Uncle Rikuro's Cheesecake (Japanese Soft Cheesecake)

Ingredients:
250g Cream cheese
100ml fresh milk
50g butter
1 tbsp lemon juice
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
60g Plain flour
20g cornflour
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven at 120 deg C (top & bottom without fan mode).  Lightly grease & line the bottom & sides of the 18cm round pan.
2. Sift flour & cornflour together & add salt to it.
3. Melt cream cheese, butter & milk over a double boiler.  Cool the mixture.
4. Add egg yolks into the cream cheese mixture & continue to whisk till incorporated.
5. Then add lemon juice & fold in the sifted flours.
6. In another bowl, whisk egg whites until foamy.  Add in the sugar gradually & whisk until soft peaks form. (Do not overbeat the egg whites.  They should look glossy)
7. Add 1/3 egg white mixture into the cheese mixture & fold to mix well.  And repeat the process until the egg white mixture finish.
8. Pour into the springform cake tin & tap few times so that wouldn't end up with huge bubbles in the cake.
9. Put the cake onto a tray filled with some hot water & bake in a water bath (See Note below for baking time & step)

Alternative Temperature/Baking Time:

Baking Step 1:

• Baking temperature: 120 deg C / bake for 20 mins.  After 20 mins, keep the oven door closed & increase the temperature to 150 deg C; continue baking for 15 mins.

Baking Step 2:

• After 15 mins, open the oven door for 10 sec & close back up. Now lower the temperature to 100 deg C; continue baking for 40 mins.

Baking Step 3:

• After 40 mins; turn off the oven.  Open the oven door & close back up.  Let the cake cool down in the oven for 10 mins.

Baking time may vary depending on the type & accuracy of your oven.  If you want to succeed baking this recipe.  buy a thermometer to place in the oven.

Tips:

• Always pre-heat the oven and fill the water in tray/pan bigger enough for the 18cm tin for the water bath.
• Do not remove the hot cake out of a baking pan immediately or the cake may collapse.  Let cool for 15 mins before removing from the tin.
• Substitute lemon juice with orange juice
• Replace 20-30g cake flour with the respective amount of Matcha (green tea powder) or Cocoa powder.