Known by a variety of names (Cotton Cheesecake, Japanese Cheesecake, Jiggly Cheesecake, Souffle Cheesecake), this is a meringue-leavened cream cheese cake. Like a large cream cheese souffle.

There are a lot of factors that can cause the cheesecake to fail. Inadequate greasing of the cake pan (like mine), the position of the oven rack, baking time and temperature (which varies from oven to oven), stiffness/stability of your meringue... It's a lot of trial and error.
 

Some important reminders:

• Keep your ingredients at room temperature.

• Have a clean bowl and tools for your meringue. Grease and debris will prevent the meringue from stabilizing.

• Using cream of tartar and slowly adding the sugar to your egg whites both help create a more stable meringue.

• Underbeating your meringue will prevent the cake from rising nicely like a souffle.

• Overbeating the meringue can cause you to overfold the final mixture, deflating the batter too much. Or it can cause the batter to separate, making the top of the cake light and spongey but the bottom dense.

• Use a normal round cake pan, NOT a springform pan. A springform pan risks the water from the water bath leaking into the cake. If you only have a springform pan, wrap the outside of the pan with several large sheets of aluminum foil.

• Keep the oven rack in the lowest position. Too much top heat will set the top of the cheesecake before it's fully risen, causing the top to crack.

• Grease the pan, and grease the parchment as well. If the cake sticks to the parchment (like mine did), the cake's surface will wrinkle. Its expansion and shrinking occur during baking and cooling, so it can't stick to anything!

• Use a water bath and paper towels under the cake pan for slow, gentle cooking. The water bath creates a humid environment in the oven, helping the cake's rise and preventing it from cracking.

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Ingredients

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• 30 g unsalted butter, softened

• 120 g cream cheese, softened

• 3 egg yolks

• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 25 g all-purpose flour

• 15 g cornstarch

• 60 g milk

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• 3 egg whites

• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

• 60 g granulated sugar

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Instructions

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1. Grease a 6-inch diameter (and at least 2 1/2-inches in height) round cake pan with butter. Line with parchment on the bottom and sides, and grease the parchment again with butter.

2. In a larger baking dish (water bath), place a few layers of paper towel. This will ensure slower, even baking later on. Set aside.

3. Place the oven rack in the lowest position. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare hot water for a water bath.

4. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add egg yolks, one at a time, and mix well until fully incorporated. Stir in vanilla.

5. Sift the all-purpose flour and cornstarch into the cream cheese mixture, and combine until there are no flour streaks remaining. Stir in the milk.

6. In a clean mixing bowl, whisk egg whites with a mixer on medium speed until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and continue whisking until egg whites are completely foamy. Gradually sprinkle in the granulated sugar and continue mixing on medium speed until meringue almost reaches stiff peaks. When you lift the mixer, the point of the meringue should mostly be straight, but the tip should curve over slightly.

7. Sift the cream cheese mixture into the meringue. Gently fold together until no streaks remain, but be careful you don't deflate the mixture.

8. Pour the batter into the prepared 6-inch cake pan. Drop the cake pan on the counter about 10 times to remove any large air bubbles. You can drag a skewer through the batter as well.

9. Place the cake pan in the larger baking dish, on top of the paper towels. Add hot water in the large baking dish until it reaches about halfway up the cake pan.

10. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes.

11. Lower the oven temperature to 275°F. Open the oven door for 5 seconds to help drop the heat. Continue baking for about 40 more minutes.

12. Once the cheesecake is done baking, open the oven door again for 5 seconds to help drop the heat a little bit. Close the door and keep the cheesecake in the warm oven for another 20 minutes. Subtly cooling the cheesecake like this should help reduce cracks and sinking.

13. Remove the cheesecake from the oven. Invert on a plate and remove the bottom parchment. Turn cake over and remove side parchment. Decorate and serve.