregnancy
Cheesecake contains a few simple basic ingredients: cream cheese, eggs, sugar, sour cream and vanilla extract. According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), one serving or one slice or one-sixth of the whole cheesecake contains 257 calories, 20g carbohydrates, 18g fat and 4g protein. Most of the carbohydrates in cheesecake come from sugars. Cream cheese is high in fat content and sour cream contains about 20% of total fat in a cheesecake.
9 Easy Cheesecake Recipes
1. Homemade Cheesecake
Let us check out the basic recipe to prepare homemade baked cheesecakes: You will need:
24 ounces cream cheese 4 tablespoons lemon juice 3 large eggs 2 cups Graham cracker crumbs ¾ cups granulated sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
How to:
2. Lemon Cheesecake
You will need:
½ cup skim milk ¼ cup sugar 2 cups low-fat cottage cheese 1 envelope unflavored gelatin 2 tablespoons cold water 2 tablespoons lemon juice 2 egg whites 1 teaspoon vanilla Lemon zest
How to:
3. Chocolate Cheesecake
You will need:
150g digestive biscuits 200g cream cheese 150g dark melted chocolate 100mg whipping cream 2 tablespoons cocoa powder 45g butter 110g caster sugar, divided 150g dark chocolate melted and cooled
How to:
4. Blueberry Cheesecake
You will need:
100 grams Marie biscuits ¾ cup blueberry crush 200mg fresh cream 4 tablespoon butter 200 grams hung curd 2 tablespoon gelatin 1 cup of water
How to:
5. Plain Eggless Cheesecake
You will need:
¾ cup of cream cheese 1 cup quark made from skimmed and pasteurized milk 1 whole lemon juice 250mg skimmed milk ½ tsp vanilla essence 6 Nutrichoice oats or Multigrain cookies ½ cup china grass milk jelly mix Sweet according to taste Crush the Nutrichoice oats or Multigrain cookies. Spread the crushed biscuits into a baking tin. Use an electric blender to whip the cream cheese and milk quark, until you obtain a smooth, creamy mixture.
How to:
6. Gourmet Cheesecake
You will need:
125g crushed Amaretti biscuits 150mg crème fraîche 90g caster sugar 250g light soft cheese 60g unsalted butter ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 250g mascarpone 2 eggs 1 tablespoon flour 1 egg yolk 125ml boiling water 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules 2 tablespoons coffee 7 sponge fingers
For the topping:
150ml curd 15g unsalted butter 125g plain chocolate 60g caster sugar 1 tablespoon coffee 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
How to:
7. Swirled Cheesecake Brownies
You will need:
1 tablespoon flour 4 ounces fat cream cheese 1 large egg ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ cup sugar 1 tablespoon pasteurized yogurt ½ cup cocoa powder 2/3 cup wheat pastry flour ¼ teaspoon salt 2 egg whites ¼ cup canola oil 1 ¼ cups brown sugar ¼ cup coffee
How to:
8. Squash Cheesecake Bars
You will need:
8 ounces nonfat cream cheese 9 crackers ½ cup squash puree 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 large eggs 2 tablespoons unsalted butter ½ cup oats Sugar according to taste 3 tablespoons flour ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon 3 tablespoons nonfat milk ¼ teaspoon salt
How to:
9. Strawberry Cheesecake
You will need:c For the crust:
1 ¼ cups finely ground graham cracker 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 5 tablespoons melted whipped butter A pinch of salt 2 tablespoons pancake syrup
For the cream cheese filling:
8 ounces of low-fat cream cheese 2 cups sliced strawberries 2 large eggs 2 egg whites 2/3 cups sugar ½ teaspoon almond extract
For the sour cream topping:
3 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 cup sour cream 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
How to:
