A Basque cheesecake collar has to do three jobs at once: hold a liquid batter without leaking, take a hot bake that caramelises the top, and stand up as a wall. Wet batter plus high heat is where an ordinary baking sheet gives up, seeping at the seam and slumping. Order by four numbers, not a product name: length, coating, stiffness and leak performance. This guide gives the ranges and a size-by-size table.
What a Basque collar has to do
A Basque cheesecake bakes hot and fast in a lined mould with no base, so the paper is not a liner under the cake — it is the mould wall.
- Hold a liquid. The batter goes in pourable and sets only as the surface caramelises, so seam, pleats and base must stay leak-tight through the first stretch of the bake.
- Stand up on its own. Crushed into pleats and pressed to the wall, the collar must hold a vertical wall by itself. A sheet that springs back leaves gaps at the base; one that slumps lets the cake spread.
- Take the full oven heat. The exposed rim sits in the oven temperature for the whole bake, so a peak and a continuous figure both matter. One peak number is not a specification.
Release decides the yield: a sheet stuck to the caramelised edge takes the crust with it.
Sizing the collar to the mould
Four figures decide whether a collar survives the bake. Each is a range to confirm by batch test on your own mould.
- Paper length. About three times the mould diameter, so the pleats fold over each other, plus 4–6 cm of overhang above the rim. Cut long and trim after chilling.
- Coating. A silicone-coated sheet — typically 1–2 g/m² on the food side — or a parchmentised web with no coating. Both are grease-tight; an uncoated greaseproof sheet is not, and it sticks.
- Stiffness. Set by grammage and caliper together. Too light and the collar folds in; too stiff and it springs off the wall.
- Leak performance. A graded grease-resistance figure plus the water resistance to match your batter. Kit 6 is the floor for a wet batter.
Typical ranges — confirm by batch test on your own mould:
- Paper length: 3× the mould diameter, plus 4–6 cm overhang.
- Coating: silicone one side at 1–2 g/m², or a parchmentised sheet with none.
- Grammage: 38–60 gsm across the sizes below.
- Leak performance: Kit 6–7 for a 25–40 minute bake at about 220–250 °C.
The silicone-coated parchment paper route releases more consistently; a parchment web suits ovens where no coating is wanted.
Choosing by mould diameter
More batter means a longer bake and a taller wall, so all four figures step up with mould size. Treat the table as a starting point, not a fixed specification.
| Mould size | Paper length needed | Coating (greaseproof / silicone) | Stiffness | Leak performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-inch | ~40–45 cm pleated, plus overhang | Silicone one side, light coat | 38–42 gsm | Kit 6 |
| 6-inch | ~55–65 cm pleated, plus overhang | Silicone one side, or parchmentised | 40–45 gsm | Kit 6–7 |
| 8-inch | ~70–80 cm pleated, plus overhang | Silicone, slightly heavier coat | 45–50 gsm | Kit 7 |
| Commercial large mould | 90–120 cm, or pre-cut sheets plus a base disc | Silicone both sides, or a heavy coat | 50–60 gsm | Kit 7+ and a separate base disc |
Specify the collar and the base disc separately: the disc is a flat sheet cut to the mould floor, and it sees the batter longest.
Common misuses and boundaries
- A plain greaseproof sheet with no silicone. Not grease-tight, and it bonds to the caramelised crust.
- Pleating a short length too tightly. Overlapping pleats make the collar thick and uneven, and batter seeps between the folds.
- One length for every mould. A collar that drops below the rim lets the batter rise over the top.
- Believing heavier is always better. An over-stiff sheet springs off the wall and leaves a channel along the base.
Small-format cups and liners, where the decision turns on temperature band rather than wall stiffness, are a separate problem — see cake cups and liners.
FAQ
Can I use ordinary baking paper as a Basque cheesecake collar?
A silicone-coated sheet works if it is grease-tight and stiff enough to hold a pleat. A plain greaseproof sheet sticks and tears on lift-out.
How long should the paper be for a 6-inch mould?
About three times the diameter — roughly 55–65 cm pleated — plus 4–6 cm of overhang above the rim.
Why does my collar leak at the base?
Usually the pleats are too loose, or the sheet is too stiff to sit flat. Crush the pleats tight and use a separate base disc.
Does a darker bake change the paper I need?
No — the top colour is a bake decision, not a paper one. A longer, wetter bake needs a higher leak figure and a heavier web.
Browse the range
Collars cut to size are under Basque cheesecake paper; the wider line starts at baking and food paper, with release-grade sheets in silicone-coated parchment paper.