I have never liked Martha Stewart, but I was given a copy of her Cupcakes book. I’ve been gradually testing out some of the simpler recipes, that didn’t require quite as many ingredients or as many hours on the icings. 🙂
This one was pretty easy to make, particularly with a few adjustments. I’m making it for two different occasions, figuring that I could probably freeze any leftovers, as you would with a larger cheesecake purchased from a BJs or other store. Enjoy!
Raspberry Cheesecake Cupcakes
Source: adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes (pg 99), also found online here
Makes 24 cupcakes
Ingredients:
- 1 c. ground graham crackers (about 8 sheets)
- 3 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/2 c. plus 5 Tbs. sugar
- 1 container (6 oz.) fresh raspberries or 4 oz. frozen raspberries
- 2 lbs. of cream cheese, at room temperature
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
Preheat & Prepare: Preheat the oven to 325. Prepare the muffin tins with paper liners.
Make the Graham Cracker Crust: Combine graham crackers, butter and 3 Tbs. sugar in a small bowl. Mixture may seem dry, but that’s ok! Put about 1 tablespoon of mixture into each muffin cup and press flat. Bake for 5 minutes. Let cool.
Make the Raspberry Sauce: In a mini food processor or with an immersion mixer, puree raspberries until smooth, about 30 seconds. If using frozen raspberries, the mixture will be very thick – you probably won’t be able to get much juice out of it if you’re straining it. If using fresh raspberries, strain mixture with a sieve, keeping the liquid and discarding the solid parts.
Stir in 2 Tbs. sugar and set aside.
Make the Cheesecake: With a hand mixer, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add sugar; beat to combine. Add salt and vanilla; beat to combine. Add eggs, one at a time, while keeping the mixer on.
Pour a little over 1/8 a cup of the cream cheese filling in each of the prepared muffin tins. The mixture should fill the muffin cups about 3/4 of the way. Add half a teaspoon of the raspberry sauce (I used almost a full teaspoon of the frozen raspberries). Make a swirl with a toothpick.
Cook: at 325 until the filling has set, about 30 minutes. Let cool.
Refrigerate the cooled cupcakes for at least 4 hours, or up to 5 days in an airtight container.
Just made them with Mr Christie’s Nilla wafers instead of graham crusts, and some strawberry jam instead of raspberries… waiting for them to cool! Will report soon. 🙂
Nice! Can’t wait to hear how they turn out.