Japanese Cheesecake Will Make You Forget The Cheesecake Factory Even Exists

Set out all ingredients to bring them to room temperature (except egg whites—those should be refrigerated). Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch cake pan, and line with parchment paper. Wrap the exterior of the pan in aluminum foil to maximize heat distribution and prevent the bottom of the cake from burning.

Preheat the oven to 320°F and put some water to boil, as the cake will be baked in a water bath.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add butter, egg yolk, and heavy cream, and mix well. Sieve the final product into another large bowl to ensure smoothness.

Add the lemon juice and zest. Then sift the flour twice, add it to the batter, and mix again. Take care to ensure there are no clumps or bubbles in the batter.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites until bubbly and foamy. While still whisking, add the sugar in two parts until the meringue has doubled in size and forms stiff peaks.

Add a third of the meringue to the batter and mix well. Then add the remaining meringue, half at a time, and fold carefully until fully incorporated. Be sure to fold carefully and not mix, because otherwise the meringue will flatten.

Pour the batter into a cake pan and drop the pan a few times to remove any air bubbles. Then put the cake pan in a larger pan. Fill the large pan with boiling water and place onto the middle rack of the oven.

Bake 45-50 min, or until the surface of the cake is golden brown, then turn off the oven and let the cake finish cooking in the residual heat (approx. 30 min). The final step is important because if the temperature of the cake drops too suddenly it will collapse.

When a toothpick poked near the center comes out clean, the cake is done. Let it cool completely on a wire rack. Add toppings, if desired, and serve.