(Basque style) Mahón cheesecake by Judith Zárate
Barcelona (Spain) has had Cheese Bakers since the beginning of 2024, a charming bakery where everything is made with cheese, from appetizers to breads, focaccias and, of course, desserts. The key that helps to understand how daring this initiative is, is the very fashionable Basque-style cake with a creamy, almost liquid interior. The Basque-style cheesecake is also known as La Viña cheesecake after the famous recipe from the family restaurant La Viña in San Sebastián. After reading several books, putting ideas together, and carrying out many tests, Santiago Rivera created a recipe more than 30 years ago that has become so popular that national and international chefs began to make their own versions. Its most notable feature is that it has one kilogram of cream cheese and only contains eggs, flour, sugar and cream as ingredients; no biscuits or raspberry or blackberry coulis.
At Cheese Bakers, the work of the young Judith Zárate stands out, trained at the prestigious School of the Pastry Guild of Barcelona (EPGB). Below we share her recipe for Mahón cheesecake, undoubtedly the star product of the house.
“We started with different types of cheese and we have left those that have had the best response. There is brie cheese, which is the one that sells the most, but also Mahón, Gorgonzola, and goat cheese. Recently we have also incorporated a cheesecake with chocolate,” says Zárate.
Mahon cheesecake
Mixture
- 221 g cream cheese
- 167 g mascarpone
- 172 g sugar
- 148 g egg
- 19 g corn starch
- 3 g xanthan gum
- 340 g 35% fat cream
- 266 g Mahon cheese
Heat the cream with the Mahon cheese until melted.
Beat the cream cheese, mascarpone, sugar, egg, and starch until smooth.
Sieve the mixed hot cheese and cream into the mixture. Add the xanthan gum and blend.
Biscuit base
- 250 g flour
- 250 g butter
- 250 g ground almonds
- 250 g sugar
Mix all the ingredients in the mixer. Roll out to 4 mm. Cook at 165ºC for 12 minutes. Once cold, blend until you obtain a biscuit powder.
Assembly
In a mold measuring 19 cm in diameter by 6.5 cm high, measure out 200 g of biscuit on the base and press down.
Add 1,300 g of batter, avoiding the introduction of air.
Bake for 20 minutes at 160ºC with closed vent and then 15 minutes at 190ºC with closed vent.
Allow to cool to room temperature.
