Basque Cheesecake

OKAAAAAAAY now. You’ll want to pony up for this one.

Have you ever heard of a basque cheesecake? I had not, but saw it on Instagram a few weeks back and nearly blacked out at how simple and amazing it looked. So I tried it.

And I’m putting it here.

Because O.M.G.

Let us peepeth.

I will say, mine doesn’t have the heft hers has, and I actually want to discuss this with you bakers, because you’ll probably have the solution. While it’s obscenely easy, and the flavor could NOT be more up my alley (Chandler style), it fell a tad flat. Which I’m fine with! But we do need to talk about it.

And the cream cheese – I need to know if you think whipped cream cheese would have been better? I used block and left them ou- hold on. Let’s look at this next photo.

Okay, I left my bars of cream cheese out for HOURS because it’s supposed to be room temp. And it very much was. But no matter what, I always have teeny tiny lumps in my cream cheese. It never ever smooths all the way out. What’s the trick here, folks? Whipped? A specific brand? Tell meh.

Listen, you’ll mix together three eggs with a handheld mixer, then add two room-temp bars of cream cheese (16 oz total) and about half a can of condensed milk. Truth be told, I added a little more than half the can. Because condensed milk is the sweet nectar of all sins.

Then we’ll pour it into a springform pan with two layers of parchment. No butter, no spray, no oil, no nuttin’. Just violently pour it in.

Thirty minutes later in a 400 degree oven and HONEY.CHERLD.

I could not love that look more. Blistered and caramelized, wobbly and rustic, it’s absolute ridiculousness.

We’ll need to let it sit for a few hours. Mow the lawn and listen to Poets. Get the edging done. Check on your flowers. Let that girl rest.

And then gently pull the paper back from the edges and holy @#$(@*$@#. It blew me away.

This type of dessert is made for me. Tangy, creamy, custardy, zero effort and I love that look.

BUT! It’s a little more shallow (shallow?) than other versions I see online. I’m not mad about it, just curious.

Have you made something like this before? A crustless cheesecake made for wannabe bakers like me?

Imagine it with macerated berries on top this summer. OMG. It’s anytime perfection but I do plan on making it for a triple birthday party next weekend. I’ll tell you that right now.

YOU. HAVE. TO.

(my recipe plugin isn’t working right now, so here’s the recipe. I’ll come back and try to fix it later!

3 eggs

6 oz (about half a can) of condensed milk

16 oz room temperature cream cheese (two bars)

Preheat your oven to 400. 

In a large bowl, whisk the three eggs with a handheld mixer. Add the cream cheese (I tore the bars into smaller chunks) and the condensed milk and mix again until light and foamy. This took me about three minutes to get right. 

Layer two pieces of parchment paper (in opposite ways) in a 9-inch springform pan. Pour the mixture into the pan and bake for 30 minutes, until the top is browned and caramelized. 

Let it rest for a few hours before you slice in. (If you can resist.)

Serves 8-10, depending on restraint. 

Obsessed. That’s all I can say. ObSAYsed.