Everything You Need to Know About Ochikeron's 3-Ingredient Cheesecake

This three-ingredient cake is pretty easy from the get-go. But these pointers make it even easier.

Ochikeron's 3-Ingredients Soufflé Cheesecake was uploaded to YouTube over two years ago, but just like Jason Segal, it's finally being taken seriously.

And you only need to watch it once to realize why. This is the adorable kitten of cooking videos, a gentle tutorial with lilting music that guides you seamlessly through the process of making a simple, pleasant-looking cake. The only difference here: The cute object in question is edible. (That's right—you can finally eat that adorable kitten! Kind of.)

My cohorts and I watched the video this morning (then we watched it again, and then a third time, because Ochikeron's voice is basically a massage for the ears). It's a pretty flawless video, but there are a few things you should know before making the cake to make it faster, easier, and fool-proof.

1. Don't chill those egg whites

After separating the egg yolks from the whites, Ochikeron covers the whites and sticks them back in the fridge. This step is unnecessary: egg whites are easier to whip into stiff peaks when they're at room temperature.

2. Don't skip the parchment

Ochikeron is very, very concerned about this cake cracking on the top, so she recommends lining the cake pan with buttered parchment paper. This helps prevent cracking, she reasons, because the buttered parchment lets the cake settle seamlessly (if the cake were to stick to the side as it settled, cracks would form). This sounds reasonable enough, but the parchment also serves another purpose: it gives the batter something to climb, allowing it to achieve a higher rise.

3. Melt the chocolate in the microwave

Ochikeron melts her white chocolate and cream cheese in a double boiler, and that's fine. But this can be done a little easier in a microwave. Place the white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 10 second bursts, stirring between bursts, until almost completely melted. Remove from the microwave and stir until completely melted. Stir in the cream cheese, mix well, and proceed with the rest of the recipe.

4. let the chocolate cool!

Ochikeron, such a conscientious baker, is shockingly cavalier when adding her egg yolks to the melted chocolate mixture. You really want to let the chocolate cool for a minute or two before you whisk in the eggs, otherwise you risk scrambling the eggs, which not only would ruin your batter but would look phenomenally disgusting. Want to be really careful about it? Whisk in the egg yolks one at a time.

5. Don't make a soufflé

Do you really have to bake this cake in three stages, each one at a different (but low) temperature? Kind of. The batter for this cake is basically a soufflé batter—a rich, custardy base lightened with whipped egg whites. And if you were to put this in a high-heat oven (say, 400 degrees) and cook it for about 20 minutes, you'd have a white-chocolate-cream-cheese soufflé.

But this isn't a recipe for a soufflé—it's a soufflé cake. And those low temperatures mean that the the cake will cook all the way through without browning.

However, in our testing, we found that you don't have to mess with all those different temperatures—you can bake it at 350 degrees the whole time and be totally fine.

6. Wear Yellow

Ochikeron wears a yellow headband and a yellow tank top when she eats this equally yellow cake. I don't own anything this color, but I'm pretty sure the cake would taste even better if I did.