A buttery crust, soft and sweet cream cheese, topped with a jammy compote — what’s not to love! The cheesecake is one of the most loved desserts around the world today. Believed to have originated in Greece, this rich, creamy delight is a global favourite. Once the cheesecake made its way to India, it quickly found loyal fans and there’s a specific slice — from baked New York style to no-bake and topped with berries — for every taste bud.
In fact, such is the love for this sweet treat that the US celebrates National Cheesecake Day every year!
Believed to have originated in Greece, recipes similar to the modern-day cheesecake have been found in books dating back to the 15th century Shutterstock
To mark the day of the dessert delight, My Kolkata went looking for a unique recipe you can try at home, and the Basque Burnt Cheesecake by celebrity chef Nigella Lawson caught our eye.
A well-known and loved face in the culinary world, Nigella is celebrated for her sumptuous recipes, and unapologetic passion for indulgence. With a career spanning decades, she has tantalised taste buds and inspired many with her bestselling cookbooks, television shows, and a warm, engaging persona. The culinary icon is back with her new show Nigella’s Cook, Eat, Repeat, which is showing on BBC Player on Prime Video.
So, raise a fork to cheesecake with Nigella Lawson, assemble your ingredients and let the celebrations begin.
Nigella Lawson’s Basque Burnt Cheesecake with Liquorice Sauce
Ingredients (For 8-12 slices)
For the cheesecake:
- Full-fat cream cheese: 600g
- Caster sugar: 175g
- Eggs: 3 large
- Sour cream: 300ml
- Fine sea salt: ¼ tsp
- Cornflour: 25g
For the sauce
- Hard pure liquorice pellets: 15g (you can buy them here)
- Caster sugar: 90g
- Water: 300ml
- A pinch of fine sea salt (optional)
To serve
- Blackberries or other berries of your choice
Method
- Heat the oven to 200ºC/180ºC. Get out a 20cm springform tin (the one with a latch) and a roll of baking parchment. Unfurl a long piece from the roll, and when it looks like you’ve got enough to line the tin with an overhang of 5-7cm, tear it off and press it into the tin, and down into the edges at the bottom. Now do the same again with a second piece, placing it perpendicular to the first so that the tin is entirely lined. Push this piece down, too, and don’t worry about any pleats, creases and wrinkles — this is ‘the look’. Sit something heavy in the tin to keep the paper in place while you get on with the cheesecake mixture
- Use a freestanding mixer fitted with the flat paddle for this, or simply a large mixing bowl, wooden spoon and elbow grease. First, beat the cream cheese with the sugar until light and smooth — at least 5 minutes by hand
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, waiting for each one to be incorporated before adding the next, and when they’re all mixed in, you can — beating all the while — pour in the sour cream
- Once that is also incorporated, you can slow down the mixer a little (or risk getting cornflour all over yourself) and then beat in the salt, followed by the cornflour, one teaspoon at a time
- Remove the bowl from the mixer, scrape down the sides with a silicon spatula, and give everything a good stir
- Pour into the lined tin (removing whatever’s been sitting in it, obviously), making sure no cheesecake mix is left in the bowl, and then rap the filled tin on the work surface about five times to get rid of any air bubbles
- Place in the oven and bake for 50 minutes, by which time the cheesecake will be a burnished bronze on top, even chestnut brown in places, and it’ll have risen, like a dense soufflé. It will, however, still be very jiggly. It’s meant to be. You’ll think it’s undercooked, but it will carry on cooking as it cools, and it should have a soft set, anyway
- Remove the tin to a wire rack and leave to cool. It will sink in the middle a little, but that too is part of its traditional appearance. It should be cool enough to eat after 3 hours, although you may need to leave it for a little longer
- Make the liquorice sauce once the cheesecake is out of the oven. If you have a bullet blender, you can pulverise the liquorice pastilles first, but whether whole or powder, put in a small saucepan with 300ml of water. Stir in the sugar, then put on a lowish flame until the liquorice has all but dissolved, stirring to give it a bit of a nudge every now and again to help it melt. Then turn up the heat and let it bubble away until reduced to 150ml – turning the heat down a bit if it looks like it’s boiling over. This can take up to 20 minutes. Keep checking – you’ll need a small heatproof measuring jug by your side. Stir in a pinch of salt. When done, leave to cool
- Before serving, unclip and lift the sides of the tin up and away, and then lift the cheesecake up with the edges of the parchment. Place this on a board, and peel the paper back. Drizzle the blackberries and liquorice syrup a little over the slices of cheesecake and serve
Tips
- It is absolutely essential that the cream cheese, sour cream and eggs are at room temperature before you start
- Once the cheesecake is made, if you want to chill it in the fridge, do, but not for more than 30 minutes
- You can use powdered liquorice too
- Drizzle the blackberries and even blacker liquorice syrup over the slices of cheesecake as you hand them out, allowing hardcore liquorice lovers to spoon more over as they eat
Nigella’s Cook, Eat, Repeat is now playing on BBC Player on Prime Video Channels. Sign up now and don’t miss the opportunity to join Nigella, one of the world's most celebrated and beloved cook, as she shares the rhythms and rituals of her kitchen through a multitude of delicious new recipes.
