Light and Fluffy Japanese Cotton Cheesecake (スフレチーズケーキ )

Preheat the oven: Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position (I use the second rack position from the bottom). Preheat the oven to 120°C (248°F) with top and bottom heating mode.
Note: This is NOT the actual baking temperature we want, but we start at a slightly higher temperature to compensate for the slight temperature drop when we finish setting up the water bath in the oven. The temperature should end up between 100-110°C (212 - 230°F).
Prepare a water bath: Boil enough water to fill a roasting pan with at least an inch/2.5 cm of water. I use a 2-litre/8-cup pot or a full kettle of water.
Prepare the cake pan: Grease thoroughly the sides and rim of a 6 x 3 inch /15 x 7.5 cm deep round pan - don’t leave any spot un-greased and go all the way up the sides to the rim. Line the bottom with parchment paper.
Note: Do not line the sides with parchment paper as the baked cheesecake will have unsightly folds and creases around its sides which doesn't look nice. You only need to line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper as this will make it easier to un-mould the cheesecake. I do not recommend using a loose-bottom pan or springform pan to bake this cheesecake.
Set up a double boiler (bain marie): Fill a saucepan or smaller pot with 1 inch/2.5cm of water. Heat on a low setting until the water reaches a bare simmer.
Cream cheese mixture: Place the cream cheese, butter and milk in a heatproof bowl. Set the bowl in the double boiler. With a whisk, break up the cream cheese as it melts and keep stirring until the mixture becomes smooth and no lumps remain. Remove the cream cheese mixture from the double boiler and let it sit for 1 - 2 minutes to cool.
What to look out for: Do not let the cream cheese mixture get hotter than 60°C (140°F) otherwise it may end up toughening the protein in the yolks that are subsequently added. Check that the mixing bowl sits just above the water level inside the double boiler.
Flours and salt: Sift together the cake flour, corn flour and salt into the cream cheese mixture. Stir with a whisk until just absorbed. The mixture will be quite lumpy, this is OKAY.
Egg yolks: Quickly stir in the yolks, one at a time, with the whisk. Keep stirring until the cream cheese mixture becomes smooth. Use a silicon spatula to scrape off any cream cheese sticking to the bottom and sides of the bowl.
Strain the cream cheese mixture into an empty mixing bowl, pressing against the strainer with a spatula. Do not forget to scrape the mixture off the bottom of the strainer.
Meringue: Separately, place the egg whites and sugar in a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk. Sprinkle over the cream of tartar. Whip the egg whites at medium-high speed until firm peaks form. Reduce the mixer speed to low and whip the meringue for another 30 seconds (this helps eliminate large air bubbles, making the meringue fine and glossy).
What to look out for: Observe the air bubbles and the general appearance of the meringue. As the air bubbles get smaller and begin to disappear, the meringue will start to get finer, thicker (foamier) and begin to look glossy. This is when you'll want to pause whipping more frequently to check for firm peaks. Stop when the meringue holds firm peaks that fold slightly into itself at the tip when the whisk or beaters are lifted.
Combine: Fold one-third of the meringue into the cream cheese mixture with a whisk until well incorporated. Fold in the remaining meringue, gently, to avoid deflating the batter. Once the meringue disappears, switch to a silicon spatula. Fold a few more times, again gently, until the batter is smooth and has a uniform consistency.
Fill the pan: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Run a metal skewer in circles through the batter to knock out air pockets. Give the cake pan a few firm taps on the counter.
Water bath: Place a clean tea cloth in the roasting pan. Sit the cake pan on top Carefully pour the hot water into the roasting pan until an inch/2.5 cm deep. Open the oven door, and put the water bath set-up in the oven.
Note: The temperature will drop slightly by the time you finish setting up the water bath. This is OK.
Bake: Reduce the temperature to 110°C (230°F). Bake for 60 minutes. Turn up the temperature to 160℃ (320°F) and set the timer for 15 minutes. Once the cheesecake surface browns evenly, turn off the oven. Let the cheesecake sit in the turned-off oven for 5 minutes. Open the oven door and keep it slightly ajar with an oven mitten and let the cheesecake sit for another 10 minutes.
What to look out for: At the lower temperature, the cheesecake rises VERY SLOWLY so do not be overly concerned if it doesn’t rise much. Towards the end of the first 60 minutes, the cheesecake should have risen and look visibly puffed and dome-shaped in its centre. As the temperature heats up, this is when the cheesecake rises dramatically and browns at the same time.
Please note that the cheesecake will shrink a little from the sides of the pan, and lose about a quarter of its height as it cools. This is totally normal for this type of cheesecake.
Release: Remove the cake pan from the water bath, take off the foil and immediately un-mould the cheesecake from the pan. To un-mould the cheesecake, place a piece of parchment paper followed by a wire rack/plate over the top of the cake. Gently flip over the cake. Carefully lift up the pan to release the cake. Gently peel the parchment paper off the base of the cake. Now, cover the base with another serving plate and flip over the cake again. Let cool completely.

Light and Fluffy Japanese Cotton Cheesecake (スフレチーズケーキ )

Ingredients

Instructions

Nutrition Information: