This Keto Burnt Basque Cheesecake is so creamy and rich, and it’s absolutely impossible to mess up. The caramelized top and sides of this low carb cheesecake are unmistakeable.
Ready to become a seriously trendy foodie? Burnt Basque Cheesecake is THE hot new dessert, and you have got to make this keto version!
And yes, it’s supposed to look like that. It’s meant to be cracked and sunken, with a deep brown outer skin. The benefit of this somewhat ugly, plain-looking cheesecake is that you really can’t mess it up.
A cheesecake that you deliberately over-beat and over-bake? That you don’t care about rising and falling and cracking? Sounds kind of crazy, doesn’t it.
But oh my heavens, it is good. Ugly food for the win!
Keto burnt basque cheesecake inspiration
Let’s be clear, you all have my husband, Tim, to thank for this keto cheesecake deliciousness. So let’s all say it together: Thank you, Tim!
He saw a write up in Portland Monthly and shoved the magazine under my nose, asking me to make it keto friendly. The article did not have a recipe, so I did some quick research online.
One look at the ingredients, and I was on board. As it has no crust, Burnt Basque Cheesecake is extremely low carb – a perfect dessert for the keto diet.
I found two conventional recipes that appealed, since they were simple in method, and both made smaller, 6-inch cakes. I took the best tips from both No Recipes and Buttermilk Pantry, while also giving it my own little sugar-free, keto twist.
How to make keto burnt basque cheesecake
Those of you who have struggled with baked cheesecakes in the past are going to love this easy recipe. You can almost do no wrong here, since it’s supposed to be browned and even a little cracked.
That doesn’t mean you don’t still have to watch it in the oven! Here are my tips for getting it right:
- You must line that pan with parchment paper. Lots of parchment, so that there is plenty of paper coming up over the sides of the pan for easy removal.
- I used both Swerve and BochaSweet for a slightly softer filling, but you can used just Swerve if you prefer. It won’t make too much of a difference.
- Blending the mixture in a food processor made it simpler, although I did find I had to constantly scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl so I didn’t end up with any cream cheese lumps. But a good blender or a mixer will work well too. You don’t have to worry about overbeating this cheesecake!
- Room temperature ingredients, always. How often do I say this? Well you should know by now, it makes for a much smoother filling.
- Jack up that temp to a blistering 450F. Most cheesecake is baked at 300F or so, but this one wants to get all browned on the top. It helps caramelize the natural sugars in the cream cheese and cream.
- Let it come to room temperature after baking, then refrigerate for a few hours for that super dense, creamy quality.
Can you make burnt basque cheesecake ahead?
This is a perfect keto cheesecake for making a day in advance, because of its unique dense quality. I honestly think I enjoyed it more the second day.
Wrap the cheesecake up tightly, and it’s good for up to 4 or 5 days in the fridge. Store any leftovers wrapped up tightly as well.
How to serve keto burnt basque cheesecake?
This is a glorious cheesecake on its own or served with a few fresh berries. I also made some of my Keto Caramel Sauce and drizzled that over a slice.
It would also be fantastic with some keto fudge sauce, or this amazing pecan praline sauce. Man, I wish I’d thought of that at the time!
Ready to make some delicious Keto Burnt Basque Cheesecake?
Also be sure to check out all the best keto cheesecake recipes here. You’re sure to find something you love!
Burnt Basque Cheesecake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces (453.59 g) cream cheese, softened
- 1/3 cup (60.67 g) powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1/3 cup (63.6 g) BochaSweet, (can do additional Swerve)
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/3 cup (79.33 g) heavy cream, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tbsp coconut flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450F and line a 6-inch cake pan with parchment paper so that the parchment sticks up above the sides of the pan.
- Place the cream cheese and sweeteners in a food processor and blend until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and blend until smooth. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the food processor as needed.
- Add the heavy cream and vanilla and blend until smooth, then add the coconut flour and blend until combined. Again be sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the food processor bowl so there are not unblended chunks.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is a rich golden brown and the center just jiggles slightly.
- Remove and let cool 1 hour, then transfer to the fridge until completely chilled, about 2 more hours.
- Remove from the pan by lifting out with the parchment edges.
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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6 inch pan sounds really small for the quantity of cream cheese. You mean 6 inch diameter?
Yup, 6 inches across. Diameter is how you measure baking pans. And it works, trust me.
Thought so, thanks.
Hello, Carolyn! Could you tell me what would be the measurement if using either powdered stevia extract or powdered erythritol or mixed?
Thanks a lot and I love your recipes! =)
No, I really can’t. Because stevia varies brand to brand and also I didn’t try that out on this recipe. You will need to experiment, I think.
I made it today and used Purevia stevia (whole earth)- I usually half the swerve quantites in this case. So I powdered 60g for 8 servings, and added 50g for the Bocha sweet part -I don’ t have Bocha sweet… also we don’t like too sweet desserts and thon worked just fine.
Hi Carolyn, do you have a recipe for 8 or 9 -inch pan?
Thanks!
I don’t but it’s easy to adjust. Find an online calculator to measure the area of an 8 inch circle and a 6 inch circle. Then figure out how much you need to scale up the recipe. I suspect it will be close to 1.2 to 2 times.
Is it ok if I don’t put any of the sweeteners at all?
I guess! I’ve never tried it that way.
Is there any other flour to use, as it is only a tablespoon, the coconut flour makes it coco nutty even at 1 and a half table spoons.
What brand of coconut flour are you using? because this tiny amount should not make it flavored at all.
Amazing dessert!!
I don’t have Bocha sweet..what is its advantage over other powdered sweeteners?
Please read the How To section.
I haven’t made this yet… I love cheesecake but my husband does not. I’ll need to serve when we have company or eat it myself over a few days 😉
What exactly do you mean by “wrap the cheesecake up tightly’? Please give me your details… I want to be sure to store it so it lasts well.
Thanks!
Saran wrap, foil, or reusable beeswax… whatever you prefer to use.
I love it…..my freinds love it……my wife loves it…..we ALL love it!!!!! I make this at least twice a month. There are two “recipe” emails I will always open, and Carolyn’s is one of them! Thank you Carolyn for your sweet tooth and so many great recipes.
This cake tasted great under the burnt top. I think your oven isn’t as hot as some of ours. Next time I will start at 400 and keep an eye on it. Thanks for all your wonderful posts!
You can buy a cheap oven thermometer to test. When I moved a few years ago I bought one from Walmart for only $3. If the oven temp is not accurate, read your oven’s manual on how to self-adjust the temperature then test again.
I’m sure Carolyn’s oven is accurate so either yours is too hot or maybe your pan was too close to the heating element 😉
Any possible suggestion to use almond flour (ultrafine blanched one) instead of coconut flour, maybe in double amount and with just 2 eggs instead of 3 (or maybe 2 eggs+1 yolk)? It would be so appreciated to me to have your opinion before wasting the ingredients and disappoint my family’s desire to enjoy this beautiful cake (some problems with coconut for most of us)… Anyway everytime I find a recipe that fit our problems I have to try it, it’s always a succes 🙂 (and when I’ve some trouble with unavable ingredients where I live or not on hand I often can’t resist and try with some modificarions but still following the main points and get quite good endings 🙂 )
Yes, I think you could try that. You need to triple the almond flour, leave the rest unchanged.
Hi Carolyn, writing from Brussels in Belgium, but coming from San Sebastian, where this amazing cheesecake recipe comes from 🙂 I must say I tried the orginal one this summer at “La Viña” restaurant, and it was really good! So after seeing your keto version, this weekend I decided myself to give it a try and I was amazed with the result, even though my cooking skills are quite poor 😉 I did it with erythritol because I cannot find Swerve here, next time I will use powdered erythritol in order to avoid feeling the little crips of the erythritol crystals, which I don’t like that much. I wanted to ask you one question, do you also use Tagatose sometimes? It’s a sweetener produced in Belgium, used quite a lot in Spain, but haven’t heard you speaking about it… Thanks for your amazing recipes!!!
Glad it worked! I have not tried tagatose, it’s not nearly as readily available here.
Hi Carolyn,
This Basque cheesecake looks fabulous! I love your keto recipes. Do you think halving this recipe for four servings instead of eight would work?
Thank you!
Well I have to know what your pan size is to be able to guide you properly.
6″ cake pan… Do you mean 6″ high? Or 6″ diameter? I have both sizes…
Pan size always refers to diameter.
Hi.
I’m allergic to all but one of the keto sweetners; Stevia. Can I substitute that for your sweetners?
I think 3/4 of a 1/4-teaspoon scoop is the right measurement of powdered stevia extract, to match your ones. I always use that ratio. Will it still bake properly? Or is the recipe dependant on a sugar-alcohol to burn properly?
Sorry, you’re just going to have to experiment because I don’t really use it. I think your cheesecake may not fluff up quite as much (granular sweeteners whip in air bubbles during mixing) but it should taste good. It doesn’t need the sweetener to brown, I think that’s all the milk sugars.
I just made this cake in my oven. I baked it for about 37 mins and the top was dark brown already. So I open the oven to test if it’s runny. Right after I open the door, a cloud of smoke came out and the smoke alarm went off. ???? But it smell really good tho.
Sounds like your parchment paper caught fire. I suspect that you had it too close to the top of the oven. So the top would go brown and the paper would burn, but the cake would not actually be baked through.
This happened to me too, but my alarm went off about 10 minutes in… The top ended up more burnt than anything so I had to scrape some of it off. However, the cake was cooked perfectly within 30 minutes and tasted amazing!