Name: Reseña de Basque Cheesecake por hurkanakbiyik en Salvo, Amsterdam, Países Bajos
Item: Basque Cheesecake
Rating: 2.6
Author: hurkanakbiyik

Spain

A crustless cheesecake baked at a ferocious heat in a tin lined with crumpled paper until the top is burnt almost black and the centre is still liquid: the tarta de queso of La Viña, a pintxo bar in San Sebastián's old town, has become the Basque cheesecake served from Tokyo to New York, and it inverts everything the New York version stands for. Santiago Rivera developed it at La Viña in the early 1990s, reportedly from a decade of adjusting a classic recipe, and the bar still bakes dozens a day and cuts them at the counter. The appeal is the contrast: a bitter caramelised crust, a wobbly, custardy middle, and a flavour that is mostly cream cheese and sugar with a salt edge. There is no base, no water bath and no fruit, and it is served at room temperature in thick wedges, often with a glass of sherry or Pedro Ximénez.

The batter is cream cheese beaten smooth with sugar, then eggs added one at a time, then double cream, a pinch of salt and a very small amount of flour to hold it; the mix is loose, almost pourable, and should have no lumps. It goes into a deep tin lined with two sheets of baking paper pressed in so the edges stand above the rim and form the characteristic ruffled sides. The oven runs at 200 to 240°C, far hotter than a conventional cheesecake, and the cake bakes for thirty to forty-five minutes until the top is deep brown with black patches and the sides have set while the centre, when the tin is shaken, still moves like a set custard. It is taken out before it looks done, cooled in the tin for hours so the centre firms from the residual heat, and never refrigerated before serving if it can be helped, because cold dulls the texture.

Judge the cut face first: the outside should be browned and set, the middle pale and soft, sliding slightly on the plate, with a gradient between them rather than a uniform firm cake. The top should taste bitter and caramelised, close to burnt, and the inside should be rich, lightly salty and not very sweet, with the tang of cream cheese. Mark down a cake that is set firm all the way through, which was baked too long or too cool; one that is raw and pours, which was pulled too early; a pale top, which means the oven was not hot enough; a grainy or split texture from overbeating or a cold batter; and a slice served fridge-cold or with sauces and fruit, which belong to other cheesecakes. Weight is a sign: a good slice is dense and heavy for its size. A version with a biscuit base is a different cake using the name.

Basque Cheesecake

Netherlands

Salvo

Afternoons at Salvo is a mistake.

This dessert didn’t work for me. The salty caramel on top made it even more savory than it already was, and for a cheesecake, it lacked the balance you’d expect from a dessert. The overall taste leaned too much into the sour side. I’m not a cheesecake fan in general, but even putting that aside, I couldn’t finish this one. Wouldn’t recommend.

Reseña de Basque Cheesecake por hurkanakbiyik en Salvo, Amsterdam, Países Bajos

Tarta de queso vasca

Salvo

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