Japanese Cheesecake

I like this so much more than a traditional NY style cheesecake. The lightness is surprising and this type of cheesecake literally melts in your mouth, like a combination of souffle and creamy cheesecake. Yum!

1 T soft butter for greasing the parchment paper
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
1⁄3 c whole milk or heavy cream, hot
3 T unsalted butter, melted
8 T granulated sugar, divided
3 eggs, separated
1⁄3 c cake flour
Zest of 1⁄2 a lemon
1 t lemon juice
1 t vanilla bean paste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8” springform pan with parchment paper, fitting it snugly into the pan and letting the excess paper overhang the edges. Grease the parchment paper with softened butter.

Combine cream cheese, hot milk, butter, and 4 T sugar in a medium bowl and mix well with a whisk until it’s a smooth, thick cream consistency. Add egg yolks and whisk until smooth. Sift in cake flour, mixing gently with the whisk to combine. Add lemon zest, juice and vanilla, stir. Pass the batter through a sieve into another bowl, to ensure it’s absolutely smooth.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium until they begin to froth, about 3 minutes. Slowly rain in remaining 4 T sugar with mixer running on medium high speed. Once all sugar is added, increase speed and beat the whites until they form soft medium peaks. The whites should cling to the whisk, but still flop over at the peak.

Whisk 1⁄3 of the whites into cream cheese mixture. Then gently fold in another 1⁄3 of the whites. Pour the mixture into the mixer bowl containing remaining egg whites and very gently fold whites in.

Pour mixture into pan. Gently tap the cake pan on the counter to release any air pockets. Place cake pan into a deeper, larger pan or a deep baking sheet. Transfer cake to the oven, then fill larger pan or baking sheet with hot water to 1” deep, creating a water bath. Immediately lower oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake for 40 minutes. Open the oven door to release steam, close it, and reduce the oven temp to 300. Continue baking for another 10-12 minutes, until the top is golden and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn off the oven and leave the oven door ajar for 10 minutes with the cake inside. It will slowly sink down to about half its height.

Remove cake from oven and let cool 15 minutes. Remove cake from pan using paper overhang. Refrigerate 2-4 hours before serving.

Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and serve with fresh fruit or berries if desired.