Ube Marbled Basque "Burnt" Cheesecake

Uhh ya, no.
I didn't know what Ube was either until I came across a picture of this beautifully ugly burnt cheesecake by Sheldo's Kitchen. I had to have it in my life and my belly. Thanks to Amazon, I had a bottle of this yam flavoring the next day. Ube is not purple sweet potato. It's a yam and tastes nothing like sweet potatoes. It's said to be likened to a cross between white chocolate, vanilla, and pistachio with a hint of coconut. 
This makes for such a different look and taste when added into your favorite deserts.
Be sure to measure your ingredients by weight when you can. The exact measurements really make it perfect.  There are instructions for a 6" cake round and an 8" cake round. Make sure that they are at least 3" in height. Your cheese cake will rise quite a bit and you don't want it spilling over.
Forget all the rules of making a traditional cheesecake like making a water bath. This cheesecake is supposed to look like it got into a fight with a goat. The burnt edges create a delicious crust and add yet another layer of flavor.

Marbled Basque Cheesecake

6” (15 cm) Metric
- 500g (you will need 3 blocks but not all of it. Make sure to weigh it out) cream cheese, softened @ room temp
- 166g (1/2 cup + 1/3 cup) sugar
- 3 large eggs + 1 egg yolk (~50g each w/o shell)
- 265mL (1 cup + 1 tbsp) heavy cream, room temp
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt / table salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 20g (2 tbsp) all-purpose flour

8" (20 cm) Metric
- 750g (4 blocks, again won't use all of it. Make sure to weigh it out) cream cheese, softened @ room temp
- 250g (1-1/4 cup) sugar
- 5 large eggs, room temp (~50g each w/o shell)
- 400mL (~400g) heavy cream, room temp
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt / table salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 30g (3 tbsp) all-purpose flour

Ube Flavoring 

Make Batter
1. Make sure your cream cheese, eggs and cream are all at room temperature! You will have a chunky batter if they are cold.
2. Pre-heat oven to 475F with rack in upper third of the oven.
3. Line a 6”x3” (15 cm x 7.5 cm) or 8”x3” (20 cm x 7.5 cm) cake pan with two sheets of parchment paper.
4. Add cream cheese to a large mixing bowl. Mix on medium until soft and fluffy. A hand mixer is preferred here. Add in sugar. Mix until sugar is fully dissolved into the cheese, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape bowl halfway through.
5. Add eggs one at a time, beating until each egg is combined before adding the next one. Scrape bowl halfway through.
6. Add salt and vanilla extract. Mix on low to combine. With mixer still running, slowly stream in cream. Mix in cream until batter is smooth.
7. Sift in all-purpose flour. Fold flour into batter until combined. Scrape down the bowl in the process.

Add Ube Flavor 
1. Divide batter into 3 portions, one larger, with the most batter (will be the lightest in color), one medium (moderate flavor/color), one slightly smaller (most saturated/concentrated).
When adding the ube drops use enough so that the smallest batter portion is the darkest, this will be on the bottom of the cake, and the medium is a moderate color. Add just a drop or two to the largest batter portion. You just want to make it a very pale purple. Be careful not to add too many drops. Start with 4 or 5 for the smallest portion and work from there. 
​Be careful, this will stain everything.

Bake
1. Pour batter starting with smallest/darkest portion. Make sure this covers the bottom of the pan. Then the medium, then largest/lightest portion. With each subsequent pour, do so quickly from a height so that the batter hits the bottom of the pan and flows into the previous pour. Swirl just the surface of the batter with something like a chop stick to create a marble pattern.
2. Transfer cake pan to a baking tray and place in the oven.
3. Bake for 30-45 minutes. At 30 minutes, start checking the cake. It’s done when the cake is puffed up, top cracked and browned. Mine took the full 45 minutes. The center should be wobbly but not too liquidy. If it's not done, keep baking, checking every 5 minutes. For a firmer texture, bake until the cake is mostly set but centre slightly wobbly when shaken.

Cool & Serve
1. Let cake cool in the pan completely, at least 2 hours at room temp.
2. Once cooled, lift cake out with the parchment paper. Gently peel back the parchment and transfer cake to a serving plate.
3. Dunk a knife in boiling water to get clean cuts. Re-heat the knife and wipe clean with damp towel between each cut.
4. Alternatively, once the cake is cooled, take it out of the pan, place in a sealed container, and refrigerate until ready to serve. Let cake come back to room temperature for at least 30 minutes before serving.