#semi-fail

Japanese Cheesecake

Original recipe from Diana's Desserts and tips from The Little Teochew

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese 

2 ounces butter 

100 ml/3 fluid ounces fresh milk 

60 grams/2 ounces cake flour/superfine flour 

20 grams/1 ounce cornstarch 

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 

1/4 teaspoon salt

140 grams/5 ounces fine granulated sugar 

6 egg whites 

6 egg yolks 

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar 

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Grease a 9 inch round baking pan and line with wax or parchment paper. Yes, I bought myself a nice new baking pan today. :)

2. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler (or in a glass bowl over a pot of boiling water). Cool the mixture.

3. Sift the flour, the cornstarch and salt in a bowl. Combine flour mixture with egg yolks, lemon juice and cream cheese mixture.

4. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form. 

3. To fold the egg white mixture into the cream cheese mixture.. 

Gently stir a quarter of the whites into the batter to lighten it. Scrape the remaining whites onto the lightened batter and cut through the center of the two mixtures to the bottom of the bowl.

Pull the spatula towards you scraping along the bottom and sides of the bowl. Once the spatula is out of the mixture, rotate the spatula so that any mixture clinging to it falls back into the batter.

Spin the bowl a quarter turn and repeat this process until the beaten whites are just incorporated and no streak of whites remain.

Source: America's Test Kitchen

I really wish I had read this tip beforehand. I ended up doing things the opposite way by mixing the cream cheese mixture into the egg white mixture as the original recipe stated.

4. Pour into the cake pan. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for 1 hours 10 minutes or until set and golden brown. Let the cheesecake gradually cool down in the oven for around 10 minutes after baking.

One tip from The Little Teochew was to use tart moulds (or in my case, cupcake moulds)   around the sides of a larger tray so that the cake will be moist but not damp. I also put a sheet of foil on top because the top bakes quickly - I removed it only about 5 minutes before the baking time ended.