Our recipe for strawberry baked mini cheesecakes is our most popular post on Instagram to date, and it’s not hard to see why. First of all, who doesn’t love cheesecake? It’s that perfect combination of sweetness, creaminess and a slight tang from the cream cheese, all sitting on top of a salty-sweet biscuit crumb base. And these babies are as pretty as a picture with their creamy filling and bright pops of red on top. Top them with fresh strawberries, scatter around a few edible flowers and you have an irresistible dessert or a sweet addition to a high tea spread.
Inspiration for Strawberry Baked Mini Cheesecakes
We were visiting the Queen Victoria Market – our usual Saturday morning haunt. It’s one of our favourite places to shop for meat, seafood and fresh produce. We often shop without a list so we can take inspiration from what we find on the day. On this day, we were inspired by unseasonal fresh organic strawberries. Winter strawberries are usually disappointing, but these were a deep red colour, and actually smelled like strawberries.
Our next decision was – baked cheesecake or no-bake cheesecake? We decided to go with the baked version, as it produces a lighter cheesecake. The flavour is subtler and a little more sophisticated than no-bake cheesecake.
To hold the shape of the strawberry baked mini cheesecakes, we used cupcake papers (patty pans) and placed them in a muffin tray to bake.
Tips for Making Strawberry Baked Mini Cheesecakes
- Allow your cream cheese to reach room temperature before you start to beat it. This will make your job much easier.
- Use a teaspoon or other small implement to press the biscuit base into the patty pans. Try to press the mixture flat inside the ridges of the patty pans to get a smooth base when the mini cheesecake is unmoulded
- If you prefer a neater looking cheesecake, allow the strawberry topping to thicken a little more. That way it will hold its shape better when unmoulded.
- Double or triple the quantities for the strawberry topping. It is also delicious served over pancakes or ice cream.
Strawberry Baked Mini Cheesecakes
Ingredients
Base
- 100 g crushed sweet biscuits/cookies
- 50 5 melted butter
Strawberry Cheesecake
- 50 g strawberries fresh, or frozen & thawed
- 250 g cream cheese
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 50 g caster sugar
- 1 egg
Strawberry Topping
- 250 g sliced strawberries fresh or frozen
- 3 TBS caster sugar
- 2 TBS lemon juice
To Serve
- Fresh strawberries
- Edible fresh flowers optional
Instructions
For the Base
- Prepare muffin tin with patty pans/cupcake papers.
- Mix crushed biscuits with melted butter until the mixture looks like wet sand.
- Press a spoonful of the mixture into the bottom of each patty pan to form a smooth, firm base. Refrigerate.
For the Mini Cheesecakes
- Preheat oven to 140°C
- Blend strawberries in a food processor, blender or mortar and pestle until smooth.
- Mix in sugar, strawberry puree and vanilla until just combined.
- Beat in egg until just combined.
- Using a small ladle or jug, pour the mixture over the chilled bases.
- Bake on the lowest shelf of the oven for 20 minutes, or until mixture is just set with a slight wibble in the centre.
- Cool slowly – leave in oven with door open for 30 minutes, then transfer to benchtop. Meanwhile, make the strawberry topping.
Strawberry Topping
- Heat sliced strawberries with sugar and lemon juice over a medium heat.
- Stir frequently for about 10 minutes, crushing the strawberry pieces with a spoon to break them up.
- Spoon topping onto cheesecakes and refrigerate.
- When ready to serve, gently peel off the cupcake papers and serve Strawberry Baked Mini Cheesecakes with sliced fresh strawberries and fresh edible flowers.