Mix-and-bake easy Tiramisu cheesecake is as good as the classic dessert
Burnt Basque cheesecake, but make it tiramisu. We’ve updated one of the easiest cheesecake recipes with all the flavours of the classic Italian dessert.
Burnt Basque cheesecakes have been having a moment recently, their craggy, caramelised crust and silky texture making them famous. As far as cheesecakes go, they’re surprisingly easy to make, despite forcing you to do lots of counterintuitive things such as crumpling your baking paper into the tin and baking at a much higher temperature than is classically the norm for a cheesecake. But all of this adds to the beauty of a burnt Basque. Traditionally, they’re flavoured with nothing more than a touch of vanilla, but we’ve decided to bring the flavours of a classic tiramisu to this creamy dessert, by adding mascarpone, marsala wine, dark chocolate and espresso powder. It’s rich, velvety and very grown-up and we might just prefer it to the pud that inspired it....
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Yields:
12 serving(s)
Prep Time:
15 mins
Cook Time:
1 hr
Total Time:
1 hr 15 mins
Ingredients
150 g dark chocolate
300 ml double cream
250 g mascarpone
450 g cream cheese
200 g caster sugar
5 medium eggs
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
75 ml marsala
25 g plain flour
1 1/2 Tbsp. espresso powder
1 Tbsp. cocoa powder
Directions
Step 1Break the chocolate into small pieces and place in a heatproof bowl with the double cream. Place over a pan of simmering water on the hob, making sure that the water doesn’t touch the base of the bowl. Stir occasionally, until the chocolate has melted and is well combined with the cream. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Step 2Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan 180°C) mark 6 and grease a 21cm springform cake tin. Cut a length of baking paper, long enough to cover the base and sides of the tin, with an overhang of at least 5cm. Press the sheet into the base of the tin and around the sides. It will be creased and freeform rather than smooth to the tin, but that’s an important part of a Basque cheesecake.
Step 3Put the mascarpone, cream cheese and sugar in a freestanding mixer and beat until combined and smooth. Add the eggs, beating well until fully combined.
Step 4Drizzle in the cooled chocolate and cream mixture while the beaters are going, along with the vanilla bean paste and marsala. Continue to beat until well combined, then finally beat in the flour, espresso powder and cocoa powder. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and transfer to the oven. Bake for 1hr, until just set but still with a wobble. Leave to cool completely in the tin.
Step 5Remove the cheesecake from the tin and carefully peel back the paper. Transfer the cheesecake to a serving board or cake stand. Dust with cocoa powder before serving.
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Sarah is Good Housekeeping's Kitchen and Homes Director, looking after all things food and homes for the brand. Sarah started her career in journalism, then retrained as a chef 15 years ago following a lifelong dream to work in food. Since retraining, she has worked as a private chef, assisted on tv commercials, created recipes for some of the country's leading brands and became the go-to birthday and wedding cake baker in her friends and family network. In 2025, she was shortlisted for Cookery Writer of the Year by the Guild of Food Writers
