Joseph Denison Carey's Basque baked cheesecake
Life is still pretty gloomy at the moment, but cake can make everything better. If you need a Tuesday pick-me-up, Joseph Denison Carey's irresistible cheesecakes could do the trick. But these aren’t just any cheesecakes, these are Joseph’s Basque baked cheesecakes! Get ready to enjoy heaven on a plate.
Basque baked cheesecake
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
1 x vanilla beanZest of 1 lemon150g caster sugar500g cream cheese3 x whole eggs250g double creamPinch of salt 25g plain flour, sifted
For the brittle
150g pistachios150g sugar
Need: 1x loose-bottom cake tin approximately 19cm in diameter and 7cm in depth
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200c. Grease the cake tin with butter then line it with parchment
2. Scrape out the inside of the vanilla bean and, in a mixer (with a paddle attachment), beat with the zest, sugar and cream cheese. Once smooth add the eggs one at a time, then mix the cream and the salt in.
3. Fold the flour in with a spatula by hand, and pour the mix into the cake tin
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180C for a further 30 minutes. After this time, the top should be browned and the centre still appears undercooked and jiggly.
5. Let it rest at room temperature for about an hour and cool, then chill in the fridge
6. Meanwhile, make the brittle. Roughly chop the pistachios, then place them onto a lined baking tray and set aside.
7. Place the sugar into a saucepan at a medium heat to caramelise. When browned and turned to caramel, pour over the chopped nuts in the tray and leave to set to a brittle.
8. When set, wrap the brittle in a tea towel and crush using a rolling pin. Sprinkle on the cheesecake to serve.