Sunday 21 May 2017

Japanese Cheesecake

Oh NO ! .... It has a sexy waistline :(



Although I've baked mini cheese cupcakes here & here, this is the first time I'd tried a souffle Japanese Cheesecake ... in an 7-inch round pan.

Mom: Help ! Boy ! Quick, come and help me!
Boy: Why ?! Are you hurt?
Mom: Nope. I need another pair of hands to help me lift this cake up ... by holding the 2 strips of parchment paper. Ok at the count of 3, let's lift the cake up!
Boy: Aiyoh !

Well, I couldn't lift the 4 strips of parchment paper with one pair of hands. But I liked this brilliant idea .... this way I will not be restricted to use springform pan and worry about water seepage issue during water bath.

Oh ! Gosh ! It has a sexy waistline :( 
And suffered great shrinkage :(

A failed cheesecake that I've baked ! Nonetheless the texture is light, souffle soft and melt in the mouth kind. My big boy (actually a young man who has just turned 21 years old) couldn't stop giving praises to this Japanese Cheesecake! Both my big kids simply loved this not too dense but light & soft cheesecake. As for me ... not a fan of cheesecake though but gobbled up 2 slices ... no, should be 2 big wedges at one go !


Recipe adapted from:Just One Cookbook
Ingredients :
4 egg yolks
200g cream cheese, cut into cubes
40g unsalted butter, cut into cubes
132g whipping cream
40g caster sugar

50g cake flour, sifted
1 tablespoon lemon juice + 1 teaspoon zest

For the meringue
4 egg whites
60g caster sugar

Method :
1) One 7-inch round baking pan (fixed base)

2) Grease the bottom and the side of the cake pan with some butter.  Cut 2 long strips of parchment paper to act as "straps" (roughly size 4 x 70 cm or enough overhang for easy lifting and "transporting" the cake). Grease with some butter and place the 2 "straps" criss-cross on the bottom of the pan. Grease and line a round parchment paper for the base, and sides of the pan. Set aside.

3) Separate the eggs into yolks and whites. (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)

4) On the stove, half-fill a cooking pot with water and bring to a simmer. Melt the butter, cream cheese with whipping cream and caster sugar in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Make sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Stir the mixture occasionally with spatula till melted and smooth. Once they are melted, use a ballon whisk to blend everything together. Remove from flame and leave to cool slightly.

5) Preheat the oven to 170°C, position the rack on the lowest.  Fill a larger baking pan with hot water, about half-way or 1-inch water level.

6) Add the egg yolk one at a time to the warm cream cheese mixture with a ballon whisk. Mix well before adding the next one.

7) Add and whisk in the cake flour into the cream cheese mixture. Strain the mixture through mesh strainer. Mix in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Whisk well to blend and set aside.



8) In a clean mixing bowl, whisk the cold egg whites till foamy using the handheld electric mixer. Gradually add in caster sugar in 3 separate additions and beat till soft/medium peak.

9) Using a balloon whisk, gently fold 1/3 of the meringue to the cream cheese mixture until incorporated. Fold in another 1/3 into the mixture. Finally, pour cream cheese mixture into the bowl of remaining meringue and fold in gently until incorporated.

10) Pour the mixture all at once but slowly into the prepared cake pan. This is to let the big air bubbles burst as batter flows out of mixing bowl. Lightly tap the pan 3- 4 times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

11) Put the pan into the larger baking pan which is filled with hot water. Reduce the oven temperature to 160°C and bake for 55 minutes. {I tent the top with foil in the last 10 minutes of baking}

Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and skewer inserted comes out clean.

12) Turn off the oven and open the door of the oven slightly for 15 - 20 minutes for cake to cool inside.



13) Remove the cake pan from the oven. Gently pull out the cake using the 2 parchment paper straps (with another set of hands).  Let cool to room temperature. Chill the cake for 1-2 hours before serving.


Enjoy & Happy Baking !

8 comments:

  1. My kids have grown and now I have grandkids but I still love feeding them. They would love this cheesecake.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Cheri, sure they will love all your yummy bakes :)

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  2. Good morning sister,
    Thank you for sharing the good ideal by lifting the 4 strips of parchment paper instead of using springform pan and worry about water seepage issue during water bath.
    Nice to have selfless baking buddy like you😅

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Karen! I love this cake, so long haven't baked it. If only we can have a sexy waistline and shrink after eating this cake :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Haha, I love the sexy waistline!
    Also, I love japanese cheesecake but have yet to try to make it at home. It is definitely on my to-do list.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Cathleen, I'm sure you will like it! Go bake it !

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Sharing some of my favourite recipes, some new baking/cooking "adventures". Please feel free to post your comments for my improvement. Would be great to connect with you and learn some of your recipes too. Thanks for 'dropping by'.