If The Great British Bake Off's Japanese Week has inspired you to try out some of the culture's amazing recipes, this jiggly delight is sure to be one to check out.
A true classic Japanese dessert, this light and fluffy Japanese cheesecake has a texture in-between that of an American NY style cheesecake and a chiffon cake. Also known as a Japanese souffle cheesecake or 'cotton cheesecake', its alternative names paint the perfect picture of this delightfully airy cake.
Ingredients
Meringue
5 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (can substitute vinegar or lemon juice)
50g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
Cake batter
5 egg yolks
225g cream cheese
55g (1/4 cup) butter
125ml (1/2 cup) milk
50g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
2 tbsp cornflour
35g (1/4 cup) flour (use rice flour or Mochiko instead to make a gluten-free Japanese Cheesecake)
Any additional flavourings such as cocoa powder, vanilla extract, lemon juice, honey, matcha powder
Optional toppings: strawberries, powdered sugar, fruits of your choice, honey and matcha.
Method
- Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius.
- Separate the 5 eggs into yolks and whites in two different mixing bowls.
- Place the butter, cream cheese and 50g (1/4 cup) of caster sugar into a pan over low-heat. Once melted and smooth, remove from the heat. Allow to cool.
- Whisk the egg yolks in their mixing bowl. Then slowly pour in the cream cheese mixture, stirring gently.
- Sift in the cornflour and regular flour. Mix softly but thoroughly with the whisk to ensure there are no lumps.
- Add milk and any other flavours, as preferred. Set aside the smooth batter.
- Prepare a bain-marie by putting water in a deep rectangular baking pan or dish. Place in the hot oven.
- Prepare your baking tins - either one 8-inch cake tin or two 6-inch tins. Line the bottom and side of the tins with greaseproof baking paper (cut out circles for the bottom and strip for the sides).
- In another bowl, beat the egg whites into stiff peaks.
- Once stiff and glossy, place a third of the beaten egg white into the batter and fold into the mixture.
- Repeat the above step twice until all the egg whites have been incorporated, being careful not to over-mix the batter.
- Pour the smooth batter into the baking tin(s). Shake to release any large air bubbles.
- Bake bain-marie style for 25 minutes, adjusting the temperature up five or ten degrees if the cake does not start to rise.
- If your cake has note risen much by this time, allow it to stay at the same temperature for a few more minutes.
- Reduce the temperature down to 120-130 degrees Celsius for another 45 minutes. Watch out for signs of cracks - your cake might crack if the temperature is too high.
- Allow your cake to rest in the oven after baking for about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Place a tea towel and a sheet of parchment over the cake and invert it so that the cake tips out onto your hand, protected by parchment paper and the towel. You can tip straight onto a plate but this will cause the cake to deflate more.
- Dust with icing sugar, and serve while hot with strawberries and cream. Once chilled it will lose its bounciness and fluffy texture, so best to eat it all as soon as possible!
How to use the bain-marie technique
Jamie Oliver's YouTube channelshared this video on how to use a Bain Marie to melt the perfect chocolate in one minute!
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