[FAIL] Cotton cheesecake

First time I've ever declared a FAIL on this blog. I've had recipes that weren't 100% successful but still looked ok and tasted alright. This time, it just didn't work. I don't think the ingredients are at fault nor the techniques, but my execution of them. This is the hardest baking recipe I've ever attempted and the Internet is littered with pictures of multiple failed attempts. So in the spirit of 失败是成功之母, I'm posting pictures here.

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Based on this earlier post that compared various recipes, I chose the recipe that best suited my situation: to use up my 250g block of cream cheese without leftover and my 8" pan.

Base on the ingredient choice, I choose the following recipes for this reason by Christine and BakingTaiTai w(hich look suspiciously similar in terms of wording), and ieatshootpost. However in terms of method, I did not want to use cream of tartar so KitchenTigress, JOC, and Cooking with Dog were instructive. They also taught me to pour slowly from 2" to 3" height to minimise bubbles then gently 'drop' the cake with its batter to burst big bubbles. KT is especially important because she bakes the cake in the middle of the oven. However, everyone else other than Nasi Lemak Lover and KT advocate keeping the cake in the oven with door ajar to cool slowly to avoid shrinkage and cracks. However, all agree that you should only unmould it when it is cooler.

Ingredients
250ml milk
250g cream cheese at room temp, cubed
60g butter, room temp
6 eggs (21 deg C is ideal), separated
55g cake flour
20g corn flour
130g sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt

Method
#1) Prepare the 8" round tin by lining with parchment and using oil to 'stick' it to the base and sides of the tin. Remember to leave a 2 to 3" allowance at the top of the tin so the mixture won't overflow. (NLL and runawayrice only uses 5 eggs for this reason). Cover the outside of the tin with several layers of foil to prevent water seepage later on. Preheat oven to 170 deg C.
2) Sift the corn flour and cake flour mixture twice. Boil the water. Heat milk hot to the touch.
3) In a medium bowl, beat butter and egg yolks using a whisk. Beat the cream cheese in. Add vanilla, milk and lemon juice and mix smooth.
*4) Using the whisk, whisk in the flour in 3 batches till no lumps of flour remain. Strain mixture and set aside.
5) In a very clean bowl (no oil, soap, or water), beat egg whites on low speed until foamy and opaque. Add sugar in 3 batches. Once all the sugar has been added, increase to max speed and beat till stiff peaks (double in volume and glossy) which takes about 4 mins. It is best to underbeat and stop to check then repeat at 30s intervals because once the meringue are over-beaten, they cannot be used. Beat to just before stiff peaks.
@6) Using the whisk, fold in 1/3 of the meringue to the yolk/flour batter and break up the egg white. You can whisk and not worry about breaking the foam. Use the whisk and add another third of the meringue to the yolk/flour batter but carefully break up the foam. Finally, return the entire batter to the bowl with the remaining 1/3 meringue and fold in carefully using a spatula. Alternatively, you can continue to use the whisk to fold in by scooping then lifting action from the bottom. Turn the bowl as you do this.
7) Pouring slowly from a height of 2 to 3 inches above, pour in so that you don't get big bubbles. Gently 'drop' from the tin about 2 inches from the air to the countertop to knock out the bigger bubbles. Alternatively, making slashes in the batter with the spatula.
8) In a baking tray, place the cake tin and pour in about 1 cup of water to bake in a water bath. It should come up to about 2 cm up the sides. In the lowest rack of the oven, turn down to and bake at 160 deg C for 60 minutes and then increase to 170 deg C for 10 to 15 minutes to brown. Skewer inserted comes out clean.
9) Leave cake in the oven with door ajar for 10 to 15 minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool slightly.
**10) Once the the cake has slightly shrunk away from the pan, unmould and leave to cool completely on the wire rack. Best left to cool completely (at least 3 hours in the fridge or overnight) before cutting. Dampen the knife and press down to slice, do not saw.
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Recipe feedback:
Several things went wrong because the cake didn't have enough structure.
1) After pouring all the batter into the tin, I spied from the corner of my eye that I'd left out some flour. Oooopppps. It won't be structurally solid enough.

2) In attempting NOT to overmix, I undermixed and left pockets of meringue. The top was meringue (visible from the top picture where you can see the lumpy texture on the surface) and the bottom was cheese. Hence in attempting to turn the cake tin over onto a wire rack, the bottom over-balanced and 'crushed' the top (visible from the picture below)

However, when peeling off the paper from the bottom, I noticed that indeed, condensation had started to form. I followed all the directions i.e. left it in the oven with door ajar for 10 minutes to cool slightly to avoid shrinkage and cracked too, so that didn't happen. After removal from the oven, that's when I removed the side of the springform and then attempted to remove the bottom and ... you know the rest. However, if I had left the bottom of the tin on any further, there would have been a soggy cake bottom.

3) While the texture was beautiful once cooled down to room temp, the next day (ie more than 12 hours of chilling), it became too hard in the fridge.

Next time

*1) Check to ensure all the flour has been incorporated. And get a digital scale, I may also have under or over-measured and since this recipe has so little flour in it to give it much needed structure, every little gram counts!

@2) Don't over mix but don't undermix either! Following Cooking with Dog's tricks, use the whisk to stir in 1/3 of the meringue without worrying too much about deflating the air, stir the 2nd third of meringue but using the whisk to break up all the meringue pockets. TRANSFER the mixture BACK into the bowl with the leftover meringue and using the whisk, fold in the meringue by scooping from the bottom then lifting upwards and through. This way, the denser cheese mixture ends up on top of the meringue and it's easier to fold in than adding the remaining meringue on top of the denser mixture. I will not be using a spatula to fold in.

#3) The parchment lining the side may not be a good idea. It leaves creases on the side of the cake. My 8" was also tall enough so that the cake rose just to the top but did not overflow, so I might just butter and flour the sides of the pan the next time. The bottom may still need the parchment although I've now noticed that my springform as a 'lip' which makes removal difficult. Hmm.

**4) Don't remove the springform pan till fully cooled in the fridge. I will just remove the side but not the bottom.

UPDATE: Second attempt posted here.

Tahini cookies

But I have a bottle of tahini in the fridge that I didn't know what to do with. I found this recipe and presto, thought I'd try it out. The texture is denser than almond cookies but still crumbly, melt in your mouth delicious.

Adapted from http://prettysimplesweet.com/tahini-cookies/

Ingredients (24 cookies)
1 cup flour
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp ground cinnamon
⅓ cup + 1 tbsp tahini
⅓ cup + 1 tbsp sugar
75g butter (⅓ cup)

Method
1) In a mixing bowl, cream the sugar, butter and tahini until creamy. Scrape down the bowl periodicallty.
2) Sift in the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in two batches. Using low speed, beat in the dry additions.
3) I got a sandy dough. Chill for ½ hour to make it easier to roll into balls. Use a tbsp to portion out each ball of dough and place it on a lined cookie tray. Leave some space between each ball as it will grow.
4) Bake at 180 deg C for 12 to 14 minutes (no grill).
5) Leave to cool on the cookie tray for at least 10 minutes. Since it was so crumbly, I left it on the tray to cool completely before transferring into an air tight container to store for up to 5 days (not in the fridge).

Recipe feedback: The sandy dough was very difficult to work with. The original recipe calls for pressing the ball flat and embedding an almond. The whole ball just crumbled on me so I gave up. This was despite chilling the dough. Taste is great but am not sure I will make this again.

Chocolate chip and almond muffins

Since making this recipe over a year ago, I found the technique worked quite well. Came across a similar recipe which I adapted below by adding almonds and mixing dark with milk chocolate chips. Sally's recipe uses 3 cups instead of 2.5 cups but interestingly, makes only 10 muffins instead of 11 in the old recipe. However, perhaps last year I used muffin papers and only filled them 3/4 full. The results don't 'feel' heavier. The problem with the old recipe was the the taste of baking soda was quite obvious but Sally's recipe replaces it with baking powder and the result is that you can't taste the alkaline taste.

From http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/01/17/bakery-style-chocolate-chip-muffins/ which I adp

Ingredients (makes 10)
3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, room temp and beaten
1 cup milk (240 ml)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup melted butter (115g)
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (roughly chopped if they aren't mini chips)
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (roughly chopped if they aren't mini chips)
1/2 cup almonds (roughly chopped)

Method

1) In a big bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar till pale yellow and fluffy. Add in the melted butter, salt, vanilla. (After my butter seized up the last time, I realised that it was important not to add it to cold eggs and 

2) In another bowl, sift in the flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and baking powder.

3) Combine by whisking the dry ingredients into the wet but do not over-mix. I used the whisk to gentle fold in. Divide the dry ingredients into 3 batches and only fold in two times during each batch. The batter will be very thick and may have dry flour spots. That's ok.

4) Fold in the almonds and 2/3 of the combined milk and dark chocolate chips.

5) Prepare the muffin tins e.g. oil the sides (in case they over flow), you want to be able to remove them easily. Also, preheat the oven to 220 deg C.

6) Using a half cup measure, fill each of the muffin cases to the top. Add water to the empty tins. 

7) Sprinkle on the remaining 1/3 cup of dark and milk chocolate chips on top. Gently press them into the mixture.

8) Bake at 220 deg C for 5 minutes (with the grill function off). Turn down to 190 deg C and bake for 20 minutes. Turn the tins to ensure even baking and bake for another 10 minutes.

9) Leave to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before consuming and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool complete.

10) They can store in an airtight container but outside the fridge for up to 5 days, or in a freezer.

American waffles

From this earlier post, there is not perfect recipe but here is my adaptation from all four sources based on my needs ie 2 cups of flour and keeping the milk and egg proportionate.

Ingredients (makes 7 *2 leafs + 1 leaf)
2 cups flour
2 eggs
2 cups milk
1/2 cup butter melted
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar

Method
1) Melt the butter in the micorwave, about 30 seconds with 10 second increments. Warm up the milk in the microwave, about a minute. Add in the beaten egg and vanilla. The milk and butter cannot be too hot otherwise you'll get scrambled egg. (My melted butter went into the cold milk and coagulated. Not good)
2) Mix the dry. This time, I decided to sift in the flour and use a balloon whisk.
3) Whisk till smooth to combine but do not over mix.
4) Ladle onto the waffle griddle. (¾ scoop per side with ¼ to ½ scoop top up in the middle)

Recipe notes

Compared to the yeasted waffles,

1) batter was much thicker and more like what I have come to associate with waffle batter.

2) tasted like crispy pancakes but compared to yeasted waffles, it got soggy much quicker.

3) color is not as uniform compared to yeasted

4) Yeasted waffles were crispy outside but pillowy inside. These were just crispy throughout.

Strewed pork and cabbage bee hoon

Felt really tired after the annual (or biannual) weed spraying but still needed to prepare dinner. Have a sad half a head of cabbage sutting in the fridge and a can of stewed pork specially bought some time back just for such an occasion. 

Adapted from this recipe: http://thedomesticgoddesswannabe.com/2013/06/fried-bee-hoon-with-cabbage-and-stewed-pork/

I didn't stir fry the noodles but tossed it like a salad. Used the microwave to heat up the stewed pork and cook the cabbage.

Ingredients

1 can of stewed pork

½ head of cabbage, chopped

1 tsp garlic, minced

1 tsp ginger, minced

3 tbsp light soya sauce

2 tbsp Chinese rice cooking wine

Method

1) Boil a kettle of water and pour into a big bowl. Soak the bee hoon for 10 minutes, not too long or it will fall apart when u toss it. 

2) Pour the can of stewed pork into a deep microwavable bowl. I used a pyrex. Remove as much oil as possible. It would have coagulated on the top.

3) Add the minced garlic and ginger to the stewed pork, along with the cabbage. Toss through and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Stir and microwave for another 5 minutes on medium high. Stir to incorporate.

4) Drain the bee hoon but reserve 1 cup of the soaking water.

5) In the big bowl, toss through stewed pork mixture with the bee hoon till well incorporated but be careful not to break up the bee hoon.

6) Serve immediately. 

Overnight Belgium Yeast Waffle

First trial of yeasted belgium-style waffles discussed in a previous post. I choose this recipe instead of the non-overnight versions because if I'm going to use yeast and let it rise, I won't be skimping on the time element so I might as well be go all the way. I also chose the recipe because it is portioned for 2 people, sufficient oil content, and avoiding baking soda because I find it gives it an alkaline taste which I'm not too fond of.

This adaption is based on two recipes because the proportions are easy to remember: equal parts milk, eggs, and flour. My only adaptations are conversion to cup or metric

:http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/overnight-yeast-waffles

However, I had instant not active yeast and adapted the method from this 

: http://crispywaffle.com/?p=110. This recipe doesn't activate the yeast so does not use water but has 1 tbsp sugar (instead of 1 tsp) to help the proving.

Ingredients (makes 7 waffles *2 leafs + 1 leaf)
1 1/2 tsp instant yeast
2 cup warm milk (37 to 40 deg C)
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt

Method
1) Mix the dry: flour, salt, sugar, and yeast.
2) Mix the wet: Warm milk, butter, beaten egg.
3) Combine but don't over mix but ensure that there are no lumps. I used a spatula to smooth out the lumps rather than stirring or whisking.
4) Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the fridge to prove overnight. (10 to 24 hours)

5) Next day, heat up the waffle iron and pour on 3/4 scoop per side (I only used ¾ scoop per side, and scant 1/2 scoop in the centre) but resist the urge to flatten out. Pour in the centre or it will overflow, as it did on me.

5) After it stops steaming, remove carefully with a spatula to aid u but avoid using a knife or fork which can scratch the nonstick surface. I did not have my oil the surface so I intend to keep it that way.

Recipe feedback
1) The batter was really very watery. I thought I'd done something wrong. But as it turns out, it made the same number of waffles as the American pancake-adapted batter.

Belgium yeast waffles comparisons

Compared to using baking powder in the American versions, the Belgian-style uses yeast and the Belgian waffle iron has deeper pockets because yeasted waffles are supposed to rise more. They are supposed to be thick and spongy but crispy outside.

I've differentiated the recipes by portion size, main ingredients and main methods.

No overnight
Max of 30 minutes resting time only

2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk, 6 tbsp butter
: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/belgian-style-yeast-waffles-recipe

Overnight optional: tends to produce a more yeasty flavour

1 stick butter, 2 cups flour + 3/4 cup wheat flour, 2 large eggs, 2 1/4 cup milk, baking soda
: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016179-simple-yeasted-waffles

For instant yeast

:1 stick butter, 2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 2 cups milk: http://crispywaffle.com/?p=110
Test

Overnight
Easiest recipe of no butter, 2 cups flour, no eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk
: http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/proper-yeast-risen-waffles

For active yeast, needs activating in water first

1/2 cup butter, 2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 2 cups milk
: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/overnight-yeast-waffles

Looks like this recipe is for a waffle maker with deep wells
1/2 cup butter, 3 cups flour, 2 eggs, 2 cups milk, baking soda
: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-overnight-yeasted-waffles-recipes-from-the-kitchn-199052

American waffles comparisons

These are supposed to be thinner with less deep wells using a more pancake-like batter but crispier. These use baking powder as the rising agent instead of yeast and are a lot faster to make than yeast waffles. I've differentiated the recipes by portion size, main ingredients and main methods.

No butter but uses buttermilk and oil
125g flour (1 cup), 1 egg and 200 ml buttermilk (0.85 cup) or substitute with milk, 2 tsp baking powder, 60ml oil (1/4 cup)

: http://www.noobcook.com/waffles/2/

Proportionately least butter
1 cup flour, 1 egg and 1 cup milk, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 2 tbsp butter (1/8 c)

: http://www.joyofbaking.com/breakfast/Waffles.html

Proportionately most egg
1 3/4 cups flour, 2 eggs, 1 3/4 cup milk, 1/2 cup butter, 1 tbsp baking powder (3 tsp)
: http://prettysimplesweet.com/waffles/

Proportionately most baking powder
2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 1 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup butter, 4 tsp baking powder
: http://shopcookmake.blogspot.com.au/2011/06/my-infallible-waffle-recipe-butter-and.html

Many recipes also suggest separating the eggs ie whipping the whites to stiff and folding that in for a crispier effect but I'm too lazy.

Confused by the differences in recipes, I found this link http://www.mrbreakfast.com/article.asp?articleid=29 and learnt that
1) If your waffle iron manual doesn't state that that you should coat the iron with oil (mine didn't), then don't! The 'non-stick' quality comes from the amount of oil in the recipe.
2) Sadly, my instruction manual doesn't state how long to wait for the waffles to cook. This link says wait for all the steam to dissipate.
3) Clean as fast as possible after plates are cooled. It's easier to clean.

Also very confused about the function of eggs (Will more egg result in a spongier but less crispy waffle?), I decided to investigate and found this link http://www.thekitchn.com/baking-school-day-1-all-about-eggs-and-baking-222479

The link said that it's about fat (e.g. think about the creaminess in custards), making batters smooth i.e. emulsifies the ingredients and makes things thick (again, think custards), giving structure and sturdiness to the trapped air (e.g. think chiffon).

So my hypothesis is that it will indeed give the waffle its spongy texture. But crispiness? If some recipes suggest separating the yolk from the white and then incorporating them separately, it's likely that more egg will indeed give the waffle a less crispy texture.

Cotton cheesecake comparisons

This Japanese cheesecake has several names: cotton cheesecake, souffle cheesecake, or simply Japanese cheesecake.

There are broadly 3 main methods of making this. Below are the oft-cited sources that various bloggers adapt from.

1) Uses bain marie with cake flour and corn flour

a) 250gm cream cheese in 2 loaf tins but 100ml milk
http://en.christinesrecipes.com/2011/02/japanese-cheesecake-fluffy-creamy.html

b) Same ingredients and method as Christine (suspiciously looks like a copy, but who copied whom?) but a relatively smooth top using 250g cream cheese for 8 to 9" pan
http://www.bakingtaitai.com/2013/07/japanese-cotton-cheesecake.html
Tested here

c) 250g gm cream cheese in 8" tin, 100ml milk
http://ieatishootipost.sg/japanese-cheesecake-recipe/
: also based on Diana
: using 200 deg C for a short time but cooking in residual heat for very long
Tested here

d) 250g cream cheese in 8 (lined) or 9" (unlined) tin, 100ml milk
http://rasamalaysia.com/japanese-cheesecake-recipe/2/
(quotes Little Teochew (link isn't open to public) and Diana's cookbook http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipes.recipeListing/filter/dianas/recipeID/2312/Recipe.cfm
: leaves in oven to cool

e) 250gm cream cheese in 8" tin but 5 egg yolks
http://nasilemaklover.blogspot.com.au/2016/03/japanese-cheesecake.html
: based on an improved version from Diana and uses 1 egg less

2) Uses more cream cheese, likely to be heavier. However, uses beater/hand beats without bain marie.
a) 400g cream cheese in 9" pan: http://www.justonecookbook.com/japanese-cheesecake/

b) 100g cream cheese and sour cream in a 5.9" pan from Cooking with Dog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbaP5MoLIHk

3) Souffle (instead of 'creamy') Jap cheesecake wh uses less cream cheese
a) Scalded milk but also adapted from Diana
140g cream cheese for 7" pan
http://kitchentigress.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/cotton-soft-japanese-souffle-cheesecake.html
- Her cake as the smoothest top so she must be doing something right!
- removes cake immed from oven

b) 125g cream cheese with 5 egg yolks in 8" tin
http://kitchentigress.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/cotton-soft-japanese-souffle-cheesecake.html
: also based on Diana

4) Jiggly cheesecake that cooks over flame instead of bain marie
Viral video of a jiggly cheesecake that uses 13 egg whites and only 8 yolks for 9" lined tin, and cooked over a flame instead of bain marie. However, several reviewers say that it often comes out undercooked at the bottom and tastes too eggy, not enough cheese.
https://www.facebook.com/BuzzFeedVideo/videos/2301495576657978/

One Buzzfeed tester updated the recipe:
130ml milk
200g cream cheese
100g butter
5 yolks
1 tsp vanilla
11 whites (whipped to soft peaks)
¼ tsp cream of tartar
60g flour
60g cornstarch
160g sugar
handful of raisins
Bake: 70 mins at 300 deg F and 5 mins at 350 deg F to brown the top

5) Uses double cream
a) with cake and corn flours
http://www.ricenflour.com/recipe/how-to-make-japanese-cotton-cheesecake-recipe/
- need to double the recipe for a 9" pan
- uses 250g cream cheese
Tested here

b) uses normal flour
https://spoonuniversity.com/recipe/japanese-cheesecake-that-fluffy-and-rich-in-flavor
- for 9" pan
- uses 400g cream cheese

6) And finally, tips and tricks
a) http://runawayrice.com/desserts/cotton-cheesecakejapanese-cheesecake/
- Take out cheese and butter 2 hours beforehand from the fridge
- Take out eggs 1 hours before hand. Eggs separate best when cold, but beat up best at room temp.

b) http://ieatishootipost.sg/japanese-cheesecake-recipe/
- use caster, not fine sugar
- fresh eggs beat up better
- use light colour pans (not dark colour ones) which bake more evenly and don't cause the cake to peak then fall
- tap the cake tin a few times with batter on the countertop to dispel the big bubbles
- prefers to use non-removable bottom and line the sides with butter and flour instead of parchment

c) http://happyhomebaking.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/japanese-souffle-cheesecake.html
- remove from oven immediately but like KT, also uses less cream cheese (125g)
- Drop hot cake immediate from the oven on counter top to dispel hot hair
- Unmould the cake immediately instead of leaving it otherwise the paper-like top sticks to the plate, fingers, etc. Also, condensation forms and gives it a soggy bottom.

d) http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/bakingtips.cheesecakes/cheesecakes.cfm
- Pretty much covered by other bloggers but she notes that optimal baking temp is 300 to 325 F (about 148 to 162 C)
- Advocates keeping foil on all the way into the fridge and only removing the tin and foil after it has refrigerated for at least 6 hours.
- Only unmould the next day. (Keep the base on for serving)

e) http://beautybling.yuku.com/topic/1313/Fantastic-Cheesecake-Tips#.V_mn2TKr3BI
- Mix but don't over mix. If using a beater, mix only for 30 seconds for each step, then stop and scrape down the bowl. Mix only until absorbed.
- Line the bottom of the pan with parchment but grease the sides.
- After the batter has been poured in, run a skewer in a zigzag manner to break up the bubbles. Break up big bubbles on the surface by piercing them.
- Water in water bath should come up to about half but no more than 2/3 of the side of the tin. You want to bake, not steam the cake.
- Don't open door in first 30 - 45 minutes or it will crack.
- After the first 10 minutes of cooling in the oven, run a knife around the edges to release. Otherwise as it cools, it will stick to the sides and cause cracks.
- Doneness: Don't over bake! It will continue to cook in the residual heat in the oven and as it cools. It will be slightly wobbly but will firm up in the fridge. Bake only until the outer edges are firm and have a dull look, but the centre is still a bit wobbly but not wet and has a slight sheen. Shake the pan to check that the centre is still a bit wobbly. If the whole surface ripples and shakes like jelly. it's not done.
- For a nice brown, bake at 500 F (260 C!) for 10 minutes then reduce to 300 F (148 C) for the remaining time.
- If there are any cracks/tears, run a heated but wet icing spatula to repair.
- Chill for at least 12 hours or it may still shift and collapse.

f) http://www.ricenflour.com/recipe/how-to-make-japanese-cotton-cheesecake-recipe/
Troubleshooting of cheesecake fails : does not rise, eggy smell, forms a waste, shrinks in the oven or shrinks outside.

g) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/148168-moist-and-fluffy-souffle-cheesecake
Troubleshooting: claims that a denser pudding like layer at the bottom is due to leaving the meringue and yolk batter unmixed for too long. But I don't think this was true for me.
- suggests spreading butter and powdered sugar on the parchment

No-bake Strawberry cheesecake

Recipe adapted from http://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/no-bake-strawberry-cheesecake/

The only difference is that she had 675g of cream cheese for a 9 inch springform but my locally available Philly only comes to 500g for 2 blocks and I have a 8 inch springform, so the recipe has been proportionally adjusted.

Ingredients
250g biscuits (graham crackers or digestives)
169g butter, melted
56g sugar
300g fresh strawberries (not frozen)
266g whipping cream
500g cream cheese (2 blocks of Philly)
Extra strawberries for decoration

Method
1) In a food processor, blitz the biscuits until fine. Drizzle in the melted butter until it comes together.
2) Pat the crumbs into the base of the springform pan. Place in the fridge to harden while you prepare the filling.
3) Puree the strawberries with sugar until chunky.
4) Drizzle in whipping cream and watch the mixture thicken. Do not overwhip or it will split and become watery.
5) Spread the mixture on top of the biscuit mixture and flatten with a spatula.
6) Leave in the fridge at least overnight to set. It can last for up to 3 days in the fridge and also freezes well.
7) Decorate with strawberries.