I think I may have mentioned once or… 50 times that I love cheesecake. I am also a big fan of all things miniature. If you follow MBA, you may have noticed that the lovely Katie from GoodLife Eats and I have been hosting a Holiday Recipe Exchange.
Many of the recipes that have been posted look outstanding, but there is one particular creation that immediately caught my eye. That recipe was for mini cheesecakes with cranberry topping from Tessa of the blog, Handle the Heat. I thought Tessa’s recipe for creamy vanilla flecked individual cheesecakes topped with cranberry sauce would be the perfect festive dessert to make for our holiday potluck at work.
If you have never made mini cheesecakes before, don’t be intimidated because they are pretty simple. Not to mention, they are a great addition to any potluck or holiday spread because they’re quite portable if you keep them in the cupcake liners. I hope you enjoy this recipe for mini cheesecakes as much as I did, have a great start to the week and thanks so much for stopping by!
Individual Cheesecakes with Orange-Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients:
For the Crust:
1 ½ cup graham cracker crumbs
4 tablespoons unsalted butter; melted
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 ½ teaspoons cinnamonFor the Filling:
3 (8 ounce) bricks of cream cheese; softened
3/4 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half and seeds scraped
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup heavy creamFor the Orange-Cranberry Topping:
12 ounces fresh cranberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup orange juiceDirections:
For the Cheesecake
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 cupcake pans with 24 paper liners.
2. In a small bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sugar and cinnamon. Stir together with a fork until well blended and all dry ingredients are moistened and look like wet sand. Press 1 tablespoon of the mixture into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Bake until just set, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F.
3. In a medium bowl beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed with an electric mixer just until smooth. Beat in sugar until well incorporated. Mix in the salt and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, add in the heavy cream. Be careful not to over-mix.
4. Spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of the cheesecake batter over the crust in each cupcake liner using an ice cream scoop or two spoons.
5. Bake until the filling is just set, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and let cool to room temperature. Transfer to the refrigerator and let chill for at least 4 hours before topping and serving, preferably overnight.
For the Sauce
1. In a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in the orange juice. Stir in the cranberries and cook until the cranberries start to pop (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and place sauce in a bowl. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.
2. Before serving, top refrigerated cheesecakes with the cooled cranberry sauce.
adapted from Handle the Heat
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{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
I love the topping. I am crazy for cranberries!
Not sure I’d be able to stop at just one!
Mmm Mmmm mm
Looks beautifully scrummy.
happy holidays
AmyRuth
These look dangerously good, Jamie!
i had cheesecake bites over thanksgiving with cranberries on top – heaven!
These look gorgeous!
What gorgeous little cheesecakes – I especially love the orange cranberry topping – yum!
Thanks for the mention Jamie! I’m glad you liked the recipe
Wow, the colour combination of these make it look mouthwatering! And thanks again for your email. I’ve started shooting in RAW and am just in the middle of editing the pics. Your email was so helpful!
My Husband will love these! Might have to keep these in mind for New Years Eve dessert! Thanks for sharing the recipe ;0)
That looks so great! Love the individual portions. No mess. Happy holidays!
I love mini cheesecakes! I find with regular cheesecake I go crazy and eat too much (and then get a tummy ache). Great recipe!
Gorgeous! We adore adore ADORE cheesecake and love the orange cranberry sauce! Makes it so festive!
Lovely! I recently had a mini pumpkin cheesecake dessert at a restraurant. Just the right size not too much!
This is such a popular and wonderful combination of flavors! I’m not much of a cheesecake eater but I love to make them. Will have to save this to make for the Mr sometime.
I love cheesecake, and these mini ones look perfect for a holiday get-together! The cranberry orange sauce on top makes them look so festive!
These look gorgeous!
Everytime I make cheesecakes in cupcake pans, the middle sinks slightly. Did this happen to you too? I’m not complaining–it’s perfect for adding a scoop of cranberries, but I’m just curious. Thanks
I admit to being a certifiable cranberryaholic; I love cranberry relish, sauce and for desserts like this. Our have to have holiday dessert is a cake with a cream cheese frosting topped with cranberries so I have a glimmer of how good this must be. Love the mini version too!
These are very pretty and festive. They look delicious! Did your coworkers just love them? Great pictures too.
I love having individual desserts and these are just gorgeous!
These look perfect! I love mini desserts and I bet the cranberry sauce tastes awesome with the cheesecake. YUM
Mini desserts are my new favorite love!! these sound and look PERFECT!!
individuals, minis or bite-sized – this is a great recipe! you just can’t go wrong w/the orange-cranberry combo!
These look so pretty and festive!!
WHat a beautiful presentation! I could eat a half dozen of these little suckers
These are absolutely gorgeous! The contrast of the white and red is stunning. I can’t tell you how badly I want these right now. yummers.
Hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday!
Monica
thats a killer.
absolute beauty,
and you hv an awesome blog. been ure regular follower since long
Oh, definitely trying this! So cute! Only thing I’d add is orange peel to the cranberry sauce for extra texture & tanginess.
These are stunning.
Adorable, beautiful, and perfectly colored for the holidays!
You seem like a true culinary artist that would appreciate my site as well- I would love it if you stopped by and checked it out
These are adorable, and delicious I’m sure too! My grandma used to make mini cherry and blueberry cheesecakes, but these seem like a fancier, more decadent version! I’ll have to give them a try. Thanks for sharing!
I made and blogged Sweet Potato Pie Individual Cheesecakes, very much inspired by your recipe! They turned out wonderful!
You have such BEAUTIFUL photography on your site–not to mention delicious recipes. I am inspired, and I’ll be back soon!
I love mini anything! These cheesecakes look delicious, love the flavor combination!
Hey ! I absolutely love your blog and stalk it on regular bases
what you make is soooo good and the photographs are incredible.
Please check out my blog for baking recipes. View link – http://teenage-baking.blogspot.com/
What is Graham Cracker crumbs. Yvonne South Africa
I made these yesterday for the family to have today (Thanksgiving). I had a sample and I LOVED every bite! Thanks for the easy, and wonderfully delicious recipe!
I have made these 4 times already and every time they are a hit! Is there any way I can use this recipe to make a big cheesecake instead of mini ones? if so, what would change? I only ask because I specifically like this recipe, I’ve tried other ones and they just aren’t as good!
Zehra-
I would suggest checking out my favorite cheesecake recipe – http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/the-best-cheesecake/. You can adapt it in so many ways!
-Jamie
How many does this recipe make?
What kind of liner do you use with the cheesecake cupcake? is it a standard paper liner?
Teralyn-
Yes, just standard cupcake liners.
-Jamie
Could I use vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean or will it really change the flavor of the recipe?
Amber-
Although vanilla bean is recommended, using one teaspoon of vanilla extract in place of one vanilla bean shouldn’t change the flavor too much. Thanks for visiting and have a fantastic day!
-Jamie
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