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.
Maria V says
Hi Bea... I loved this recipe!!!!! ... (:
Thank you for sharing it!!!!!
They do have very good Restaurants in Spain!!!!!
It is one of the countries known for great foods!!!!! In fact, it is Spain that gave the World it's "Tapas" trend!!!!!.... (:
Wishing you a Beautiful Day!!!!!!.... (:
Maria (:
Bea says
Hi Maria! I'm happy to know that you loved it. And yes, you can have delicious tapas anywhere here. You have a wonderful day too, thank you so much! XO
Idawatinur says
💕
Terry van der Peet says
I made the mini cheesecakes, but I think that my oven was a bit hot - I set it to 150° with a fan.
They look more like muffins, but I'm sure that they taste awesome. They also cracked badly.
Bea says
Hey there! Please refer to my tips on post above on how to avoid the cracks.
Catherine says
This is AMAZING! The only thing is they're like lemon cheesecakes, i didn't expect that but they were good anyways!
would recommend! 10/10!!
Bea says
Happy that you liked it, thanks Catherine! XO
Jay says
This is so good! I didn’t have sour cream available so I made a substitute by mixing milk, butter and lemon juice and still turned out great. Thanks for sharing this recipe. This is now going to be my go to cheesecake recipe. I love it!
Bea says
Awesome! I'm glad that the sour cream substitute worked for you. Thank you Jay!
Sharron says
How can you freeze them for ?
Kim T. says
Thank you for sharing your recipe with us. I made them last night and they are so simple & oh so delicious.
One thing, the center of mine dipped down. It was not evenly straight. Did I maybe overbaked it?
Bea says
Hi Kim! I wrote tips on this post, which can also serve to avoid the dipped center. Do check it out. I'm happy that you liked them, thank you so much! XO
Norma says
Hi! I am going to make this recipe for tomorrow. My question is, when I store in a refrigerator do I have to cover it?
Thank you.
Catherine Greene says
Your tips about common mistakes when making a cheesecake were exceedingly helpful! The results were fantastic! Once cooled overnight I added a thin layer of sour cream and some homemade blackberry topping and continued to chill. Spectacular!
Bea says
Awesome, I'm happy to hear that. Thank you so much Catherine! XO
Angela says
Is the size of your cupcake holder/liner 1/3 of a cup (83 ml) or is it a little bigger or smaller? I am trying to work out if the size of my cupcake liner is the same size as yours and if I need to increase or decrease the cooking time of 15 minutes. I have a few different sized cupcake liners. Thanks very much.
Lilly says
Simple and perfect recipe, thank you xx
Bea says
Thanks Lilly!
Lahna says
I doubled the recipe and made a whole cheesecake!! Loved this
Bea says
Awesome, thanks for sharing the info Lahna!
Mari says
Do I use mini cupcake liners or the regular liners?
Bea says
The regular liners 🙂
Hannie says
Do you use a fan oven, or top and bottem heat?
Bea says
I use no fan, with both top and bottom heat. Hope it helps.
Ema says
Absolutely delicious!
Bea says
Thank you Ema! XO
Desiree says
These were so easy and turned out perfect!! I have some very happy friends and family right now!! Thanks for this recipe, can’t wait to look at the rest of your webpage!!
Bea says
That's great, Desiree! Thank you!