michelle picker cooks

From San Sebastien, in Basque Country northern Spain, comes a cheesecake like no other. Invented three decades ago by Santiago Rivera, the owner of the pintxos bar and restaurant La Viña, the cake is so popular that La Viña makes 20 a day and the cake has become famous globally. It’s a deliciously creamy baked cheesecake with a dark and bittersweet exterior caused by baking at a high temperature. A crust would probably really burn so this cake doesn’t have one. I made it recently on the occasion of a double birthday celebration and served it with a delicious Spanish Pedro Ximenez sherry.

Preheat your oven to 200º C (400º F). Prepare a 22cm (9″) springform cake tin by greasing and lining with baking paper, making the paper taller at the sides. Combine 680g (24 oz) of softened cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, ½ a teaspoon of fine salt, and 45g (1½ oz) of flour in a bowl. Mix together until very smooth and creamy. Whisk in ½ a teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and 1 large egg. When thoroughly combined, whisk in 3 more eggs, one at a time. Add 1¼ cups of heavy cream and mix until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan and tap to minimise trapped air bubbles (I should have tapped more). Bake for approximately 40-45 minutes then raise the temperature to 220C (425ºF) and bake for another 10 minutes or until the cake is very well browned and nearly burnt on the edges. Allow the cake to cool in the tin and when it reaches room temperature carefully remove from the tin and peel away the paper. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

*recipe by Chef John from All Recipes