*THAT* BASQUE BURNT CHEESECAKE.

It’s never going to go away, because it’s so damn good.

Like so many of its fans, I first had the famous Basque burnt cheesecake at La Vina, a small, noisy bar in San Sebastian in northern Spain’s Basque region, where it was created by chef Santiago Rivera over thirty years ago.

Several cheesecakes – huge, hulking things - sat quietly on the bar, bronzed by the fiery temperature of the wood-fired oven. You could almost hear them sighing as they cooled. The menu listing was modest - tarta de queso - but the taste was pure and sweet; the cleanest creaminess I’ve ever had.

The wonderful thing about this cheesecake is what a delight it is to make. It’s not only laughably easy, ( blend/pour/bake), but it’s so entertaining to watch, as it rises like a souffle, subsides and probably cracks. None of which you have to worry about, because it’s all part of the act.

The filling is as soft and light as a mousse, and the crust is really rather lovely, the happy result of milk solids in the cream cheese caramelising in the heat of the oven. And it doesn’t taste burnt at all - unless you actually go out of your way to burn it. My recipe, below.

At this year’s fund-raising dinner for the Two Good Foundation, I was reminded again of just how good it is. Lennox Hastie of Sydney’s fire-powered Firedoor, and tapas bar Gildas, worked with his pastry chef Swati, and the Two Good kitchen team to bake a total of FOURTEEN Basque cheesecakes. A hush fell over the room that night, as people picked up spoons and suddenly found themselves too busy eating to do anything else. Here it is in all its magnificence.

A WORD ON TWO GOOD.

Each year, Two Good donates 35,000 (beautiful) meals as messages of love and support to women’s refuges and community services. But it doesn’t end there, because it goes in a circle. The Two Good Work Work program gives women in the refuge centres the chance to be trained in the Two Good Kitchens in Eveleigh – paid employment, as part of a team, as they get back on their feet.

Some of the graduates of that program who have their own jobs, first heard of Two Good when a meal was handed to them in a refuge. Some have never been able to work before – due to visa issues, being carers, or having cameras trained on them at home to make sure they never leave the house.

For this year’s fund-raising dinner with partners and collaborators, founder Rob Caslick, head wrangler Jo Rosenberg and the rest of the advisory panel wanted to focus on the power of teamwork, and what mighty things people can do when they get together. The theme was “All Twogether”, because we do love a pun.

Miraculously, an entire restaurant group came on board to make that dream come true.  We worked with Sydney’s Fink Group, which was founded by Leon Fink in 1985 and has grown into a formidable force in shaping the greatness of Sydney dining.

It was a very beautiful, spirited night at Sydney’s Machine Hall, and big thanks to Fink’s amazing Sarah Barker and CEO Jeremy Courmadias for making it happen. 

As for the chefs - wow. Rob Cockerill of Bennelong at the Opera House, the fire-powered Lennox Hastie, Owner and Chef of Gildas, and Firedoor; the legend that is Richard Ptacnik, Head Chef of OTTO on Finger Wharf; and Tim Mifsud and Troy Crisante, the two brilliant Co-Head Chefs of Quay, together with Two Good’s own Pru Basser and The Two Good Kitchen Team. Basically, that’s TEN Good Food Guide chef hats in the room cooking for us in one night, a record which I will never, ever attempt to better, because I wouldn’t be able to.

Thank you to our immaculate hosts Deborah Knight and David Campbell, our killer auctioneer Briannan Davis of Cooley Auctions, Jamie Zamudio and the mighty Fourth Wall event producers, and all the small and large producers and suppliers who give so much to help this very special social enterprise grow and thrive.

Otto’s whole slow-braised lamb shoulder with gremolata was unforgettable, especially with Lowe Family Wine Co’s organic and biodynamic Tinja Merlot, and we all sat elbow-to-elbow on Hogwarts-long tables, digging in and sharing, and ended up singing along with DC and the soulful Mahalia Barnes, in one collective voice. 

Basically, it was a lot of very good people doing their bit to help feed people and initiate change in other’s lives.  Check out Two Good here; there are plenty of ways you can help.

BASQUE BURNT CHEESECAKE

• 1 kg Philadelphia cream cheese, room temperature

• 350 g caster sugar

• 200 ml sour cream, room temperature

• 300 ml thickened (whipping) cream, room temperature

• Grated zest of 2 lemons

• 6 large (55g) eggs, room temperature

• 2 tbsp plain flour, sifted

• Half tsp salt

Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan-forced). Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature.

Line the bottom and sides of a 23 cm springform cake tin with baking paper so that it extends 5 cm above the top of the pan (see tip below).

In a food processor - or with an electric mixer - blend the cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, thickened cream, lemon zest and salt for 2 to 3 minutes until smooth, scraping down the sides once or twice.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly, then add the flour, and beat until smooth.

Pour the batter into the lined tin, and bake for 50 to 55 minutes on the centre rack until bronzed on top, but still quite jiggly in the centre – it will set as it cools.

If it’s still pale, raise the heat by 10 degrees, move the cake to an upper rack and bake for a further 5 minutes until browned - but keep an eye on it.

Remove from the oven and leave in the tin for four hours or refrigerate overnight, uncovered.

To serve, remove the springform mould, but leave the cheesecake in the paper until serving - all part of the rustic charm - then gently peel it back to reveal the cake, and slice into wedges.

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Tip: To line the springform pan easily, use two sheets of baking paper, the second at right-angles to the first, so that the edges extend past the rim of the pan by 3 or 4 cm. This helps guide the cheesecake as it rises, and makes it easy to remove from the pan. Place the cake pan on a baking tray so you can move it in and out of the oven easily.

It doesn’t really need anything, but Lennox Hastie served it with rhubarb and that was fabulous. PS.  If you want to out-source your next celebration cake, you can order his exemplary cheesecake from Gildas in Surry Hills.

Thanks for dropping by! And as always, thanks for your comments and suggestions. Thanks to photographers Kenny Spain amd Paul Suesse for the gorgeous pics. And special thanks to Terry for doing ‘the pose’ on the media wall (very Mount Rushmore).

I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, and pay my respects to Elders past and present, and to the continuing strength and resilience of First Nations people, communities and cultures.