What is Basque Burnt Cheesecake (Tarta de Queso)?
A burnt cheesecake recipe might sound more like a mistake than a crave-worthy treat, but names can be deceiving, and this crustless cake is an effortless dessert that yields an improbably delicious cake. With a gorgeously bronzed surface on top and a rich custardy center, this cheesecake from the Basque region of Spain has become a favorite in our household and around the world. In Japan, Basque burnt cheesecake can be found everywhere, from konbinis to cafés, bakeries and restaurants. My easy burnt cheesecake recipe makes producing a restaurant-quality dessert simple and easy.
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Why My Recipe Works
- Mixing the batter in a blender is easy and ensures there are no lumps. You can also do this by hand or using a stand mixer.
- I keep the amount of flour to a minimum to ensure the cheesecake is dense, custardy, and satiny smooth.
- Lining the pan with parchment paper makes it easy to unmold this soft, crustless cheesecake.
- Baking the Basque Burnt Cheesecake in a very high-temperature oven will rapidly caramelize the top surface while leaving the center only partially cooked. This gives the center of the cake a silky-smooth flan-like texture with a top that tastes like creme brûlée.
Ingredients for Basque Burnt Cheesecake
- Cream Cheese - As the name implies, cream cheese is the backbone of this decadent dessert, providing a rich, tangy base. For the best results, use full-fat cream cheese. I also recommend using a European-style cream cheese like Kiri (the brand I use). If you can't find it, an American-style cream cheese like Philadelphia will work, too.
- Cream - The cream is added to achieve the luxuriously creamy center of this Basque cake. It loosens up the cream cheese while adding fat. "Heavy cream" is the designation in the US for cream that includes more than 36% butterfat. I used a cream with 47% fat for a rich custardy cake. If you want a lighter cake, use a lower-fat whipping cream or even half and half. One thing to be careful of is cream with thickeners like gums or gelatin. Although I have yet to try it, I have received a few reports of this recipe not working out when prepared with these products.
- Sugar - Sugar not only sweetens the cake, but also aids in caramelizing the top, providing that iconic burnt finish of the Basque cheesecake original recipe. I usually use granulated sugar, but you can experiment with other sweeteners like maple or brown sugar. Liquid sweeteners like honey or maple syrup can be used, but you'll need to adjust the amount (they tend to be sweeter than white sugar), and you'll also need to adjust the amount of cream to compensate for the extra liquid.
- Eggs - The eggs bind the ingredients together, contributing to the cheesecake's structure. They also help create the silky, custardy texture that Basque Burnt Cheesecake is known for.
- Flour - The flour in the recipe also lends structure to this easy burnt cheesecake recipe. I use cake flour because of its lower protein content, but all-purpose flour will work in a pinch. Some readers have also reported success substituting starch for flour to make a gluten-free cheesecake
- Vanilla Extract - A touch of real vanilla extract enhances the flavors of the cream cheese and egg in this recipe, but other flavorings such as almond or lemon extract will work for a different twist, and you can also add powdered flavorings like cocoa powder or matcha.
How to Make Burnt Basque Cheesecake
Line your cake pan with a sheet of parchment paper. This Basque Burnt Cheesecake recipe makes enough batter for a 6-inch round pan that's at least 2.5 inches tall. I like using a pan with a removable bottom because you can use it to mold the paper to the pan.
For the cheesecake batter, blend the cream cheese, cream, sugar, eggs, cake flour, and vanilla extract until smooth and free of lumps. If you don't have a blender, a stand mixer will work. You could also mix the ingredients together in a bowl, but you want to be careful to get all the lumps out without introducing much air.
Once your cream cheese mixture is velvety smooth, rest in the fridge for about 20 minutes. This allows the air bubbles to rise and pop. Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C). Most ovens don't have an accurate thermostat, so you may need to experiment to find the right temperature and baking time for your setup to get a bronzed surface while retaining a creamy center.
When your oven is preheated, pour the batter into the prepared pan. To remove any remaining air bubbles, firmly tap the pan onto a kitchen towel. Set the pan on another pan to catch any spills, and place it in your oven. Bake your cheesecake until the surface of the batter has a burnt appearance, but the center is still jiggly.
After baking, let the burnt cheesecake cool on a rack before refrigerating it overnight. The resting time allows the cheesecake to be fully set while allowing the flavors to meld. When it's time to serve it, use a long, sharp knife to slice it. Dip the knife in hot water between slices to ensure your cuts are nice and clean.
Easy Dessert Recipes
- Matcha Burnt Cheesecake (Green Tea Flavor)
- Chocolate Mug Cake
- 5 Minute Sticky Toffe Pudding
- Molten Chocolate Omelette
- Key Lime Pie
- Blueberry Olive Oil Cake
Recipe
Best Burnt Basque Cheesecake
Ingredients
- 226 grams cream cheese (cold)
- 1 cup heavy cream (cold)
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (cold)
- 15 grams cake flour
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Why it works- Preheat the oven to the 450°F (230°C).
- Line a 6-inch cake pan with 2.5-inch sides with parchment paper. If the pan has a removable bottom, you can use the bottom to press the paper into the pan. Then you can use your hands to crease the sides to hold its shape. Once the paper is molded to the pan, you can remove the bottom and the paper and then reattach the bottom to the pan, placing the paper on top.
- Add 226 grams cream cheese, 1 cup heavy cream, 100 grams granulated sugar, 2 large eggs, 15 grams cake flour, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract to a blender and blend until smooth. I usually let this mixture rest for about 20 minutes to give the air bubbles in the batter a chance to settle, but you can bake it right away if you're in a rush.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and then drop the pan a few times onto a kitchen towel to coax any remaining bubbles out of the batter.
- Bake the cheesecake until the top is just shy of turning black. This takes 22 minutes in my oven but this will vary on your oven (see headnotes above for more information). The cake should still be very jiggly in the center when you remove it from the oven.
- Let the burnt cheesecake cool on a cooling rack and then place it in a sealable bag and refrigerate overnight.
- To slice the Basque Cheesecake, prepare a long sharp knife along with a pot of boiling water. Clean and heat the knife with the hot water between each slice. This ensures you get nice clean slices.
Nutrition Facts
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FAQ
Although the name suggests a long history, Basque Burnt Cheesecake was created in 1990 by chef Santiago Rivera of La Viña in San Sebastian, Spain. According to interviews, Rivera wanted to add a dessert menu to his Pintxos restaurant after taking it over from his parents and settled on a custardy cheesecake.
The original recipe from La Viña contains just 5 ingredients: Cream cheese, heavy cream, sugar, eggs, and flour. I personally like to add some vanilla bean paste to the batter, but you can leave it out if you want something closer to the original. I also add a pinch of salt, depending on the type of cream cheese I use. 
It's widely thought that Rivera now uses Philadelphia, but in 1990, when this cake was created, it's more likely that he was using a Spanish brand of cream cheese such as San Millan. I've never tasted San Millan, so I can't say what the differences are in taste, but I can say from comparing nutrition labels that San Millan has two and a half times the amount of salt as Philly, and it contains about 40% less fat. I've made this using Philadelphia as well as Kiri (a French brand); they're both delicious (though I prefer using Kiri). If you go with Philadelphia, I recommend adding a pinch of salt.
All-purpose flour has a higher gluten content than cake flour. Gluten is a protein that forms long chains when hydrated, giving bread and noodles a chewy texture. You don't want cakes to get chewy, which is why low-protein cake flour is used. That being said, this easy burnt cheesecake recipe uses a small enough amount of flour that the type you use probably won't make that big of a difference.
Basque Cheesecake is burnt by the standards of regular cheesecake, but it's not cooked so long that the top turns to carbon. Two non-enzymatic browning reactions are happening here. The first is the caramelization of the sugar, which creates aromatic compounds such as Diacetyl and Maltol, giving the top caramel flavor. The second is Maillard browning, which is a reaction between the proteins in the cream cheese and sugars, which creates additional flavor compounds and the taste of umami. This is why the seemingly burnt layer on top tastes so good.
Every recipe has its own way of combing the ingredients, but I've found that the easiest way is to throw all the ingredients into a blender and spin it. The only slight drawback of this technique is that it introduces air bubbles to the mixture, so I usually let it sit for about 20 minutes before pouring it into the pan. You can also do this with a food processor, stand mixer with a paddle attachment, stick blender, or the old-fashioned way with a whisk and a mixing bowl.
Time and temperature are the most important parts of this recipe, but unfortunately, the answer isn't clear-cut. The goal is to get a burnt hue shy of carbon black before the center of the cake is fully set. This creates that magical contrast of the cake-like sides, caramelized top, and custardy center. If the temperature is too low, the cake fully cooks before the top takes on enough color, and if the temperature is too high, the top will turn to carbon before the center has a chance to thicken to the desired consistency. In my convection oven, I bake it at 230 degrees C (about 450 F) for 22 minutes. If you don't have a convection oven (i.e., no fan moving the air), I'd recommend going with the high-temperature, something closer to 250 C (480 F).
Also, it's important to remember that ovens are notorious for having inaccurate thermostats, so you may need to experiment to find the right temperature and time. If the cake is too firm in the center, turn up the heat and bake it for a shorter time. If the cake is too runny in the center, turn down the heat and bake it longer.
The time for baking this burnt cheesecake is tied to your oven setup, so the goal should be to get a very dark brown top, that's just shy of being carbon black on top. In my convection oven set to 230 C, this took 22 minutes, but the time will vary, depending on your setup. Read the section above for more details.
Yes! While it's delicious served hot if you've baked it for the right amount of time, the center will still be runny when warm, so you'll need to eat it straight out of the pan with a spoon. Covering and refrigerating the cake overnight allows the center to firm up.
This Basque burnt cheesecake recipe was made for a 6-inch x 2.5-inch cake pan with a removable bottom, but a similarly sized springform pan will also work. A small, deep pan makes it easier to burn the top without overcooking the center. The second reason is that for the size of parchment paper I have, anything wider would require two overlapping sheets of paper, which would be prone to leaking. The removable bottom is not essential, but it makes it much easier to get the parchment paper molded to the shape of the pan because you can use the bottom to press the paper into the pan. My pan holds a volume of about 70 cubic inches. If you use a larger diameter pan, it holds more volume, so you will end up with a thinner cheesecake that cooks faster. Since it will still take the same amount of time to brown the top, you will need to increase the oven temperature to make it brown before the cheesecake gets overcooked. I recommend increasing the ingredients if you use an 8-inch pan or larger; otherwise, the cheesecake will be too thin.
Here are some common pan sizes and their volumes, or you can use this calculator to figure out the volume of yours:
5" x 2" = 40 cubic inches
5" x 3" = 60 cubic inches
6" x 2.5" = 70 cubic inches (perfect for this recipe)
7" x 3" = 115 cubic inches
8" x 3" =150 cubic inches
9" x 3" = 190 cubic inches
By the way, the pan I used is not available in the US, but a reader experimented with a few brands of pans and found that the Nordicware 6" Cheesecake Pan worked best.
You'll need to adjust your parchment paper strategy for the shape of the pan you're using, but as long as the volume of the pan is roughly 70 cubic inches, and you're able to get a thickness of about 2 inches when you pour the batter in, it should work. That being said, I've never tested this with other pan-shapes, so you will likely need to do some testing with temperature and time to find the right combination for your setup.
The short answer is that this is what is supposed to happen, and it means you did it right. When you bake a cake, the oven heats the water in the batter, and it turns to steam. The steam creates pockets in the batter, and as it goes from raw to cooked, the proteins solidify and form a web around the pockets of steam so that even after the cake has cooled, it is fluffy. Basque Burnt Cheesecake is deliberately undercooked in the center to give it its smooth, creamy texture. Since the proteins have not been set, the steam escapes when the heat is gone, and the cake will sink into the center. The sides remain high because they've been fully cooked.
Cracking is caused by a difference in moisture between one part of the cake and the other. It is normal for burnt cheesecake to crack around the edges where the batter has formed a crust. If your cheesecake cracked in the center, it means it was overcooked. In this case, you need to raise the temperature of your oven so that the top browns faster and the center stays rare.
Olivia Magkasi says
Crack on top! Help... Been making it couple of times. The center is still jiggly, when i put it out of the oven baked at 450°F already because 1st attempts didn't get that burnt appearance at 400°F. No cracks at the center when I took it out but as it cools it cracked
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Olivia, where do the cracks form? It's normal for some cracks to form around the edges (even La Viña's original version has cracks https://lavinarestaurante.com/en/imagenes/). If the cracks are forming in the center, it's overbaked.
Jewell says
Hi Marc,
I followed your recipe just doubled it to fit my 8" pan. The center didn't fall. How come I cannot achieve it? Though I put water bath below my cake.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Jewell, this was most likely caused by the cake being overcooked. The batter rises as the liquids turn to steam. If the proteins in the cheese and egg fully set, they will hold the height and not fall. To get the smooth custardy center the cake needs to be slightly undercooked in the center. Assuming you were happy with the color of the top of the cake, my suggestion would be to raise the temperature and reduce the baking time. Also, what was your reasoning for the water bath? Humidity will make the cake take longer to brown on top, so this might be why your cake ended up fully cooked by the time you got browning on the top.
Jewell OrtizLuis says
thank you so much for your reply. 🙂
I tried it again and it's improving.
Marc Matsumoto says
You're welcome! Hopefully next time it turns out perfect😀
Jenny says
Hi Marc, I have been wanting to try this cheesecake for ages, but ingredients are expensive here in South Africa, so I read through many, MANY recipes. Yours stood out as really easy, so I hauled out my Salton blender (glad it didn’t get chucked during the Great Appliance Purge) and got started. I doubled up as my pan is 8”, followed your process. I had very few bubbles, stirred it in the pan with a toothpick to release them. I baked it for 30 mins, was a little concerned when I saw how wet it still was, so turned the overnight down to 180, planning to bake it for another 10 minutes. Then I watched your video (should have done that first), mine looked exactly like yours, sooooooo wobbly, I whipped it out to cool, resisted the temptation to dig in and chilled it overnight. Oh My Word - so delicious, for so little effort, thank you very much for sharing.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Jenny, thanks so much for taking the time to report back! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it. I don't have a ton of dessert recipes on here (don't have the patience for finicky stuff), but the ones that I have are fairly simple so I hope you try out some of my other ones!
Alyssa says
I just baked this cheesecake it was DELICIOUS.
Double the recipe like the comments mention
Used an 8" x 2" round tin (mixture filled it to the top)
230 degrees C fan forced for the original 22 min (used thermometer to double check temp)
Got the caramelised top and gooey centre!!!! Making.this.for.every.event.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Alyssa, glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for taking the time to leave your notes on what you did for your setup!
Rwensy says
Hi I have tried this it is yummy but how do long should I bake if I double the quantity with 9 inch tray
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Rwensy, double the amount will require a bit more time in the oven, so if you got good browning on your first attempt in a 6-inch pan, you may want to reduce the temperature slightly so you're able to bake it for a little longer, while still getting good browning.
Wan says
Hello there. Convection oven means u bake it with fan on?
Marc Matsumoto says
Yes
Wan says
Thank you!! ill come back tomorrow if it’s success 🤣
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Wan, feel free to come back even if it's not a success. This recipe is particularly sensitive to the equipment you're using so it might require some fine tuning for your setup. Happy to help troubleshoot if things don't go according to plan.
Wan says
So far looking good. The cake rises up just like your video & it jiggle after i take out, just a bit burn on top of it. Cant wait to cut it tonight 😉
Wan says
The cake turns out perfect!! So creamy. Thank you for the so easy recipe!!
Marc Matsumoto says
Awesome! Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Valerie says
Hi. If I increase the amount of cheese to 350g and increase the whipping cream to 200ml, how long do I bake it? My max temperature is 200 degree celsius.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Valerie, if you increase the cream cheese to 350g you're going to need to increase the cream 370ml (1 US cup = 240 ml). You're probably going to need to cook it a little longer, but it's going to depend on how wide your pan is. For example if you're using a much larger pan than mine (6-inch), then your cake may end up thinner than mine which means it will cook faster, while a smaller deeper pan will take longer to cook. As for the oven, with a max temperature of 200 degrees you're going to need to make a tradeoff. Either your cake is going to have the perfect custardy texture in the middle and not have much browning on top, or your cake is going to be overcooked and curdy in the middle and will have nice browning on top.
SITI PHI says
How can i subsistute the cake flour.. can i use plain flour ?
Marc Matsumoto says
Cake flour has a lower gluten content than all-purpose which gives cakes a more delicate texture. You can use all purpose, but its going to make the cheesecake a little firmer.
Pauline Sing_Baker says
Hi Marc, I just wanted to provide you some feedback on this recipe and what I used. I watched no less than 12 other Burnt Cheesecake videos/recipes before I landed on yours. All other recipes require creaming the cheese and sugar in a bowl either by hand or using a stand mixer. I like your idea to throw it all in a blender. It worked beautifully, no fuss, no mess. Many recipes used 1kg of cream cheese, yours used way less, I think this is a good enough size, perfect yield. I used Philadelphia brand cream cheese (made in New Zealand), it is a tad saltier than the American version. Our eggs are smaller so I used 2 whole eggs, 1 egg yolk. I used 35% fat UHT whipping cream (made in France). My sprinkling of AP flour was a local product from Malaysia. I live in Singapore, this is what we can buy in the grocery stores here. As I do not own a 6" round springform pan, I baked it in what I had which is a bread/loaf pan. It still turned out very nicely just not as iconic looking. I will make it again with some lemon zest next round. Thanks for sharing. Good job with the video, congrats!!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Pauline, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave feedback so that others might benefit from it. Have a great week!
Beth says
Hi Marc! Can I use 6” 2”deep pan for this recipe?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Beth, with my 2.5-inch deep pan, it rises slightly over the rim while baking. You can try it, but I'd recommend putting a tray under your pan as it's probably going to overflow while baking.
Beth says
Hi Marc! I baked it yesterday and it is absolutely delicious. Burnt top a bit much and the sides didn’t turn brown but overall I’m so happy with the result. Thank you for the lovely recipe.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Beth, that looks great! It looks like you may have used a pan that's a better insulator than the one I used, which is probably why you didn't get as much browning around the edges. Did you use a silicone pan by any chance? As for the top, you may want to consider rotating the cake once in your oven as it looks like it got darker on one side than the other.
G A says
Hi. My cheesecake does not "burn" evenly. Brown on the outer part, and black in the middle. Why is that?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi GA, there are a few possibilities here. The first is that your oven does not heat evenly, but this usually shows up as the cheesecake browning unevenly from one side to the other. Another possibility is that your pan is made of a material that insulates really well (any thick metal, silicone or glass will exhibit these issues) and the the sides of the pan is blocking some of the radiant heat.
G A says
Oh I see. How about a spring form pan? Is it better?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi GA, what kind of pan were you using originally? An aluminum 6-inch x 2.5-inch springform pan should work fine.
G A says
These ones.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi GA, it's hard to tell from the photo, but are those metal pans? Also, how tall are they?
Jen says
This recipe is superb! Everyone at home loved the taste. It’s just the oven temperature that I had a problem with. The top burnt to almost black but the inside was not cooked so I had to bake it again at a lower tempt for 20 mins. But it turned out fine after that.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Jen, I'm glad to you enjoyed this. Unfortunately different ovens cook at different speeds, and most ovens are not calibrated correctly which exacerbates the issue. Next time you can try and start at a lower temperature. As for the center not being cooked, this style of cheesecake is supposed to have a very rare center (it will still be almost liquid in the center when you first take it out of the oven). Carry over cooking will firm it up a bit, but it takes chilling in the fridge to set it enough to slice it.
Chloe Toh says
Thanks for the recipe, I tried and turn out perfect and all my guests love it! A quick question, I personally find the cake a bit sweet. Can I adjust the sugar level to half? By changing the sugar level will affect the outcome of the cake?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Chloe, I'm glad to hear it turned out well. Yes, you can reduce the a little, but I'm not sure what will happen if you halve it (the browning on top is partially caused by the sugars caramelizing). It shouldn't effect the texture too much though, so if you're okay with the top not getting quite as dark, it should be fine.
Karolin says
I Made it! And it sooooo Good! I use Coconut cream instead of heave cream and cut the sugar until 40%. But still turns out great! Thanks for the recipe. And it ridiculously easy!
Marc Matsumoto says
I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it!
patricia zabala says
Hi Marc, just had to say as a Basque person, that this was the best and easiest to follow! The simplicity that you made it for people like myself who might not be the greatest baker made it so appreciated! And it turned out perfect!!!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Patricia, thanks for taking the time to let me know how it went, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Cindy says
I baked it once n it was a success! I am now baking it the second time with a different oven, but after 22 mins it still looks underbaked, is this normal?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Cindy, unfortunately the thermostat on most ovens is inaccurate (I've seen ovens as far off as 30 degrees). It sounds like your second oven runs cool. You're probably going to need to crank up the heat to get it to brown properly while still being custardy in the center. If you leave it in the oven for longer, it will end up overcooked in the center.
Emily says
Hi Marc! Here's an update to my previous post.
I have tried baking it at a higher temperature at 250 degree Celsius for about 20 minutes. I also switched to grill mode in my oven within the last 5 minutes to blast the top of the cake with heat.
The cake is definitely softer than the last batch, but it seems like the centre of the cake is not as custardy as yours. What do you think?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Emily, it's looking a lot closer, but it does still look a it overcooked in the center. Try starting the grill mode a little sooner and pulling the cake a little sooner.
Emily says
Thanks Marc! I'll give it another try again 🙂
Gie says
Been baking this recipe and my friend and family love it! I just wonder if this recipe is okay to be baked in a cupcake pan? Should I make any adjustments? Thank you!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Gie, I'm glad to hear you've been enjoying this. Since cupcakes are much smaller than pouring the batter into one six-inch mold, they are going to cook through much faster. In order to achieve the same amount of browning on top while having the center custardy and barely set, you will really need to crank up the temperature of the oven. I don't want to say it's impossible, but I think it will be pretty difficult to achieve, and you also need to be careful not to exceed the maximum temperature of the parchment paper you use.
Raymond Yong says
hi i have just tried your recipe and i got a funny result.
im currently in asia and follow the ingredients.
INGREDIENTS
i couldnt find heavy cream and i used double cream which has the same properties of heavy cream (46% milk fat)
i googled the weight/ml and only using a guesstimate for the heavy cream which was around 230ml.
result was:
Top was alittle burnt after 15min 30secs
the cake didnt rise as it should.
am i doing something wrong?
thank you
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Raymond, I've responded to your comment on YouTube already, please see my response there.
Carole says
This cake is wonderful! Is there a way to make a chocolate version of it? I’m wary of messing with the recipe myself, I felt I should ask you for advice. I’ve made the regular version several times as my new go to cake recipe. Thank you!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Carole, I'm glad to hear you've been enjoying this! There are a couple ways you can infuse this with chocolate. One would be to melt some chocolate and pour it into the blender to incorporate it. The other would be to add cocoa powder. Or you could do both. As for how much to add, I haven't tried it, so I can't say for sure, but I think you'd be able to add at least a tablespoon of cocoa powder without altering the texture too much. Be sure to use dutch processed cocoa powder for the most potent chocolate flavor.
chloe says
if my blender is not big enough can I just whisk?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Chloe, unless you have some serious arm strength and stamina I wouldn't recommend it as cold cream cheese is quite hard and difficult to get smooth, and you don't want to bring the ingredients up to room temperature (as this will make it cook faster than the top can brown). One possibility is to mix the cream cheese with some of the cream in your blender and then whisk the rest of the ingredients together with the cream cheese mixture in your bowl.
Normah Ahmad says
Just made it and love the look of it. I don't eat cheese so I baked it for my family.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Normah, thanks for stopping by to let me know how it went. I hope your family enjoyed it!
Valerie says
Hi. How do I achieve the gooey and creamy texture in the middle of the cheese cake ?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Valerie, please read the headnotes and watch the video it's explained there. But the short answer is a that it's a combination of getting the right timing and temperature for your setup.
Emily says
Hi Marc! I've tried this recipe and my cake turned out to be not as custardy as yours. My cake is not as smooth and it feels grainy - so I wonder what's the issue here?
I baked using the Fat Daddio's 6"x3" round cake pan, which is deeper compared to your 6"x2.5" cake pan. Thus, the batter did not reach close to the top of the pan when I poured it in. I did not use a blender but I used a whisk instead to mix everything. I followed everything else according to your recipe and baked it at 230 degree Celsius. However, when the time was up (22 minutes), the top of my cake did not brown much and it did not rise beyond the top of the cake pan as well. I then left it in the oven at the same temperature for an extra 2-3 minutes to achieve a darker colour. After being removed from the oven, I let it cool and refrigerated it.
Attached is a photo of the cake that I've taken the next day. I haven't tried a good, proper burnt cheesecake so I'm not too sure how the texture should be. It looks overcooked to me, what do you think?
Thank you! 🙂
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Emily, thanks for the detailed explanation. It looks like the cake is overcooked. The higher walled pan may have made it harder to brown the top, but it shouldn't have effected the cooking time. The thermometers in ovens are notoriously inaccurate, and different ovens put their heating elements in different locations, so it's pretty difficult to go by temperature alone. My recommendation would be turn up the temperature and cook it for a shorter amount of time.
Emily says
Hi Marc, thanks for your explanation too! What are the temperature and time needed that you would recommend in this case?
Marc Matsumoto says
It's a tough call since I've never used your setup, but you can try setting your oven for 250C and hopefully you can get enough browning in under 20 minutes.
Emily says
Thanks Marc! I'll try that and see how it goes. Appreciate it 🙂
Emily says
Hi Marc! I have tried baking it at a higher temperature at 250 degree Celsius for about 20 minutes. I also switched to grill mode in my oven within the last 5 minutes to blast the top of the cake with heat. The cake is definitely softer than the last batch, but it seems like the centre of the cake is not as custardy as yours. What do you think?
Donna dm says
Hey love it!! Great recipe.. Don't care if it says custard... It's still great.. Good formy small family 😊
Jessie says
Hi Marc, may l know I can substitute the sugar with palm sugar or erythritol? Thank you!!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Jessie, palm sugar should work (though it will make the batter slightly brown). As for erythritol, I don't use it so I can't say for sure, but sugar substitutes often don't act the same way as more traditional sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose) especially when it comes to browning and caramelization so I'm not sure you'll get the same kind of browning on top with it.
Christina says
Hi, how much is 1 cup of heavy cream in ml? Thanks!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Christina, 1 US cup is 240ml
katherine says
Hi, I tried ur recipe and my friends/families all love it ! Easy , Fast and Nice !
But if i want to do chocolate flavour, how do i do it ? Appreciate your reply.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Katherine, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it! I haven't tried making it chocolate flavored yet, but I think you could achieve this by adding cocoa powder to the batter, without changing anything else. Let me know how it goes if you try it.
Nisa Sahasrabudhe says
I made this today. Burnt then top a bit much and it didn't rise as much. Texture was ok but not like the NY cheesecake. I used stand mixer and I think combining all the ingredients together all in one go made it a bit lumpy and the cream almost turned into whipping cream. Other recipe showed that we should cream the cream cheese and sugar first. I have a convection electric oven. Baked it at 220 degree Celsius for 20 minutes. Need to reduce the temperature I think. I like the size of this batch. Small enough, made me feel less guilty of the indulgence
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Nisa, Basque cheesecake should not have the texture of NY cheesecake. It's more of a custard that's thick and smooth like room temperature butter. If you want a texture closer to a NY cheesecake you can cook it through all the way (which will also make it rise a bit more). As for the lumps, this recipe made for a blender. A mixer will have a tougher time creaming the cheese once you add liquids, so you should probably cream the cheese first before adding any liquids.
Marlynna says
Hi, I've tried the recipe but mine turned to have eggy taste. Where could I have possibly done wrong? Was it overbaked?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Marlynna, it's an egg-based custard so it's going to have some egg taste, but if it had a sulfur-like smell it was most likely overcooked. The center should have a smooth texture like room temperature butter.
julie says
Hi, just another quick question. I have a 6" x 3.5" souffle dish in fine china. Would this be OK to use or will I buy a fat daddio cheesecake pan. Thanks.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Julie, that should work, but there are 2 caveats. 1) you're probably going to have a hard time molding the parchment paper to fit in the dish 2) ceramic is an insulator, so the sides of your cheesecake won't take on much color (and it's possible it might end up too soft to slice).
LC says
Made it with rectangular disposable pan.
It works! I use 250gr philly, 250ml cream and all purpose flour. I forgot to add salt and after it cooks, i thought it could use some lemon juice too. Not very goey inside, may need to tweak a bit next time. It was baked exactly 23mins roughly 230C. Overall it’s successful baking. Thanks!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi LC, thanks for reporting back with a pic. The interior looks overcooked (it should be more smooth and silky in the center like when the batter was raw). For your pan, I think you're going to need to reduce the cooking time and turn up the heat to get it to brown faster.
julie says
Hi, I haven't heard of evaporated cane sugar. Please can you tell me if caster sugar can be subsistuted, thanks
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Julie, it's just unprocessed sugar. Regular granulated sugar will work fine.
Peachy says
hi Marc,
just want to know why my burnt cheesecake turned out watery and egg like texture. 🙁 how can i prevent that from happening? im using all purpose flour
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Peachy, sorry to hear it didn't work out. It sounds like you may have overcooked it. This cheese cake is basically a custard and like a custard it will break if it boils. What size pan did you use? What temperature did you set the oven to? How long was it in the oven for?
Kathy says
I just made this recipe with a 20cm pan (~8"). I doubled the amount of ingredients and also the cooking time, baked at 225deg Celcius. Seems to work. Delicious results! Thanks for the simple recipe!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Kathy, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks for reporting back with your time and temp.
Pingo says
My 2nd time baking this. And I added some blueberries to the batter... can't wait to taste the cake!
Annie says
Hello Marc,
sorry to be a pain, as cannot wait to bake this yummy cheesecake, was wondering if I could use a pyrex bowl with a 3 inch height, instead of the 6 inch cake tin ( which am having difficulty getting in Spain )?
Thank you...
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Annie, how wide is the bowl, and is it a hemispherical bowl, or a round container with a flat bottom? It's hard to say without having some more details. You can certainly try it out, but since I haven't personally tested it in your container, I can't guarantee it will turn out properly.
Subha says
Hi,
What kind of oven would you recommend to bake this cheesecake. I have a cooking range-a gas oven. I got the texture and taste on point but it was not at all burnt it was yellow in color. What can we do about it.
THANKS in advance!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Subha, I used a convection oven, but it should work in any oven that reaches a high enough temperature. Based on your description, it sounds like your oven didn't get hot enough.
Subha says
Thank you very much for the reply. I will check the oven temperature next time I make.
marcelle says
Hi. I've tried your recipe. But my oven is max out to around 180°C...cannot go higher than that (I have a confectionary oven and I waited for 30 min or s so the temp will go higher).
My oven has the top and bottom fire, Is it OK if I turn on the top burner to give that black top crust?
It took me like arouns 60 min in the oven to get just a dark brown top...but then the middle is a not custard-y texture anymore.
Any input or suggestions?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Marcelle, this probably isn't the answer you want, but you need to find an oven that reaches a higher temperature. The only way to get the dark top with custardy interior is to blast it at a very high temperature for a short amount of time.
Tin stu says
Hi Marc! Thank you for sharing this recipe. I’m using a convection oven and was wondering if I should just use the setting of the heat coming from the bottom of the oven or one thats coming from the top and bottom?
I tried it once Using the top and bottom setting but i find that the top of the cake burns easily and the texture doesn’t seem cheesecake-like. It was somehow similar to an egg pie. Any tips on how to troubleshoot? Could it be the temperature also? Thanks!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Tin Stu, regarding your oven setting, my oven doesn't work that way, so I can't say for sure, but intuitively I think you want the heat coming from on top. The reason is that the whole point of a Basque cheesecake is that it's not fully cooked. It should have a gooey smooth texture like flan (or egg custard) in the center and should not be like regular cheesecake. That's why you want the temperature up so high, so it browns on top before the cake is fully cooked. I hope that helps.
Amanda says
Hi Marc, for your oven setting, do you use top and bottom with fan? or just top heat with fan? i did top and bottom with fan at 230 degrees celcius and the top of the cake didn’t brown. i baked it for a while longer and while it did brown, the cake didn’t jiggle as much. haha.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Amanda, the fan in my oven is at the back of the oven and I don't have an option to change it's location. It sounds like you may want to turn up the temperature of your oven to get the top to brown faster.
Ann says
Hi! I would like to know too which setting did you choose? Is it top heat with fan? Thanks!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Ann, my oven doesn't have settings to change the heat source, but it's a convection oven and the fan is in the back (there's no option to turn it on or off). I would recommend doing it with the fan on though. You may need to test your setup in various configurations to figure out what works best for you, but I would recommend having the heat come from above to get good browning on top.
Esther says
Hi Marc! Can i use honey in replacement for the sugar? and replace the cake flour with corn starch?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Esther, regarding honey in place of the sugar, I can't say for sure as honey is a liquid and sugar is not. I think the starch should work, but since I've never tried it I can't make any guarantees. Let us know how it goes if you end up giving it a try.
Coral says
Hi Marc,
Thanks for the great recipe.
I baked the two cheesecake in 4” springform tin in a small fan oven at 230 Celsius for 20 mins (best to do it for 18 mins).
It turned out fine (no crack at the centre). It is still resting in the fridge.
I used thickened cream ( no added gelatin or the like) and my leftover frozen cream cheese (have to defrost it) .
Would like to know if I can replace the sugar with any other sugar substitute, like lakanto?
Thanks.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Coral, I'm glad to hear it turned out well. Regarding subbing the sugar. I think you can do it if you substitute a sugar that caramelizes as this is part of what gives the surface it's brown color. I'm not familiar with the properties of lakanto, so you can probably research it online, or give it a try.
Jol says
How much is 1 cup of heavy cream? 250g?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Jol, 1 US cup is approximately 240 ml. Grams are a mass-based measurement and not great for measuring liquids as they have various densities (i.e. a cream with a higher fat content is less dense than a cream with a low fat content, so one would weigh less than the other even if you measured the same volume).
sharan says
Hi, using a convection oven.. Which level in the oven do you place the pan on? To, bottom, middle?
Thank you
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Sharan, it depends on where the heat source is. If it's coming form the top, you'll want to move the rack up, if it's coming from the back, the center is fine. I hope that helps.
ger says
hey marc, must I refrigerate the cake overnight before eating it? Or can I just cool the cake for a while and then refrigerate for an hour or two before eating?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Ger, you can try it. The reason for refrigerating it overnight is to set the center so you can slice it. If it hasn't cooled enough the center is almost liquid. which makes it impossible to slice cleanly.
Nur Fa says
Hi here is the picture where the based of my cake and parchment paper gets wet and moist, any tips from you will be much appreciated! Thanks
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Nur, can you please send a photo of a cut cross section of the cake, that looks to me like oil.
Nur Fa says
Hi, here you go, is it overcooked?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Nur Fa, thank you for sending this over. Yes it looks way overcooked, and I'm fairly certain the liquid at the bottom is oil that has separated out from your cream. Unlike normal cheesecake, Basque cheesecake is supposed to have a silky custardy texture in the center (like a thick yogurt). I'm not sure how long you've baked it for, but you're going to want to reduce the amount of time in the oven significantly. If you're not getting the browning that you want on top. you can raise the temperature of the oven so that it browns faster.
Nur Fa says
Hi marc, thank you so much for the explaination. Baked this at my aunt’s house and not familiar with her oven settings. But when i make it at home, it turns out perfect! Thank you for sharing your tips. Much appreciated!
Marc Matsumoto says
I'm glad to hear you got it to work!
myra says
I don’t have a blender - can I use cake mixer?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Myra, anything that is going to mix the ingredients together smoothly without incorporating too much air will work.
Dylan says
Hello, in your opinion, do you think there is any benefit to chilling the pan and the batter down for the 20 minute wait time before baking? I’m thinking this might help provide a more even cook throughout the cake. Dylan
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Dylan, did you try the recipe as is and have a problem? The goal is to not evenly cook the cake (i.e. you want the center to be less cooked than the top and sides). If you're having trouble getting the top to brown before the center gets fully cooked, you could try chilling it, but you may first want to just try turning up the heat on your oven.
Dylan says
Yes i tried the recipe and it works really well! Just trying to achieve the same doneness that you get in the centre throughout the whole cake.
Marc Matsumoto says
Gotcha, if that's what you're going for, you could chill it in the fridge and then blast it at the highest setting your oven goes, and you should be able to get browning on the outside, without cooking it very much on the inside. That being said, you'll most likely need to eat it straight out of the pan with a spoon as it won't have the structural integrity to be able to be sliced.
Alexander says
Is self rising flour a substitute for cake flout in this recipe?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Alexander, self rising flour is just regular flour with a leavening agent (like baking powder). Since this isn't a regular cake that you want to be light and airy, you don't want a leavening agent in your flour. Regular all-purpose flour would be a better bet if you can get it.