Basque mango cheesecake

This Basque mango cheesecake was created almost immediately after my Basque pumpkin cheesecake. The colour was just as beautiful, and I simply had to test the recipe with mango purée. The result is… absolutely incredible. Rich, creamy, melt-in-the-mouth and bursting with the flavour and aroma of fresh mango. It’s the creamiest mango cheesecake I’ve ever tasted. I won’t even try too hard to convince you to make it because I’m sure it will find its way straight onto your favourites list ;).

Ingredients for mango Basque cheesecake:

• 900 g full-fat cream cheese, Philadelphia-style
• 250 g caster sugar
• seeds from 1 vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• 6 large eggs
• 300 ml double cream
• 250 g mango purée
• 40 g plain flour
• a pinch of salt

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

Line a 25 cm springform tin (or a deep 23 cm tin, approximately 10 cm high) with baking parchment. First, grease the tin lightly with butter, then line it so that the parchment extends about 5 cm above the rim of the tin.

Place the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until smooth and the sugar has dissolved. Add the eggs (whole, without separating the yolks and whites) and the salt. Mix until completely smooth. Add the mango purée and double cream and mix until combined. Sift the flour directly into the cheesecake mixture and mix briefly until smooth and fully incorporated. Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared tin.

Bake at 200°C for approximately 50–60 minutes.* Once baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool. The surface (or at least the edges) should be deeply caramelised and dark brown, while the centre should still wobble noticeably when the tin is gently shaken. The cheesecake will rise significantly during baking and then settle as it cools, creating the characteristic raised edges.

Chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. Only after chilling will the cheesecake reach its proper texture and be ready for slicing. The cheesecake can be kept at room temperature for short periods, but for longer storage, or during warm weather, it is best stored in the refrigerator.

Note: Some recipes suggest baking this cheesecake for only 40 minutes to achieve an even creamier centre, removing it from the oven while the middle still wobbles considerably. The shorter the baking time, the creamier the cheesecake will be. Traditionally, the very centre has an almost custard-like consistency, which can make neat slicing difficult. However, be careful not to underbake it to the point where it remains runny after chilling, as that is not the intended result. A shorter baking time will also produce less browning on top, but this can easily be corrected by placing the cheesecake under a hot grill for 30–60 seconds, keeping a close eye on it. Personally, I could probably bake this cheesecake slightly less, but this is exactly how we enjoy it.

Enjoy!