Mini White Chocolate-Raspberry Cheesecakes

My brother is getting married to a fabulous girl, Cami, next month. My sisters, my mom and I threw a bridal shower for her last weekend. Cami isn't much of a dessert fan, but she does love cheesecake. I knew I needed to make some kind of cheesecake for the shower. I wanted it to be cute and bite-sized, and I wanted to incorporate raspberries (my favorite). I adapted my favorite cheesecake recipe from Kraft Foods and came up with this delicious and beautiful dessert. It was the hit of the party, and everyone loved it. I hope you will too.

Mini White Chocolate-Raspberry Cheesecakes
Makes 24 mini cheesecakes

3/4 cup vanilla wafers, finely crushed
2 Tb. butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup sour cream
1 large egg
2 Tb. white chocolate, melted and cooled
1/4 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen and thawed
1 Tb. sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 mini muffin cups with paper liners. Mix vanilla wafers and melted butter, and divide evenly between liners (about 1/2 Tb. or 1-1/2 tsp. each). Press crust down lightly with fingertips.
2. Beat cream cheese and sugar in medium bowl with electric mixer until well blended. Add vanilla and sour cream and beat until blended. Add egg and mix on low speed until just blended, scraping sides of bowl to mix completely. Divide cream cheese filling evenly between muffin cups (about 1 - 1 1/2 Tb. per cup).
3. Blend raspberries with mini chopper or immersion blender until completely blended. Press through fine mesh strainer to remove seeds, and mix with sugar. Dot each cheesecake with a couple of drops of the raspberry puree, then swirl carefully with a toothpick.
4. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until just barely set. Let stand at room temperature until completely cool, about 30 minutes, then move to refrigerator and chill for at least 6 hours. Serve with fresh raspberries.

Nutella Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

Have I mentioned that I have a love affair with Nutella? Whether on crepes, in stuffed french toast, in gelato, or in the world's most delicious frosting, I cannot get enough of it. So naturally, when I saw a recipe for Peanut Butter Cheesecake Swirl Brownies on one of my favorite blogs (Annies Eats!) I immediately had to make them, but with Nutella instead of peanut butter. Thus, these were born. They are probably the most rich dessert I have ever made (and that is definitely saying something). You absolutely have to eat these with a tall glass of milk or a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. Indulgent. Easy. Delicious. Hope you enjoy!

Nutella Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
Adapted from Annie's Eats, originally from Kitchenist


Brownies:
7 Tb. unsalted butter
3 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup flour

Cheesecake:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup Nutella
1 Tb. sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 8x8 inch pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.
2. Combine butter and chocolate in medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, then stir well until completely melted. Whisk in all remaining brownie ingredients except flour. Stir until smooth and well blended. Gently stir in flour until just combined (do not over mix). Spread evenly in prepared pan.
3. Make the Nutella cheesecake filling by beating the cream cheese, Nutella, and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined. Add egg yolk and vanilla and mix until completely blended.
4. Drop spoonfuls of the Nutella filling over the brownies in pan. Swirl batter gently with a knife.
5. Bake 30-35 minutes or until the center is just set. Cool to room temperature and move to refrigerator. These are best after chilling for at least 12 hours.

Brownie Chocolate Cheesecake Cupcakes

Cheesecake: Good.
Cupcakes: Great.
Chocolate: Delicious.
Brownies: Divine.
Chocolate Brownie Cheesecake Cupcakes: Amazing!

These were fast, delicious, and look gourmet. You really can't go wrong!

 

Brownie Chocolate Cheesecake Cupcakes
Adapted from Pillsbury

1 box fudge brownie mix (19.5 oz)
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup water
4 eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled to room temperature
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) softened cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1 container (6 oz.) vanilla yogurt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
hot fudge, whipped cream, and raspberries if desired

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. Prepare brownie mix using 1/2 cup oil, 1/4 cup water, and 2 eggs. Divide evenly among cupcake liners. Bake for 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed. Add yogurt and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add chocolate and beat until completely blended and no white streaks remain.
4. Divide cheesecake mixture evenly over the warm brownies. Return to oven and bake 15 - 20 minutes or until set. Cool completely, then refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Top with hot fudge, raspberries, and fresh whipped cream if desired.

Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake

Last year at work we had a dessert contest, and this was the winning recipe. Corey's favorite flavors of dessert are lemon and raspberry, so I thought I would make this for him for Valentine's Day. He absolutely loved it, and I think you will too. I preferred mine topped with fresh raspberries or strawberries instead of the sauce (I thought it was a bit too lemony with the sauce and the lemon in the cheesecake) but Corey loved it with the sauce. Enjoy!


Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake

Crust

1 cup vanilla wafer cookie crumbs

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Filling

3 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese softened

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 - 3 teaspoons grated lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3 large eggs

1 large egg white

Topping

3/4 cup super

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup cold water

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 egg yolk, beaten

fresh raspberries

Crust: Mix crumbs, sugar and butter: press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan (sprayed lightly with baking spray). Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes.

Filling: Mix cream cheese, sugar, flour, juice, zest and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add 3 eggs and egg white, mixing on low speed just until blended. Pour over crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until center is almost set (but still a little jiggly). Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Topping: Mix sugar and cornstarch in saucepan; gradually stir in water and juice. Bring mixture to a low boil on medium heat, stirring constantly until clear and thickened. Stir 2 tablespoons of the hot mixture into egg yolks; then slowly mix the egg mixture into the sauce. Cook 1 minute or until thickened, stirring constantly. Cool slightly. Stir in raspberries Spoon topping over cheesecake just before serving. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chocolate Pecan Cheesecake Bars

Ok, these bars are delicious. Chocolate. Cheesecake. Pecan pie. If that doesn't get you salivating, I don't know what will. I cut the originally recipe down because it's really, really rich. I cut mine into very small bars because a little goes a long way. These are best the next day, so make sure you plan ahead if you want to serve these.
Chocolate Pecan Cheesecake Bars
Adapted from Bake or Break

3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar, divided
1/4 cup softened butter
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1 cup pecan halves
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
3 medium eggs
2 oz semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup light corn syrup
3 Tb. butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8 or 9 inch square pan with foil, leaving extra to hang over the edges. Spray foil with cooking spray.
2. With food processor or small chopper combine flour and 1/3 cup brow sugar. Add softened butter and pulse until crumbly. Add 1/4 cup chopped pecans and pulse several times until mixture is combined. Press mixture well into bottom of pan. Bake for 8 minutes.
3. Beat cream cheese and white sugar until smooth. Add 1 egg and beat until creamy and well combined. Gently stir in chocolate and vanilla extract. Pour over baked (uncooled) crust. Bake 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes.
4. In medium bowl, whisk remaining brown sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, and 2 eggs. Stir in pecan halves. Pour over cheesecake and return to oven. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes, until center is set.
5. Cool one hour and move to fridge. Chill 4 hours or overnight. Cut into 25 bars. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Mini Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecakes

Stop whatever you're doing, print this recipe, and go make it. Seriously. I don't think I've ever tasted anything so amazing in my life. How good is it? Let's just say that I ate 3 of these for dinner...and then had to follow it up with some veggies so I could feel a little better about myself. I just couldn't stop, they are way too good. If you're never made cheesecake before, this is a great place to start. The mini cheesecakes are much more forgiving than the larger variety, take less time, and you can cover any cracks with the topping and it still looks perfect.

Mini Pumpkin Turtle Cheesecakes

Crust

13 ginger snaps

1/4 cup pecans

2 Tb. butter, melted

Filling

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 pkg. (8 oz.) Neufchatel 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar, divided

1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. ground cloves

Topping
18 pecan halves
1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 18 regular size muffin cups with papers (or, if using mini cheesecake pans, spray lightly with butter flavored cooking spray).
2. Put ginger snaps and pecans in food processor or small chopper. Process until fine crumbs, about 1 minute. Mix crumbs with melted butter and divide evenly among muffin cups. Press firmly with shot glass or fingers.
3. Bake crusts for 10 minutes. Decrease oven temperature to 300°F.
4. Beat cream cheese, 3/8 cup of the sugar and the vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Reserve 3/4 cup of plain batter in small bowl. Stir remaining 1/8 cup sugar, the pumpkin and spices into remaining batter. Spoon half of the pumpkin batter evenly among muffin cups; top with spoonfuls of half of reserved plain batter. Top with remaining pumpkin batter. Cut through batter several times with knife to swirl.
5. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 30 minutes. Move to refrigerator and chill for at least 3 hours before serving. Just before serving top each mini cheesecake with one pecan half and drizzle with caramel topping.