Basque-ing in the Country Side
Imagine you’re basking in the country side while eating this. This cheesecake is seriously a moment. Honestly a sweet, creamy revelation. It truly doesn’t get any better than this. Cheesecake is one of my favorite desserts, close second to ice cream, but this Basque cheesecake tops it all for me because it’s so perfectly balanced. It has the right amount of sweetness and the most creamiest, yet firm texture. I have my moments with sweets, but I still need dessert to not be so overpoweringly sweet to really enjoy it — and this hits all of my requirements. Best of all, it’s so quick to make and will definitely awe your friends!
Ingredients:
3-4 blocks of cream cheese (8 oz)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tub mascarpone (8 oz)
3-4 eggs
1 or 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tbsp flour
A bit of fresh orange zest OR lemon zest
Cooking Steps:
Mix It Up: It’s really about throwing all of those ingredients into a bowl and blending it together in this step - super easy! Make sure you’re starting off with room temperature cream cheese or else it’ll be a bit hard to work with and cream otherwise. Once the cream cheese breaks gets a bit fluffy (don’t overwork it which generally looks like the water splitting from the cream, you still want it firm but just creamy), add in your sugar and blend together. Then, add in your vanilla, salt, and mascarpone cheese. Blend. Incorporate your eggs one at a time and make sure they’re blended in really well - you don’t want little eggy bits! You can either use 3 or 4 eggs depending on how rich and dense you want the cheesecake to turn out. Lastly, sift in your flour and zest in the citrus. Fold it all together and transfer it into a baking dish.
Bake the Dream: At 400°F, let this baby bake. Give it a good 45-50 minutes, until you see that golden brown top. It should almost from a crust-like topping, and you might see cracking happening. It’s all good and part of the rustic aesthetic with this one. I’ve made a whole cheesecake, but I’ve also made cupcakes with this recipe.
If you chose the cupcake route, then bake at lower temperature at 375°F for about 25-30 minutes, and remember the toothpick test — if it comes out clean or if a few moist crumbs are attached — it’s done!
The Waiting Game: Let it cool. It might be a bit jiggly in the center but you’ve got to let it stabilize. You ideally want to let this rest on the counter for about an hour and then place it into the fridge overnight so it solidifies. It’s made of cream cheese so placing it to cool in the fridge will help maintain it’s structure.
Garnish: This is where you get to get creative. Throw on some toppings, fruits, or just sprinkle powdered sugar if you’re feeling like a minimalist.
Yep, it really is THAT easy. It’s such a dreamy cheesecake and I know it’ll be a favorite of yours too. Happy Baking!