Mini Cheesecake Recipe
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This mini cheesecake recipe has a graham cracker cookie crust and creamy cheesecake filling. It’s everything you love about a full-sized cheesecake, but in mini form and baked in a muffin tin!
As much as I love making my vanilla cheesecake recipe, I don’t always love having a giant cheesecake sitting around or having to prepare a water bath. But I do love the biting into a mini cheesecake.
So I decide to create a mini cheesecake version that can be baked up easily in a muffin pan. Individual cheesecakes, like my mini pumpkin cheesecakes, mini oreo cheesecakes, or mini key lime cheesecakes, or mini chocolate cheesecakes are perfect for special occasions. But sometimes you just want the classic.
There’s something about a mini dessert that I just love. Everyone gets their own dessert. No need for sharing. And having seconds is encouraged.
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Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
- Wonderful to freeze and make ahead. If you have leftovers you can easily place into a freezer bag and enjoy later! Or make them the day before and have them ready to serve guests.
- Made in a muffin tin. No springform pan or water bath needed. Easily made in cupcake liners!
- Perfect for special occasions – These little mini desserts would be a perfect party dessert for Valentine’s Day, Christmas or girls’ night!
Ingredients Needed
- Graham crackers – If you can’t find graham crackers you can use digestive biscuits, cookies, or Nilla wafers. You can also use gluten free crackers.
- Butter – I used unsalted butter but salted butter will also work.
- Sour cream – Use full-fat for best texture
- Cream cheese – You want to soften the cream cheese to room temperature. Read my full tutorial on how to soften cream cheese quickly. Use block style cream cheese for best texture.
- Granulated sugar – I used granulated sugar in the cheesecake filling and the crust.
- Vanilla extract
- Eggs – Use room temperature eggs. Read my full tutorial on how to bring eggs to room temperature fast.
How To Make Mini Cheesecakes
For the Crust:
Preheat oven to 350oF (180oC). Line two cupcake tins with cupcake liners.
Add graham crackers to your food processor and pulse until broken into fine crumbs. If you don’t have a food processor, then place in a large plastic bag and smash with rolling pin.
Add melted butter and sugar and pulse to combine.
Use about a tablespoon to transfer the graham cracker crumbs to your cupcake tin. Press into a flat layer. A shot glass works great but any flat tool, or even clean hands work!
Bake for 5 minutes, until slightly darker golden brown in color. Remove from the oven and set aside. Lower the oven temperature to 325oF (160oC).
For the Filling:
Add softened cream cheese and sugar to the bowl and mix together with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined. I like to use my stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment but the hand mixer also works. Scrape the bowl down with a spatula and continue to mix until completely homogenous.
Add sour cream and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
Add the eggs beating to combine. Scrape the bowl down and mix until completely smooth.
Divide the batter between the 18 cupcake liners. Use a small ice cream scoop to transfer the cheesecake mixture to your cupcake tin. Fill about ¾ the way up to the top. I like to use a medium cookie scoop for this.
Bake for 18-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature for one hour then refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Remove from the muffin tin. Top with whipped cream before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Room-temperature ingredients. Make sure the heavy cream, eggs, and cream cheese are at room temperature. Room temperature ingredients will mix more smoothly and create a creamier cheesecake filling.
- Use full-fat cream cheese. For the richest and creamiest mini chocolate cheesecakes, use full-fat cream cheese not low-fat.
- Make sure not to overbake. Don’t overbake your mini cheesecakes to avoid a dry and crumbly texture; they should be just set in the center when done.
- Allow time to cool. Let your cheesecakes cool completely before serving to prevent them from falling apart.
Recipe Variations
- Bake in a mini cheesecake pan – Instead of baking in muffin cups
- Use brown sugar in the graham cracker crust instead of granulated sugar.
- Add mini chocolate chips. Add 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips to the cheesecake batter.
Serving Suggestions
- Add Caramel. Drizzle a bit of caramel sauce over the baked cheesecakes after they’ve cooled for an extra layer of sweetness.
- Top with chocolate ganache – For a little chocolate, make a quick homemade ganache and spread over the top.
- Top with whipped cream – Make a homemade whipped cream and pipe on top of each cheesecake before serving. Serve with some fresh raspberries for a real treat!
- Serve with fresh fruit. Top each cheesecake with a sliced strawberry, raspberry or blueberry.
- Top with a strawberry sauce (homemade or canned). You can also make or use a cherry topping.
- Top with lemon curd.
Storage Instructions
Once the cheesecakes have cooled completely, refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
You can also freeze these cheesecakes. Once the cheesecakes have cooled completely, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze the cheesecakes for up to 3 months. To thaw, let the cheesecakes sit in the refrigerator overnight.
Recipe FAQs
There are a few reasons why your individual cheesecakes might be cracked. First, make sure that you are using room temperature ingredients. This will help to ensure that the cheesecake filling is smooth and creamy. Second, be careful not to overmix the batter. Overmixing can create air bubbles in the batter, which can lead to cracks in the cheesecake. Third, make sure that you are not overbaking the cheesecakes. The cheesecakes should be just set in the center when they are done baking. Overbaking can make the cheesecakes dry and cracked.
The edges should be set but the middles will still have a bit of a wobble.
This usually means you overmixed your cheesecake batter cause it to have too much air. In the oven, the cheesecakes will puff up but then collapse after being baked. Make sure to use room temperature ingredients so there only needs to be minimal mixing for a smooth batter.
More Recipes To Try
If you’re craving more cheesecake be sure to try my strawberry cheesecake recipe! It’s made with a Golden oreo cookie crust and fresh strawberry sauce.
And a surefire crowd pleaser is my Oreo cheesecake. Complete with an Oreo cookie crust, Oreo cheesecake filling and ganache on top!
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Don’t forget to grab a copy of my cookbook, Cheesecake For All Seasons! It’s an easy to download digital e-book with over 50 delicious cheesecake recipes, toppings, tips and tutorials for you to master making cheesecake at home!
Mini Cheesecakes
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 ¼ cups (150 g) Graham Crackers about 10 full sheets
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick, 57 g) unsalted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
For the Cheesecake
- 16 ounces (2 blocks) cream cheese room temperature
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (113 g) sour cream
- 2 large eggs room temperature
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line two cupcake tins with cupcake liners.
- Add graham crackers to your food processor and pulse until broken into fine crumbs. 1 ¼ cups (150 g) Graham Crackers
- Add melted butter and sugar and pulse to combine. 4 tablespoons (½ stick, 57 g) unsalted butter 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Use about a tablespoon to transfer the mixture to your cupcake tin. Press into a flat layer. A shot glass works great but any flat tool, or even clean hands work!
- Bake for 5 minutes, until slightly darker golden brown in color. Remove from the oven amd set aside. Lower the oven temperature to 325oF (160oC).
For the Filling:
- Add softened cream cheese and sugar to the bowl and mix together with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined. I like to use my stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment but the hand mixer also works. Scrape the bowl down with a spatula and continue to mix until completely homogenous. 16 ounces (2 blocks) cream cheese ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- Add sour cream and vanilla extract and beat to combine. 2 teaspoons vanilla extract ½ cup (113 g) sour cream
- Add the eggs beating to combine. Scrape the bowl down and mix until completely smooth. 2 large eggs
- Divide the batter between the 18 cupcake liners. Use a small ice cream scoop to transfer the cheesecake mixture to your cupcake tin. Fill about ¾ the way up to the top. I like to use a medium cookie scoop for this.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature for one hour then refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Remove from the muffin tin. Top with whipped cream before serving.
Video
Notes
- Making Ahead: You can make mini cheesecakes ahead of time. Once the cheesecakes have cooled completely, refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
- Freezing: Once the cheesecakes have cooled completely, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze the cheesecakes for up to 3 months. To thaw, let the cheesecakes sit in the refrigerator overnight.
- Graham crackers – If you can’t find graham crackers you can use digestive biscuits, cookies, or Nilla wafers. You can also use gluten free cracker
- Butter – I used unsalted butter but salted butter will also work.
- Sour cream – Use full-fat for best texture.
- Cream cheese – You want to soften the cream cheese to room temperature
Easy to make and delicious to eat! I used chocolate Oreos as the base and swirled chocolate frosting on top……..hubby loves chocolate! Thank you for a great recipe!! I’m planning to make that Mexican Fried Ice Cream recipe next!
Thank you for your kind comment! I love the idea of using chocolate Oreos and adding the frosting—perfect for a chocolate lover! I hope you and your husband enjoy the Mexican Fried Ice Cream next. Happy cooking!