During CNY period in pre-COVID times, my folks would always ask me to get their favourite kueh lapis from Season Bakery in JB. It was a must-have until COVID hit the shores of Singapore. I started baking different treats for them since then and they absolutely fell in love with my Basque Burnt Cheesecake even though they don’t even like regular cheesecakes in the first place. 两位老人家对美食还真的是很挑剔呢。哈哈！
‘Why is this cake so ‘orh lu lu’ (meaning 黑噜噜 ‘black’)? Mum would always ask. Haha!
That’s the whole idea of a Basque Burnt Cheesecake. In fact, the beautifully burnt surface is the soul of this cheesecake as that gives it a caramelized crust exterior.
Making a Basque Burnt Cheesecake isn’t really that difficult. It only involves 5 ingredients. I made the cake keto-friendly/low-carb so the folks won’t be consuming too much sugars that are bad for their health yet they can still enjoy a rich treat every now and then. For those of you not on keto/low carb diet, just replace the erythritol with sugar in 1:1 ratio.
For this recipe, I’ve used a 8-inch cake tin. That will yield a 7-inch cake as it will shrink in height and from the edges of the cake tin when baked. Also, you’ll need a tall cake tin (those suitable for castella cakes) as the cake will rise a lot during baking. If your cake tin is not tall enough, just line with parchment paper so it sticks out on top by another 2-3 inches.
When buying heavy cream or heavy whipping cream for this, please get one with at least 35% milk fat, not the lighter or reduced fat version. The extra fat will make the cheesecake more rich and creamy. And the cake will hold its shape better too.
I suggest that you make this Basque Burnt Cheesecake at night so that the cake can chill in the fridge overnight when you sleep in case you can’t resist the temptation, lol. The first time I made this, it was in the day and it was just excruciating to look at the cake whenever I open the fridge, haha!
Not too sweet. Cheese flavour is ample but not in an overly rich or cloying way. If you like it sweeter, you can increase the amount of erythritol (or sugar if not on keto) by another 20-30g.
The texture of this Basque Burnt Cheesecake is like a New York Cheesecake, dense and moist. The caramelized, charred crust had a slight crunch too. Ooooh, love love love it!??????
起司爱好者绝对不可错过这巴斯克焦香芝士蛋糕食谱哦。绵密的口感。起司的香气。上面还有焦香味的脆皮。怎能不爱呢！
Want more cheesecake recipes? Check out my Japanese Cheesecake Recipe and another flourless Keto Cheesecake Recipe.
- 454g cream cheese (softened, at room temperature)
- 120g erythritol (or sugar if not on keto)
- 3 eggs (60g each)
- 200ml heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (at room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract