Cotton Soft Japanese Cheese Cake

Some time ago this cake was a hit on many baking blog sites and everyone seemed to agree this is a great recipe, it is lighter than the usual cheesecake, it is soft like sponge cake but smooth and creamy at the same time. This is also a perfect dessert for those who always say desserts are too sweet for them, I can assure you this is not too sweet. But beware you are not going to stop at just one slice.

After reading all the comments, I decided I want to give this a try. Here is the recipe, original was from here.

  • 250 ml milk
  • 250 grams cream cheese, cubed and softened at room temperature
  • 60 grams butter at room temperature
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 55 grams cake flour (I used all purpose flour)
  • 20 grams corn flour
  • 1 lemon zest (I used 1/4 teaspoon of lemon juice because I didn’t have fresh lemon at home)
  • 6 egg whites
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 130 grams castor sugar

Preheat oven to 150C.

Pour the milk into a large bowl and place over simmering water. Don’t let the bottom of the bowl touch the water. Add cream cheese, stir until completely dissolved and the mixture turns smooth. Stir in butter until dissolved. Remove from heat. Let cool down a bit before adding the egg yolks and whisk well.

Sift the in the flours into the cream cheese mixture, a small amount at a time. Mix well between every addition, and make sure there are no flour lumps. Stir in freshly grated zest. Set aside.

Place egg whites in a large clean bowl. Use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites until foamy, then add cream of tartar and blend again. Pour sugar in the egg whites and blend until very stiff peaks form.

Fold-in the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture gently with a rubber spatula just until all ingredients are incorporated. Do not stir or beat. For a better result, fold in egg whites with a small amount at a time, at least for 3 times.

Pour the mixture into the paper-lined baking pan. Place the pan into another larger baking tray. Add hot water in the tray up to half way. Bake for about 50 to 60 minutes. Test with a needle or skewer that comes out clean.

Turn off the oven. Leave the oven door ajar for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and pan, let cool completely on a wire rack. Chill in a fridge for about 3 hours. Enjoy!

*I poured my cheesecake batter in zebra pattern using dark mocha paste for the colour and flavour. If you are not using any flavour addition on the cheesecake batter, you could spread some apricot jam on top of the cake when it is baked and cooled.

*I find lining your baking pan with baking paper definitely helps in taking out your cake when it is done. Because the cake is so soft you don’t want to flip it over to cooling rack and destroy the smooth surface on top.

japanese cheese cake

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