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How cute are these cheesecakes? I’m a sucker for anything mini and these are just way too fun.
Actually, this recipe came about when my partner REAL® Seal challenged me to create the ultimate sweet treat perfect for Valentine’s Day. When working with real dairy (be sure to look out for that little red seal to ensure you’re buying genuine dairy made with milk from cows on U.S. dairy farms), there are so many baking options available.
Dairy is basically a crucial component to most delicious baked goods. I actually overwhelmed myself with all the possible ways I could use REAL® Seal to create a scrumptious Valentine’s Day recipe!
I thought back to when I was a kid and we celebrated Valentine’s Day at school. We’d all go from desk to desk handing out our Valentine’s Day cards, then get to munch on some sweet treats we all brought in (thanks to our parents).
I thought of those artificially sweet grocery store Valentine’s Day treats that usually lined the classroom table and remembered even as a kid I didn’t like them.
So I decided to create a recipe that was sweet and rich, but made with real ingredients and real flavors everyone adores. I decided on a recipe that could be made ahead of time and is easy to transport. That way, if you wanted to bring them to your kid’s classroom, or to a Galentine’s day party, or to your collegues at work, it would be super simple.
Mini Cheesecake Recipe Tips
The Pan
I used my beloved Mini Cheesecake Pan for this recipe, but if you don’t have one go ahead and use a standard muffin tin with paper liners sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Also make sure to grease your mini cheesecake pan if you’re using that. We don’t want any sticking here since there is no baking!
The Cheesecake
Make sure your cream cheese is completely at room temperature. You want to beat it very well so no lumps remain. However, once you add the egg be careful not to over beat, which can cause the cheesecakes to crack and deflate.
Here’s a little sneaky plus though, even if these cheesecakes deflate it’s okay because that basically means more room for ganache on top!
Make sure you chill the cheesecakes for at least 3 hours so they have the best shape, texture, and taste.
Making Ahead & Storing
The plain cheesecakes, without the ganache or strawberries on top, can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container up to 3 days ahead of time. Once you add the toppings they’re best served within 1 day,
The other key is to be sure to use real full-fat cream cheese and cream that has little red REAL® Seal on the packaging to ensure you’re buying genuine dairy products that meet strict standards and are made with milk from cows on U.S. dairy farms. Nothing else quite compares!!
More Valentine’s Day Recipes You’ll Love:
For the crust:
-
1
sleeve (9 cookies, 137 grams) graham crackers
-
3
tablespoons
(43 grams) REAL Seal® unsalted butter, melted
For the filling:
-
12
ounces
(340 grams) REAL Seal® cream cheese, at room temperature
-
1/2
cup
(100 grams) granulated sugar
-
1/2
cup
(140 grams) seedless strawberry preserves
-
Red gel food coloring, if desired
-
1/2
teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
1/4
teaspoon
fine salt
-
1
large egg
For the topping:
-
1/2
cup
(85 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
-
1/4
cup
REAL Seal® heavy cream
-
12
small strawberries
Make the crust:
-
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 12-cup mini cheesecake pan with nonstick spray.
-
Place the graham crackers in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Add in the melted butter and pulse until moistened. Divide the mixture among the cavities of the cheesecake pan, about 1 heaping tablespoon in each. Firmly press the crumbs into the bottom of each cavity (a shot glass or other small object makes easy work of this).
-
Bake the crusts for 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Remove from oven and reduce temperature to 325°F.
Make the filling:
-
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy. Add the strawberry preserves, food coloring (if using), vanilla, and salt and beat until smooth. Add the egg and beat until just combined. Divide the mixture among each cavity.
-
Bake for about 18 minutes, or until set. Let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and let chill for at least 3 hours or overnight.
Make the topping:
-
Place the chocolate chips in a medium heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan heat the cream just until simmering. Pour over the chocolate chips. Let sit for 3 minutes before stirring until the mixture is melted and smooth. Allow to cool and thicken.
-
Top each cheesecake with the ganache, then press a strawberry into the ganache. Serve or cover and store in the fridge for up to 1 day.
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Hi Vanessa! All the info on this can be found in the pink tip box, above the recipe! As Tessa mentions there, “The plain cheesecakes, without the ganache or strawberries on top, can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container up to 3 days ahead of time. Once you add the toppings they’re best served within 1 day.” Be sure to read through all Tessa’s other tips in the tip box, and let us know what you think of this recipe if you give it a try! 🙂
This looks so good! What a great treat for a stay-in Valentine’s date!
is seedless strawberry preserves just strawberry jam? i couldn’t find anything in the store that said “seedless strawberry preserves”
Fruit preserves are slightly thicker than jam and have large chunks of fruit or even whole fruit included, whereas jam is made with chopped, crushed, or pureed fruit. If you can find any sort of strawberry preserve or jam that has chunks or pieces of fruit, it should work fine. Hope that helps!
I’m in the UK and the only only non-stick spray I’ve seen is Fry Light. It’s not an aerosol but will it do the same thing?
This looks delicious!!! I have all the ingredients to make them and then share my experience here, but I have a question: Can I use fresh strawberry puree instead of preserves? if so, how much should I use?
Thank you, your recipes are amazing!!!! <3
Can I use raspberry preserves instead? I know they have the tiny seeds in there… Will that make that big of a difference?? Or does it have to be seedless? Also, if using a muffin pan with paper liners, is it necessary to spray the paper liners with cooking spray, or is that only if you don’t use the liners? Thank you! I’m super excited to make these!!!
Can you swap out raspberry preserves for strawberry and just put raspberries on top?
wow wow wow! It looks so tasty!!!
Oh my god… It looks so tasty!!!
I got a mini cheesecake pan for Christmas but hadn’t used it yet, so I broke it in with these tonight. YUM!
Yay, Jen!! So glad to hear that. And don’t you just love your pan?! 🙂
wow wow wow! These look AMAZING! x