Mini Cheesecakes. . . Can you say yum!?

Hello again! I do apologize for how long it's been since my last post. For better or for worse I've been surprisingly busy with work this month and haven't had time to add anything. Even though I have been cooking throughout the month (and taking all the necessary pictures) I haven't had a chance to add any of the recipes yet :)

I've been craving cheesecake since the last time I was over at Miss Amanda's, so I finally went out and bought the basic ingredients. After getting home from the store had to decide what kind of cheesecake I wanted . . . but that decision is so hard! There are many many options. . . so I made four different flavors :) A little over the top? Perhaps. But I did make them into minis so that makes it better right (and I plan on freezing most of them for when another cheesecake craving hits). Any who . . . onto the cheesecake!

I mixed up my favorite basic cheesecake recipe; split it into four and then made little changes to three of the four batches to get four different flavors: Almond, Dark Chocolate, Peach, and Orange/Banana. Mmmmmmmm.



Basic Almond Cheesecake (makes 24 minis!)
3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract

-HEAT oven to 325°F.
-BEAT cream cheese until fluffy in large bowl. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk until smooth (do not overbeat). Add eggs and almond extract; mix well.

From here split the batter evenly into four bowls.

I left one bowl alone so that I ended up with a batch of almond cheesecake.

For the Dark Chocolate cheesecake: I added 1 tsp of vanilla and about 3 squares of melted Lindt dark chocolate(94%)to one of the bowls. Mmmmm chocolate.

For the Peach cheesecake: I skinned and pureed 1 small peach (minus the pit) and mixed it into one of the bowls of almond cheesecake. This one turned out fantastic!

And finally Orange Banana cheesecake: I took half of an overly ripe banana and pureed it, added to the bowl. Then I used half of a fresh orange- grated the zest into the bowl and also squeezed all the juice into the bowl. After mixing thoroughly it smelled wonderful!

Graham Cracker Crust
1 1/2 cups graham cracker
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter-melted

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until combined.

Place 1 large tablespoon of crust mixture into each of 24 no-stick sprayed muffin cups. You can also use cupcake liners, but I suggest spraying them as well or the cheesecake goodness gets stuck! Press into cups to form crust.

Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons into each cup. Feel free to mix and match flavors in the same cups- makes it extra tasty!

Bake minis for about 20 minutes (or until the middle no longer jiggles) @ 325 degrees.

Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least an hour before removing from tins (this ensures they do not collapse). Continue to cool until at room temperature.

Store in refrigerator or freezer until ready to enjoy!