San Sebastian Cheesecake or Basque Cheesecake

 When Pelin, my friend said to me that the tastiest cheesecake she had ever tasted was the San Sebastian cheesecake, I was certainly intrigued. I had never heard of it, leave alone taste it. I looked up videos and recipes and spent a lot of time researching until I finally decided I was making it. So my recipe queen internet friend Nagi - came to the rescue with her recipe and clear instructions.  I couldn't take step by step pictures because I needed both hands for the work - but I stuck to her instructions and her recipe to the exact word.

I have just taken a picture as it came out of the oven and it looks exactly like how Nagi said it should!So I am certainly hoping the taste will be exactly what I am imagining it to be as well - caramelly on the outside, souffle like on the inside - not too sweet but still divine.

I am taking this cake to another friend's house today - and I haven't seen her in ages.  I hope Michelle and family will like the cake as much as how much I enjoyed making it! The verdict is out and the cake was absolutely divine! Creamy and light, with a touch of sweetness and the contrasting caramel layer at the top.

I will definitely make this again because it is delicious,  easy to do and you do not have to spend time on the decoration.

Ingredients:

3 x Philadelphia cream cheese blocks - at room temperature

1 cup caster sugar

1 1/4 cups thickened cream - take out of the fridge and leave outside for 15 minutes

1/4 cup flour, sieved, with no lumps

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon lightly whisked eggs (measure the eggs exactly as it could be 4 or 5 eggs depending on the size of the eggs)

Method:

Preheat oven to 220 deg C.  Scrunch up baking paper and press into a 20 cm (8 inch) springform pan.

I used two sheets of paper so I could get overhang all around the pan.

There is no need to grease the pan or the paper and leave overhang on the sides so you can lift the cake out.

Beat the cream cheese for a few minutes till it is thick and creamy.  There should be no lumps. Scrape the sides and bottom of your pan and ensure there are no lumps. Add the sugar and incorporate it into the cream cheese.  Set aside.

In a seperate bowl, take 1/4 cup cream and add 1/4 cup flour to it bit by bit, whisking as you go till it forms a thick paste. Once you get the paste with no lumps, start adding the rest of the cream to the flour cream mixture and make a smooth custard consistency liquid. Add the vanilla essence to the mix.

Add the cream/flour/vanilla mixture to your cream cheese mixture, while beating the cream cheese on low using your hand held beater. (Now you know why I couldn't take pictures for all the steps! )

Lastly, add the eggs and incorporate into the batter like you did the cream/flour mixture. Do not over beat the eggs - a minute or so, just to incorporate the eggs into the batter is enough.

The batter looks like custard and flows like custard.  Pour it into your prepared tin.

If you want to get air bubbles out, set the pan on the counter top and tap the cake pan sharply a few times and then pierce the bubbles with the tip of a sharp knife.

Bake for 45 minutes (or slightly more depending on your oven) - you can smell the top of the cake caramalising and see it turn a rich brown. The cake will still be a little jiggly in the middle.  Leave it in the oven with the oven door open for ten minutes and then take the cake tin out and let it cool down for two hours on the bench top.

The picture below shows the cake as soon as it was out of the oven.  You can see that the browned baking sheet is only showing at the top and you can hardly see the original white baking sheet.

Two hours later, the cake has sunk - and dont worry, this is how this cake behaves -  you can see the white baking sheet below the brown. Now it is time to put the cake in the fridge - but do not cover it because you dont want any condensation at all.

After 8 hours, you are ready to dig into your cake.  And it is more delicious the next day!