29 September, 2014

Mini Cheese Cakes

Comments : 1 Posted in : Blueberry, Cakes, Desserts on September 29, 2014 by : Noreen Tags: Blueberries, Cheesecake, Noreen

Serves: 6 mini cheesecakes

Ingredients:
2½ graham cracker wafers, crumbled (about ⅓ cup)
1 Tablespoon butter, at room temperature
¼ cup plus 1 Tablespoon sugar, divided
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
⅓ cup Cool Whip
¾ cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 teaspoons lemon zest

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325°

Place paper muffin cups in six cavities of a regular size muffin pan.

Crumble the graham crackers in a small, shallow bowl using a meat tenderizer or the flat bottom of a drinking glass. Stir in 1 Tablespoon of sugar and the butter. Mix well.

Divide the graham mixture evenly among the muffin cups, gently pressing into the bottoms of the cups with the back of a spoon.

In a small mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, vanilla and ¼ cup of sugar with a hand mixer until blended. Add the egg and beat on low speed just until blended. Spoon the cream cheese mixture into the muffin cups, gently pressing down to remove any air pockets.

Bake 25 – 30 minutes. The centers should be almost set and still a pale creamy color. Cool about 10 minutes and then remove the paper muffin cups. Set the mini cheesecakes on a plate and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Just before serving, add a dollop of Cool Whip in the center of each mini cheesecake. Top with some blueberries and a sprinkle of lemon zest.

Notes:
This recipe easily doubles or even triples. Just add each egg, 1 at a time, and beat into the cream cheese mixture before adding the next egg.

There are lots of variations on the topping:

Try replacing the Cool Whip and blueberries with a Tablespoon of Strawberry jam or preserves and top with a sugared fresh strawberry.

Or, try replacing the cool Whip and blueberries with a Tablespoon of caramel sauce, either home made or 6 spoonfuls of Smucker’s caramel ice cream topping.

This recipe was adapted from a mini cheesecake recipe on the Kraft Foods website: