Skip to content

Basque-Style Baked Cheesecake

📍 Spain
⏱️Prep: 15 min
🔥Cook: 60 min
Total: 75 min
🍽️10 servings
Difficulty: Easy

This cheesecake has the unique feature of being baked at a very high temperature until it's deliberately burnt on the outside. The contrast between the almost black, caramelized surface and the melted, creamy interior makes it absolutely irresistible.

🛒 Ingredients

10 servings
  • 750g cream cheese, Philadelphia-style
  • 250g sugar
  • 5 eggs
  • 500ml heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

👨‍🍳 Step-by-step instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 230°C (very hot).

  2. Beat the cream cheese with the sugar until smooth.

  3. Add the eggs one by one, without stopping the mixer.

  4. Incorporate the heavy cream, cornstarch, and vanilla.

  5. Pour into a mold lined with crumpled parchment paper. Bake for 50-60 minutes until the surface is very dark but the center still trembles. Let it cool completely before unmolding.

💡 Chef's tip

The center should tremble like a crème caramel when you take it out of the oven. If it's firm, it's overcooked. The melted texture can only be achieved with complete resting.

📝 Our take

The Basque Burnt Cheesecake was born at La Viña bar in San Sebastián and has conquered the world for a simple reason: it is failproof. No biscuit base to go soggy, no water bath, no complications. The charred exterior is not a defect but the source of all its character. The key is the internal temperature when it comes out: 60-65 degrees in the center guarantees that molten texture.

🍷 Wine & food pairing

Very cold Txakoli or a Pedro Ximénez Sherry for those who want to match sweetness with sweetness. Txakoli adds a sparkling acidity that cleanses the palate between spoonfuls.

Suggested wine: Very cold Pedro Ximénez or sweet Sherry

⭐ Have you tried this recipe?

Select a rating

🍳 Did it turn out well? Share it in the chat!
Share your version, tips or questions with the cooking community.
Enter chat →