Lemon Burnt Basque Cheesecake Recipe

This recipe for cheesecake basque is absolutely delicious and ridiculously easy. Follow along with the video tutorial for a step-by-step guide as to how to make this incredible dessert!

I love Basque cheesecake. This is my third one on my website I love it so much. I simply cannot get enough. As I also love lemon, I figured it was time to combine the two and thus the lemon burnt basque cheesecake recipe was born. Let’s get to it.

Basque Burnt Cheesecake Origin

Burnt basque cheesecake (otherwise known as a San Sebastian cheesecake recipe) differentiates itself from traditional cheesecake as it does not require a water bath in the oven.

Whereas a traditional cheesecake would have no cracks on the top, San Sebastian cheesecake recipes call for a dark color on the top that can lead to cracking, in fact, it is encouraged!

The cake was originally created by La Viña Bar in San Sebastian, Spain (Basque territory- specifically the northern part of Basque territory). Burnt Basque Cheesecakes recipes never call for a crust, another significant distinction between them and their regular cheesecake counterparts! Baking the cake at a high temperature helps to caramelize the outer layer of the cake, helping to give it a distinctly delicious flavor.

What is the difference between a burnt basque cheesecake recipe and a Japanese burnt cheesecake recipe?

Not much differentiates the two types of cheesecake, however, Japanese cheesecake is entirely different from a “traditional” cheesecake. A regular cheesecake typically has a crust, and uses a good amount of cream cheese. In the Japanese style, the cheesecake is baked without crust (similar to a san sebastian cheesecake recipe), uses less cream cheese, and uses whipped egg whites to lift up the cake and make it incredibly fluffy!

Can you make this recipe into mini burnt cheesecakes or mini basque cheesecakes?

Yes! You absolutely can. I would suggest lining a muffin with tin muffin liners. I have a better explanation of this for my recipe for blueberry burnt basque cheesecake. But mini basque cheesecakes are definitely an option. To see instructions, go to my recipe where I discuss how to do that for blueberry burnt basque cheesecake.

Recipe Alterations: Can this recipe be made into a keto burnt basque cheesecake?

Aspects of the recipe are part of a keto friendly diet, i.e. the dairy parts. However, as a keto diet is no sugar and even supplementing gluten free flour for baking is not generally accepted I would say that this recipe would not be suitable for adapting into a keto burnt basque cheesecake.

What do you need for this Lemon Burnt Basque Cheesecake Recipe?

1. 1 1/4 cup heavy cream
2. 1/4 cup lemon juice
3. 3 large eggs
4. 24 oz (3 packages) of softened cream cheese
5. 3/4 cup sugar – a few tsp more to sprinkle on the top
6. 1 tsp vanilla
7. 1/4 cup gluten free flour (I used King Arthur)

How do you make it?

1. Set your oven to 400°F. Meanwhile, in the bowl of your stand mixer, add the softened cream cheese and beat for 2-3 minutes. Add the sugar and allow the mix to come together for 2-3 more minutes. Proceed to add your eggs, one at a time. Once fully incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure all of the cream cheese is soft and that there will be no lumps.
2. Pour in the lemon juice, cream, and vanilla. Make sure the speed is not too high as you do not want the liquid to go flying out of the bowl. Add the gluten free flour (or regular flour if you are not gluten free) and either fold it in by hand with a spatula or leave it in the bowl with the mixmaster running for no more than 30 seconds.
3. Grease a springform pan with butter and line it with parchment paper. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 55 minutes. Once done, allow to come to room temperature on the counter and then transfer to the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours, I prefer overnight. When you wish to serve it, you can eat it right out of the fridge or allow it to come to room temperature for 30-60 minutes prior to serving. Either way is delicious!

Looking for other cake recipes?

Traditional Burnt Basque Cheesecake
Heath Bar Cheesecake
Chocolate Cake
Blueberry Burnt Basque Cheesecake
Sleeping Beauty Cake
Orange Olive Oil Cakes
Funfetti Cake
Carrot Cake
Harry Potter Birthday Cake
Salvadorian Breakfast Cakes

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