i am a food blog

I have a confession to make. I have eaten 3 whole cheesecakes in the last two weeks alone. Granted, they were all small batch cheesecakes, but really, it essentially amounts to me eating one cheesecake, all by myself. I know we’re in the middle of summer and everyone is trying to work off their quarantine 15 but here I am, still soft and plump and not quite ready to stop stress eating sweets.

Okay, I lie. I am totally ready to stop stress eating sweets. In fact, I have been looking into the Mediterranean diet. It sounds good! It sounds more sane than keto (which I flirt with still, on occasion) because you can eat loads of vegetables and whole grains. I’m thinking of experimenting with some Mediterranean diet recipes on the blog so if you’re into that, please leave a comment below. Or tell me what your favorite recipes are – I’m excited to learn.

But you’re not here for the diet recipes so let’s talk about this Basque burnt cheesecake. I love it because it’s made in a mini loaf pan so you can take slices off of it like a loaf cake. It makes it feel like less of a dessert and more like one of those morning cakes that masquerade as “bread”. You know, lemon loaf and banana bread and the like. Which, let’s face it, are kind of just lemon cake and banana cake but in a different form factor.

I love the loaf form factor so it’s no surprise that I love this small batch Basque cheesecake. It’s just a tiny bit different than the other Basque cheesecake recipe on the blog. I wanted to play around with the proportions and bit and try using cornstarch instead of flour for a completely gluten-free cheesecake.

This lil cheesecake loaf was sweet and creamy with a hint of burnt caramel from the burnished top. I loved it and now it’s a part of me forever :)

PS – If you haven’t heard of Basque cheesecake, please read my original post here!

Small Batch Basque Burnt Cheesecake Recipe

Serves 1

4.78 from 36 votes

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese 1 package, 226 grams, very soft
• 60 grams sugar 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon
• 1 large egg
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 35 grams heavy cream 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons

Instructions

• Line a small loaf pan (6×3 inches or a pan that fits 2 cups liquid) with baking paper. Heat the oven to 450°F.
  
• Beat together the cream cheese and sugar until very smooth and fluffy, making sure all the sugar is dissolved. If you’re super particular, melt the cream cheese along with the sugar in a bowl over a double boiler. Add the egg and beat until smooth.
  
• In another bowl, add the cornstarch and tiny bit of cream, whisking until smooth, ensuring that the cornstarch doesn’t lump up. Slowly stream in the remaining cream, whisking until very smooth.
  
• Slowly pour the cream and cornstarch mix into the cheese mix. Mix well to ensure everything is combined.
  
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the top is very dark and charred but the middle still has a bit of a jiggle. Broil for a couple of minutes to get extra char if desired. Let cool on a wire rack until room temperature. Remove from the tin, slice, and enjoy!