These creamy mini cheesecakes are inspired by none other than.. the Cheesecake Factory! This recipe has more than 17 million views on our Youtube (as this post is published) and is also one of our readers' favourites.
We have uncountable messages and emails from our viewers and readers saying how they loved it as it's so easy and never fails. Many have also started selling these and they become one of their customers' favourites also.
We can't express enough how happy, grateful and satisfied we feel to know all the stories and feedback. This recipe truly has a soft spot in our hearts.
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Recipe Highlights
Texture and flavour - Creamy luscious filling with a crunchy base. The mildly sweet filling with delicious cream cheese flavour goes amazing with the contrast of the base that has a touch of saltiness to it. Amazing combo!
Level - Super easy, even for beginners. No water bath is needed.
Size - 12 mini cheesecakes, muffin size.
Occasion - I hate to limit these beauties to any occasion as they are perfect for any time, more when you want to impress somebody who's a cheesecake lover.
Lets Talk Ingredients
Digestive biscuits - Don't get taken aback by their name. We're based in Europe and instead of graham crackers, we use digestive biscuits which are easier to find. Honestly, I love the touch of saltiness from the biscuits, it's a nice contrast flavour.
SUBSTITUTION: Use graham crackers or any other similar biscuits.
Cream cheese - Use full fat, block ones. Not the ones for spreading on toasts, alright?
Sugar - Granulated sugar. Add a bit more if you want to use confectioner sugar as it's not as sweet as granulated. Or adjust to your liking.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Any dry sweetener will work. Add 30% more if you're using erythritol. The same amount for brown and coconut sugar but just know that they'll make the cheesecakes colour darker.
NOTE: I don't recommend using liquid sweetener as it'll affect the texture (too liquid).
All-purpose flour - I know it's not conventional but this small amount of flour will help prevent cracks, which is a huge no-no in baked cheesecakes.
Sour cream - Use full fat, please. We are making cheesecakes here. Go big or go home?
SUBSTITUTION: Use the same amount of full-fat unsweetened Greek yogurt.
Why This Recipe Has More Than 17 Million YouTube Views
These are the feedbacks that we keep getting from everybody who's made this recipe:
Super easy - Many who've never baked a cake, let alone made a baked cheesecake (which we know is tricky), have successfully made this recipe on the first try. No fancy method is needed here.
It works - The recipe never fails. I know it's difficult to find reliable recipes in the internet world but no recipes are published here on our website without me testing them first. We're also known for our reliable recipes here, just letting you know. What you see is what you get.
No water bath - Baked cheesecakes usually need a water bath to cook properly and beautifully. This recipe doesn't need it. Less hassle with great results.
Easy ingredients - No fancy ingredients here. So if you follow exactly my recipe or tips for ingredient substitutions above, then you'll nail it every single time.
Quick cooking time - Only 15 minutes in the oven, yep.
How To Prevent Cracks In Cheesecakes
Baked cheesecakes are considered a success if there's no crack on them. Right? And also when they maintain the flat top, or in other words, they don't deflate when they come out from the oven. Here's how you can easily achieve those:
Room temperature - Ingredients should be at room temperature. This is so that they mix easily with each other.
Don't over-mix - Never, at any point, in any of my baked cheesecake recipes, should you over-mix the filling. Less is extremely more in this case. Over mixing will whip in the air, which will cause the filling to inflate and crack in the oven.
Low speed - Use the lowest speed on your handheld or stand mixer. Remember, we don't want to over-mix.
Low temperature - Not all ovens are made the same. Yours could be hotter than mine, and vice versa. Use a portable oven thermometer to get the accurate temperature, it's very affordable. The high temperature will make them inflate, deflate and crack.
Conventional - Use conventional mode (without fan-assisted) as it'll keep the temperature stable-low. Lower by 20-25 degrees if you're using a convection oven.
Don't overbake - With the correct temperature, they take only 15 minutes to cook. Not more. They should still wiggle in the center when you lightly shake the pan. Over baking will cause them to crack.
Great Cheesecakes Need Time
Making these cheesecakes is super easy and quick. But we want that depth in flavour in our cheesecakes, right?
And we can achieve that by giving some time for the wonderful flavours to blend with each other. Chill the baked room temperature cheesecakes in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours. Preferably 8 hours. Trust me, you'll appreciate it.
Can I Put Them At Room Temperature For A Long Time?
The answer is, no.
All cheesecakes either baked or no-bake, are better-kept chill to maintain their structure. You can have these out on the table for a maximum of 30 minutes, not more.
If for some reason you want them to be longer than that, I'd recommend you freeze them for 1-2 hours, so that they hold longer at room temperature.
Can I Freeze Them?
Yes, you can. I do it all the time.
Place on a tray and freeze for 1 hour. Then put them in an airtight container and back in the freezer, for up to 6 months.
Thaw in the fridge.
More Recipes
- The BEST double chocolate cheesecake
- Fudgy pumpkin cheesecake brownies
- Pecan cheesecake bars
- Whole normal sized Cheesecake Factory inspired
- Cinnamon roll flavoured cheesecake
Recipe Video
📖 Recipe
Easy Mini Cheesecakes
Equipment
- Bowls (1 big and 1 small)
- Food processor or rolling pin (for biscuit crumbs)
- Muffin liners
- Handheld whisk
Ingredients
The Base
- 1 ½ cup biscuits crumbs (150 g) or use graham crackers
- ¼ cup unsalted butter (60 g), melted
The Cheese Filling
- 10.5 oz cream cheese, full fat (300 g), room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 g)
- 2 large eggs , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 ½ tablespoon all purpose flour (14 g)
- ¾ cup sour cream, full fat (185 g), room temperature
Optional Toppings
- some strawberry marmalade
- berries of your choice
Instructions
The Base
- Using a food processor, blend digestive biscuits into fine mixture. Pour into a bowl and add melted butter. Mix well.
- Divide evenly into 12 muffin liners in a muffin pan. Using a spoon, press the mixture tightly and evenly. Set aside.
The Cheese Filling
- Using a low speed in your mixer, mix cream cheese until just creamy. While mixing, gradually add in sugar. Then add in eggs 1 by 1, mixing just until well combined.
- Then add in vanilla extract, lemon juice, flour and mix again just until combined. Finally add in sour cream and mix everything together.
- Using an ice cream scoop, divide the cheesecake filling evenly into prepared muffin pan. Gently shake the pan to make the top surface flat.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 320ºF (160ºC), conventional mode, on ⅔ lower rack for 15 minutes or when you gently shake the pan, the cheesecake wiggle a bit and the center look not as set.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool to room temperature in the pan. Place the pan in the fridge overnight.
How To Serve
- Serve as they are or with some strawberry marmalade and your favourite berries.
Notes
- Do not over-mix to avoid cheesecake from cracking while baking.
- Use a portable oven thermometer to get the accurate oven temperature.
- After chilling them in the fridge, removing the cheesecakes from the pan is easier.
- Don't leave them at room temperature for too long to maintain their structure. The maximum is 30 minutes. Freeze for 1-2 hours if you want them to hold a bit longer than that.
- They last up to 6 months in the freezer.
Nutrition Facts
The nutrition facts provided are an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Originally published on Feb 16, 2019. Updated with improved text and pictures on Aug 11, 2021.
Valdineide Araujo says
Coloquei em português por favor
Bea says
Hola! Puedes mirar la receta en español cambiando el icono de bandera arriba 👆. No la tengo en Portuguesa, lo siento.
Cristhela says
They look delicious can’t wait to make them thanks for sharing 😊
aryna ds says
how many grams is one egg? thank you 🧡
looking forward to bake it!!
Bea says
It's L (large) sized egg, around 57 grams. Have fun!
Jayasree says
Can we substitute sour cream with full fat yogurt? As sour cream is not available in the place I live.
Bea says
Yes you can 🙂
Green Beans says
These cheesecakes are amazing! So creamy and delectable, I make mine bite sized and I highly recommend leaving in the fridge over night for best results!
Katarina says
I made the mini cheesecakes for new year lunch with my family.. they were such a hit! Thank you for the awesome recipe, Bea!
I have a question on how to make the strawberry stick on top of the cheesecake as I would like to send the cake to my mom and want to make sure the berries do not fall off during transport. Will edible cake glue (from tylose powder) work?
yolanda says
I have tried several recepies, but this one is by far the easiest. One question though, the paper cupcake gets a bit soggy and its then difficult to remove without messing them UP a bit, Any suggestions to avoid this?
Bea says
Hi Yolanda! Are you keeping them long enough in the fridge before removing the paper? You should remove the paper after they been in the fridge for hours and firmed up. If you are already doing this and still have problems, maybe you can try putting them in the freezer for 30 minutes and then remove the paper, it should come off easily. Let me know.
Sharria says
Tried this already and walla.. so yummy, everyone likes it 😋😋😋😍
tq Bea😘
Leanne says
Easy and delicious recipe. Thanks
Janiah says
Thank you for the recipe! So delicious! 😀
Audrey Lavko says
I’m going to try this it look delicious. But what is 6.5 oz sour cream is that 3/4 cup ..? And the cream cheese 10. 5 oz of cream cheese .? Our cream cheese come in 8 oz so from another package do I take 2 oz and 1/2 of another oz .Help I really like to make these. Thank you.
Bea says
Hi Audrey! Yes, it's 3/4 cup for the sour cream. And yes, for cream cheese take one whole block of 8 oz and then another block, cut in half and take half of that (2 oz), the balance of 2 oz take 1/4 of it. Let me know how it goes.
JackieR says
I decided this would be a good try for making cheesecake the first time and I can tell you it was a big hit. Will make it again and again thanks!
Mei says
Hello, can I make this in a square bake tray 35x24cm? How many ingredients (1x, 2x or 3x) do I need to use? And do I need to adjust the temperature and time? Thanks a lot for the recipe I made these several times everyone loves them!
Lucy says
Hi, i cant afford the sour cream... it is okey if i substitute to heavy cream instead?
Sarah says
I'm pretty sure sour cream is as cheap as heavy cream, everywhere I've been? It's usually maybe 1.39 or something for a small container. Heavy Cream will not be the same consistency at all. It will make your filling much runnier.
Kelly says
Beautiful little cheesecakes, first time trying mini ones, was hesitant trying a different recipe.. but they turned out gorgeous. This recipe is now printed and on my keep list. Thank you. 🥰
Bea says
Happy to hear that, thanks Kelly!
farhan says
Hi Bea
I want to make and freeze ahead. Can you advise on that?
1. shall I freeze after a night in the fridge
2. shall i thaw them in fridge overnight or on counter top for few hours
3. can i add whipped cream prior to freezing?
Bea says
Hi Farhan! You can directly freeze them without chilling in the fridge. Thaw either in the fridge or room temp (I've done both and they thawed fine). I'd suggest you add whipped cream before serving. Hope it helps.
Farhan says
Thank you so much for your quick reply. Can you tell me the best way to freeze too? I notice sometimes condensation forms on cling wraps when I put them in fridge to chill. Shall I put each one in a separate zip lock bag?
Bea says
I usually place them on a tray with parchment paper in the freezer for 1-2 hours till they're frozen. Then wrap them individually with cling film and place them in a ziplock bag. Hope it helps.