Gluten-Free Mini Cheesecakes
These fuss-free gluten-free mini cheesecakes are perfect for parties or potlucks and couldn’t be any easier to make!
I really love cheesecake. Like really love it. But you won’t find a single recipe for a full-sized cheesecake on my blog because I rarely find myself with a reason to make 16 servings of cheesecake.
If I made a cheesecake without a real purpose or some place to send it, I’d eat a copious amount, get sad and then make something else to help me get over my grief. It’s a vicious cycle. With these gluten-free mini cheesecakes, you get everything you could want from a cheesecake but with built-in portion control! Eat one or two and freeze the rest.
The other reason I don’t make full cheesecakes is that it’s just so much more fussy than making mini cheesecakes! You don’t need to worry about water baths, cracks in the filling or refrigerating the cheesecake overnight. I don’t know about you, but when I make dessert, I want it now and not to wait for what feels like an eternity. In the directions, I say to chill the cheesecakes for 2 hours before serving, but if you’re in a hurry (or just really want your cheesecake!) you can pop them in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
I’ve had some less than stellar gluten-free crusts in the past but this one is perfect! Pre-baking the crusts and letting them cool slightly prevents the crust, which is almond flour based, from getting soggy. If you don’t have almond flour, you could use another type of nut flour or meal. I’m thinking hazelnut meal would be tasty!
I added a bit of lemon zest to the crust to liven it up and don’t recommend skipping this step because the crust would taste pretty neutral otherwise. Alternatively, you could add lime or orange zest or even a little extract to the crust if you want it a little more zippy. And the filling? So rich, creamy and smooth! I used just a little less sugar than often called for but none of my taste testers missed it or even noticed.
You can decorate the mini cheesecakes simply with blueberries and raspberries like I did or use a dessert sauce, like my honey sweetened strawberry sauce. And if it’s already too hot to bake and you need some cheesecake now, try Jamie’s no-bake lemon Oreo cheesecakes (but make sure to use gluten-free ingredients, if necessary!)
Gluten-Free Mini Cheesecakes
Yield: 12 mini cheesecakes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
For the crust:
- 1 1/4 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
For the filling:
- 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
For decoration:
- berries and powdered sugar, optional
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin liners.
- Prepare the crust. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together all the dry ingredients, then stir in the butter and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Divide the mixture between the liners (18 grams or 3 1/2 teaspoons of mixture per liner) and lightly press down with the bottom of a shot glass.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until very lightly browned. Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes while preparing the filling.
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stan dmixer fitted with the beater attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until light and creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Beat in the eggs on low, one at a time, and just until well incorporated. Do not over mix!
- Fill each liner about 2/3 full with the batter and bake for 10 minutes or until the centers of the cheesecakes don't jiggle when the pan is tapped. Open the oven door (at least 1 foot wide) and let the cheesecakes cool to room temperature - about 1 1/2 hours. For easiest removal, remove the paper liners now. They can also be removed after chilling, though a little more cheesecake may stick to the liners then.
- Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Decorate with berries and dust with powdered sugar, if desired. Refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Notes:
- If you need these to be gluten-free, make sure all your products are certified gluten-free.
Looove the almond crusts, they sound heavenly and these mini cakes are adorable :)
Thanks so much, Medha! :)
Greetings, I went to two different grocery stores to purchase the almond flour and could not find any. I wanted to try this recipe as all your recipes are just terrific. These look yummy for sure!
Hi, Maureen! Thanks for your kind words. If you can’t find almond flour, almond meal would work if you don’t mind the bits of skin in there. I hope that helps! :)
you can actually find the almond flour at a super walmart on the baking isle.
Love how easy these are! I’d make them and I’m not even on a gluten free diet!
Same here! I don’t eat gluten-free, either, but sometimes gluten-free stuff is really good. :)
These look bigger than a standard sized cupcake. Did you use an oversized pan?
I used a regular sized muffin pan. I think it’s just the angles I took the pictures at. :)
Made these the other day for a friend with celiac. I have always been partial to a nice graham cracker crust……and these were delicious. The lemon zest gave such a nice flavor. I would never have been able to tell these were gluten free. So easy to make and the only problem I had was since they were so tiny I was on my 3rd before I knew it.
I’m so happy that they came out well! I also don’t have any gluten sensitivities but when gluten-free recipes are as yummy as regular recipes, I figure why not? :) Thanks so much for your feedback!
Hi Erin! You mentioned you used a little less sugar than called for (1/2 cup) so did you use less than that?
Hi, Jennifer! I used less sugar in this recipe than other recipes with the same amount of cream cheese (which often call for 2/3 cup sugar). 1/2 cup of sugar is what I used in these. I hope you’ll enjoy them! :)
Hi! I’d love to make these, but my son has a tree nut allergy. Can I substitute “regular/all purpose” flour for the almond flour? Thanks
Hi, Christine! Almond flour and all-purpose flour are unfortunately not interchangeable, but the graham cracker crust in this recipe would work! Just make sure to halve it because that recipe yields 24 mini cheesecake and this one yields 12. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
Hi, 2 packages of cream cheese, is it that 1 packages is 250g? So 2 would be 500g?
Hi there! 8 ounces is 225 grams. So you’ll need 450 grams. Do you live outside of the US? If you do, I’ve never found brick cream cheese (it looks like this outside of the US. I think the rest of the world just has the whipped kind which is meant for spreading on toast. If that’s the kind you have, this is what I do – buy two 250-gram containers. Use a tea towel to wring out excess liquid. Then you should have 450 grams of cream cheese. You don’t have to do that but your cheesecakes will come out creamier. :)
You are a lifesaver! I was tasked with bringing in gluten free cheesecake to work tomorrow, and I have no clue how to do anything gluten free. :p I’ve got the crusts in the oven right now and they smell great. I couldn’t find almond flour, so I ground up almonds in the blender . . . hopefully that works! THANK YOU!
I hope the crusts worked out! And how strange that they assigned gluten-free cheesecake to someone who isn’t gluten-free. It’s good you found a simple recipe like this rather than trying to bake a cake with a bunch of weird gluten-free flours. ;) I hope everyone will enjoy the cheesecakes. Thanks for your comment!
I have celiac, do you think I could bake these without a crust? My family prefers crustless. Thanks
I can’t guarantee it because I haven’t tried it but I think it’d likely work. I hope you’ll enjoy them! :)
Has anyone tried sugar substitute for the granular sugar? Looking for diabetic friendly recipe.
I haven’t tried it myself but I’ve heard great things about Swerve, which measures cup for cup just like sugar. I hope that helps!
I want to make these but was planning to use a gf graham cracker (like Pamela’s) to make the crust. Wondering why not that route to get the graham cracker authenticity. Have you tried that?
I haven’t tried that but I’m sure it’d work if they’re just like regular graham crackers! I love how simple this crust is and how it doesn’t have any processed ingredients so I’m pretty happy with it. :)
Thanks for this recipe, we were looking for something to bring for a Gluten Free meal. I made the recipe as described but cooking time seems off for me, kept adding 3min increments to finish at 20min rather than 10. Can wait to try these tomorrow.
I’ve never had these take that long but every oven and pan is different. :) I hope you and the others will enjoy them and thanks for your comment!
Made the mini-cakes and they came out great just as described in the recipe. I used honey (about 1/4 cup) in the mixture instead of sugar and no sugar in the crust. All enjoyed the richness, very satisfying.
I’ll have to try honey in these. That sounds great! And I love that you omitted the sugar in the crust. I’m all for making healthy changes to recipes. :) Thanks for your tip and your feedback!
I am having 6 people over for dinner and actually would prefer the entire cheesecake, but your recipe sounds good ! Would you have any different recommendations for baking an entire one in a springform pan? Do you think this quantity of ingredients would work for a 12 ” spring form pan?
I just looked at full-sized regular cheesecake recipes (like this one) and for a 9″ springform, they call for double the amount of ingredients I called for in this mini cheesecake recipe! The area of a 9″ springform is 63 and the area of a 12″ springform is 113. So you’d actually have to quadruple this recipe (at least the filling) to fit a 12″ springform, which I definitely don’t recommend. I looked for a 12″ cheesecake recipe to send you but I’m not really seeing any. They usually call for 9″ pans. Do you have one of those?
Thank you for this recipe, it looks amazing! What consistency should the base have prior to baking? I’ve used 3 TBS of butter as the recipe shows but it seems to give a very crumbly base. Would adding more butter help? I so want to get these right.
It should be like a graham cracker crust. Quite crumbly, not dough-like, and kind of wet. Once you pat it down into the liners, it should stick together. I hope that makes sense and that you’ll enjoy the cheesecakes!
Continued from previous comment… Thank you for your speedy reply! I ended up using 6 TBS of butter for the crust and they’ve turned out perfectly. Thank you so much, I’m thrilled they’ve turned out so well.
I’m so happy they came out well! But what kind of almond flour did you use? Or did you make any changes to the recipe? If I used 6 tablespoons of butter with my almond flour in this recipe, the crusts would be a soupy mess. ;) Thanks for coming back to let me know how they turned out!
You mentioned freezing these. Our son is getting married and I want to make these for the rehearsal dinner. How long could I freeze them for?
I freeze mini cheesecakes for months at a time but since this is for something special, I’d keep it under one month. I hope you all will enjoy them and congratulations to your son. :)
Thanks for posting these mini cheesecake recipes. They look so awesome! I have a question on the baking time.
You mentioned the baking time is 10 minutes at 350F, vs. the baking time in your other mini cheesecake recipe (with graham cracker) is 20-25 minutes at 300F. Which method is better?
Thank you! There’s not really a better method. For this recipe, 350F for 10 minutes is what worked best for me. The other recipe that’s linked to in the comments that’s baked at 300F for 20-25 is a totally different recipe with different amounts and ingredients (it has cream, for example). For that one, 300F for 20-25 is best. I don’t recommend playing around with baking temperatures and times unless you feel like experimenting and possibly ruining a few batches before you get your desired outcome. I say this from experience. ;) I hope you’ll enjoy the cheesecakes if you try them!
Can’t wait to try this. Thanks for sharing. Just wondering if I can use goat cheese instead of cream cheese as its easier to digest for lactose intolerant folks?
I’ve never used goat cheese in cheesecake so I’m afraid I have no idea. If you’ve had good luck subbing it for cream cheese in other cheesecake recipes, it’d likely work here. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
My daughter and I made these yesterday for a family get-together (SiL and nephew both gluten intolerant, so we’re always on the lookout for good GF recipes). These tasted great. We topped them with raspberries and dark chocolate drizzle. Needless to say – incredibly popular and they all got snapped up quickly!
A couple notes – the muffin trays I have are for larger muffins so we made these instead in a standard-size 12-cup cupcake tray – ie shallower cups, with sides that slope more than a mostly straight-up muffin tin. I think this is the type of tray many people have. Anyway, in retrospect, we should have filled these shallower cups to the top, instead of just two-thirds, as we ended up with a bit of extra batter, and when cooled, the cheesecakes were a bit shorter than the ones in your pictures. But as I said – they were a huge hit – easy & delicious & GF – a real hat trick! Thanks for the great recipe, Erin.
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them, Erin. And thank you for the tips!
Love your recipes! I consider myself a very experienced baker and your site has become my go-to favourite for recipes of all types. Made your caramel corn at Christmas after testing out a few other recipes. As soon as I tried yours, I tossed the other batches/recipes. Made terrific gifts for music and sports teachers. Trying the mini cheesecakes for my son’s birthday party, but will swap out the crust for a gf gingersnap or vanilla wafer crust to accommodate nut allergies too. Everything I’ve made from your site has been the best version of that dessert that I’ve had, so I feel pretty confident making this recipe too.
Thank you so much for your kind words, Kari! You made my day!
Alright, recipe success for teen birthday get-together! I had two nut-allergic guests and one celiac so tricky to find a dessert that would work. Swapped out the nut base for gluten free graham crackers/butter/bit of brown sugar and they were great. Topped some with cherry pie filling, some with fresh berries, and the rest w/ caramel and skor bits. All were delicious and there was something for everyone. Super simple recipe, will definitely make again. I had time left to whip up some energy cookies for the kid’s lunches.
I’m so happy to hear that! And that’s great that you found a solution to the nut-free and gluten-free issue. I know it’s not always easy. ;) I love the idea of making these with cherry pie filling. It sounds delicious! Thanks a ton for your feedback.
Thanks for the recipe. I used homemade cream cheese, which is a bit creamier than commercial, and lemon extract as I had no lemons to zest. So my cheesecakes needed to bake an extra 5 minutes. I had filled the cups almost to the top and I’m glad I did because they sank a little in the middle as they cooled. I tasted one and it’s yummy! Also, in answer to someone’s question, I just put my leftover filling into a small well greased ramekin, no crust, and baked it alongside the cheesecakes. Because of its size, it need another couple of minutes. After cooling, I ran a thin knife around the edge and inverted it onto a plate. It looked fine and for dessert tonight I’m going to put fresh strawberry sauce on top!
I bet these must be even more delicious with homemade cream cheese! I’m happy that you enjoyed them and that you found a solution for leftover filling (I guess muffin pans aren’t all that standard because I never have any leftover!). Thanks so much for your comment and tips. :)
Has anyone calculated calories/carbs of this treat? It’s not likely this info would dissuade me from enjoying them again but I am curious about it nevertheless.
Hi, Darla! I haven’t calculated the nutrition information for this. I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!
I have made theae moee times than I’d like to admit and the recipe turns out perfect everytime. I add a little cinnamon to my almond crust though, just like a little extra flavor. Today I made them using half sugar and half stevia hopefully there won’t be much of a taste or texture difference. I’m just trying to lower the calories a little. These are fantastic, perfect for my Mom and I who are both celiac and they freeze well. I wrap each on in plastic then put in a large freezer bag, bring out what I need and thaw then in the fridge. In a hurry I’ve defrosted them in the microwave, still perfect.
I hope your half stevia version came out well! Everything I’ve tried with it has an unpleasant aftertaste but I’ve never tried combining it with another sweetener. I’ll have to try that! I’m so happy that you and your mother have been enjoying the cheesecakes. Thanks a bunch for your feedback!
I hope your half stevia version came out well! Everything I’ve tried with it has an unpleasant aftertaste but I’ve never tried combining it with another sweetener. I’ll have to try that! I’m so happy that you and your mother have been enjoying the cheesecakes. Thanks a bunch for your feedback!
I read that using regular flour does not work in this gluten free cheesecake recipe. But is there another gluten free flour that is nut free that will work?
Unfortunately not! I’m sorry. Nut flours are only interchangeable with other nut flours. I’ve heard that sunflower seed flour can be subbed for almond flour but I haven’t tried it myself so I’m not sure it’d actually work here. I’d recommend finding a recipe for mini cheesecakes that calls for all-purpose flour and then just use a gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour. :)
Hi!
Can I use stevia instead?
Hi there! I haven’t tried it so I’m not sure how it’d do here. Sorry about that! If you generally have luck subbing it for granulated sugar, I would think it’d be okay here. Hope you’ll enjoy them!
I’m excited to make these. If I were to use standard large cupcake size would doubling the recipe and cook time work?
Hi, Jeanine! This recipe makes enough cheesecakes to go in a standard 12 muffin pan. Do you want to make bigger cheesecakes or more? I would suggest leaving them the standard size and using two pans to make 24. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Can you use tapioca flour instead of almond flour?
Hi, Britt! I honestly don’t know about substituting tapioca flour for almond flour. Maybe coconut flour would be a better choice? Let me know if I can help further!
These desserts where delicious! They were so good and much healthier than other recipes. The only problem was that it took us ages to make them and then even longer to refrigerate them. But it was worth the wait!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them, Erin!
You say to cool in the oven for an hour with the door open, would it be possible to let them cool on the counter until at room temp insteaad?
Hi, Katie! Changing the temperature for a cheesecake too drastically can cause the cheesecake to crack. Keeping the cheesecake in the oven will prevent this. I hope this helps!
This was my first recipe from your website — it was fantastic! Easy & tasted great. I’m looking forward to trying some more of your recipes!
I cut the sugar in the crust by half & in the cheesecake by two-thirds to satisfy my Chinese relatives’ tastebuds (less sweet), but otherwise kept everything the same! Next time I might try replacing the sugar in the crust w/ brown sugar (and reducing a bit more) and subbing one of the packages of cream cheese with canned pumpkin & sour cream for a fall twist :)
I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe so much! That’s great you were able to reduce the sugar so much. I wouldn’t recommend subbing one of the cream cheese packages with pumpkin, though. But you’re in luck because I have a mini pumpkin cheesecake recipe as well. :) I hope you’ll enjoy that just as much! Thanks a bunch for your comment.
I was making this today to take for dessert at dinner where the host was celiac and has a nut allergy. Rather than follow the crust recipe. I purchased Kinnikinnick brand Gluten Free Graham Style Cracker Crumbs. This product is available in Canada where I live and also in the US. Go to Kinnikinnick.com to find a store in your area. I followed the instructions on the Kinnikinnick box to create the crust, included the tablespoon of lemon zest and baked it as indicated in this cheesecake recipe. For the cheesecake filling I followed the recipe as indicated the only change being I cut back a wee bit on the sugar and added a teaspoon of Grand Marnier instead of vanilla. Baked it as indicated and chilled in refrigerator. To serve I drizzled the top of each individual cheesecake with a tart raspberry puree which I strained to remove seeds, then dressed each with a few raspberries and a couple of blackberries, then dusted with powdered (confectioners) sugar. It was so delicious and looked outstanding too. The simple cheesecake filling turns out perfect and is not too sweet. It’s a small portion but I like that about doing it in a muffin tin instead of doing in a springform pan. Don’t hesitate to try this recipe. It’s a winner!
Thanks for your suggestions, Rosemary! I’m glad everyone enjoyed it!
So I made these for my birthday at work. I made 36. I brought home exactly 1. They were amazing.
I have a question about scaling up to a full sized cheesecake with this recipe. What would change in the cheesecake and crust ingredient proportions and bake time for a full size cake? I’m looking at your salted caramel cheesecake recipe. Is that a good guideline?
I’m so happy everyone enjoyed them at work! I could be wrong, but I don’t think this crust would work well in a springform pan for a full-sized cheesecake (at least not if you want to pat the crust up the sides – it might work if you just pat it over the bottom). In that case, I’d do 1.5x the crust (that’s just a guess, though) and double the filling. I have to admit that I have absolutely no idea how long this exact recipe would take in the oven when doubled and baked in a springform pan. I’d bake it until it was just a little jiggly in the middle. But if I were you, I’d use the filling in the caramel cheesecake recipe and go by those baking instructions. Sorry I don’t have a more definite answer for you!
Well…very first time making a gluten free dessert. And just realized that I only have an 8-cup muffin tin. What happened to my 12-cup tin? But, I digress. Can I still make this delicious looking dessert (already breaking out in hives with anxiety :)) using the exact recipe and “stuffing” it into the 8-cup tin? I have silver foil cupcake liners and am hoping that they will hold it up and work! Thank you for your assistance!
Do you have some ramekins? I think that’d be a safer bet. I’m pretty sure they won’t fit in 8 cups, even if the liners go slightly over the rim of the pan. You could always stuff as much as you can in there and fill the rest in a small baking dish if you don’t have ramekins. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
My best friend is GF, and I love to bake, so this has become my go to crust. I swapped out half of the almond flour for as much crushed, toasted cashews for a little bit of texture and it worked out amazing.
Thanks so much!
That sounds like a tasty sub! I’m so happy that the crust is working out well for you. Have you ever tried it in a pie pan? I’ve been meaning to try that! Thanks for your comment.
could I freeze these mini cheesecakes?
They freeze well! Hope you’ll enjoy them.
So excited to make these and if they turn out will make for family Xmas dinner! I’ve never made a cheescake before and they are cooling…we’ll see soon! They look good-hope they taste good. I did have to cook a bit longer but could just be my inexperience as wasn’t sure when they were done.
I hope you’ll enjoy them! They should have a really nice cheesecake texture and if they don’t, then you’ll know to bake them less next time. :) It’s hard to know when they’re ready, especially when you’ve never made cheesecake before. Thanks for your comment!
Have you ever heard of using cheerios as the crust for cheesecake? I saw a recipe but it was for no bake cheesecake… I’m wondering if you think it will work on this. I only have soy and all purpose gf flour mix. I couldn’t find almond meal or almond flour.
I’ve never tried that but I just found this Cheerio crust you could try. Hope it works out well! :)
Hi Erin,
I just made these. They look great. I did the recipe according to your directions. Baked them for 10-15 minutes. Then opened the oven door slightly and turned of the temperatures. I hope that was right. I´m always concerned that they are not baked well.
Hi! You did it correctly. :) Hope you’ll enjoy them!
I’m definitely going to try these for a birthday dinner party this weekend. I’ve made cheesecakes before and baked them in a water bath. Would you recommend that or is it not necessary?
I really don’t think it’s necessary with this recipe. I’ve never had an issue with them cracking. I hope everyone will enjoy them! :)
These were amazing! I was running low on almond flour so ground up some of my Glutino pretzels and mixed with some coconut sugar and butter to make the crust – worked out well and tasted just like a graham crust. I then added the lemon zest to the cheesecake itself. Sooooo yummy.
I’m happy your subs came out well! That sounds so tasty. :) Thanks for your comment!
Hi Erin,
Would it be alright to substitute the sugar with honey?
Hi Alycia! I think that’d make the crust too wet. You could use coconut sugar or another granulated sweetener, though!
Hi
I am going to make this as a big cake (2x loaf tins to make a number 1 for my daughters birthday cake (for the adults!! Lol))
What would the cooking time change too?
And how many batches would you make for adults loaf tin 18cm(w)x24cm(l)x5cm (h)
Thanks
Hello! I really have no idea as I’ve never converted a muffin pan recipe to a loaf pan. I *think* you use about 1/4 of filling per muffin mold, which is 3 cups of filling. I found this conversion chart, but I don’t think it’s relevant as the cheesecake isn’t going to come out as tall as cake or bread. Because I have no idea how thick the batter will be in the pans, I also have no idea of how long you’ll need to bake it. So just bake until the centers of the cheesecakes don’t jiggle when the pan is tapped. My guess is to double the recipe and just use your best judgement. If there’s leftover batter, you can bake it in ramekins. I hope your daughter will have a nice birthday. :)
Hi
Is there a sub for the almond flour? Oats or maybe rice flour? I need to make a gluten and nut free dessert. Thanks in advance
Hi there! Unforuntately there’s not (just other nut flours / meals). Sorry about that! I’d recommend finding a recipe that uses a 1-to-1 GF flour mix for the crust.
I made these for a housewarming – YUM!!!! I did in mini muffin tins. Used 1 tsp of crust mixture in bottom and baked for 6 min. The filling I did the same as in recipe for bigger muffin tins. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
So happy to hear you enjoyed them, Gem!
Made these today with wonderful results for my 15yo daughter. She was so pleased with them. We bought GF graham-style-crackers and smashed them up instead of the almond flour– it worked great and held together nicely. I can see these becoming a regular recipe in our house! Certainly a nice treat to bring to a party when you can’t have the cake. People eating the grocery-store cake would be jealous of the adorable little cheesecake! Thanks and we look forward to trying more of your recipes!
Melanie-
I am so happy to hear you enjoyed the cheesecakes! Thanks so much for stopping by to leave your feedback.
-Jamie