Preheat the over to 450°F with the fan (convection). Prepare a 6 inch cake pan with parchment paper. I do 2 layers and leave lots of excess paper to allow for space for cake to rise. (plus it looks nice)

In a large bowl, using a silicone spatula, press on the cream cheese to make sure it is soft. Add in the sugar and eggs and mix until smooth with no lumps. sift in the flour, Hojicha powder, and salt. Mix again until consistently smooth, then stir in the heavy cream. Try not to mix it up too aggressively as your batter will develop lots of bubbles which will affect the texture and top of the cake.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan, tap down on the counter to remove any air bubbles. If bubbles come up, you can use a toothpick to pop them. Place the cake pan onto a small baking sheet before placing it in the oven. It hasn’t happened to me, but I have heard of that happening to people with other recipes so I use to sheet tray to be safe.

Bake the cake for 25-35 minutes. I start checking at the cake at the 25 minute mark to make sure it doesnt get overcooked. The top of the cheesecake should be dark, the edges set but the middle should wobble when you jiggle the cake. Once you get to that point, remove the cheesecake from the oven and set to cool (in the pan) on a wire rack. Let it reach room temperature before either serving, or (and I think it’s better this way), let chill in the fridge for at east 4 hours to overnight before serving. If you are going to chill your cake in the fridge, I usually drape a piece of paper towel between the cake (not touching) and the plastic wrap to prevent condensation drips from damaging the pretty surface of the cake.

When you’re ready to eat, using a knife warmed by hot water, slice, serve, and enjoy!