Mini White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecakes

 

Yesterday my husband and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary. I can honestly say it's been a blast. 19 years of laughter and love and hopefully many more to come. 

We decided to keep our special day fairly low-key and enjoy it with our children. The weather was spectacular with lots of sunshine and temperatures in the high 70's. Perfect!

We started our day with a lovely brunch of salmon and different cheeses along with artisan bread, fruit and of course mimosas (for the adults). We spent the afternoon just hanging out on the back porch, reading and sharing a good bottle of wine. Our dinner was just as lovely and truly a combined effort. My husband grilled some nice looking T-bone steaks and fresh asparagus, while I made roasted herbed fingerling potatoes and my Favorite "Fancy" Salad. I knew I wanted something special for dessert and knowing how much my husband loves anything with fruit that's not too sweet, I thought a cheesecake would fit the bill. 

I found this great recipe on foodnetwork.com for a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. I did make a few changes to the written recipe and it turned out great. Instead of making one big cheesecake I thought it would be fun to make mini cheesecakes. There is something that appeals to me every time when presented with a "personal" dessert. The crust is simply composed of graham crackers and slivered almonds, ground up in a food-processor until well combined and mixed with butter. That's it, no extra sugar required, which I really liked considering the filling is quite rich. The cheesecake part is pretty much your average recipe, but is in enhanced with melted white chocolate which takes away a little more of the tartness of the cream cheese and leaves you with an incredible smooth mouth-feel with every bite. It also helps adjust the sweetness level since the filling only calls for a little more than 1/2 cup of sugar. To make my cheesecakes even more special, I decided to add dollops of seedless raspberry jam to each of my Mini Springfrom Pans and gently swirl it into the filling with a toothpick. The mini version of this dessert bakes up in just 25 minutes. You will however have to cool the cheesecakes in the refrigerator over night which really helps "set" the finished dessert.

We ate these fantastic cheesecakes with fresh raspberries on the side and they were indeed a fitting ending to a wonderful Anniversary! I think these cheesecakes would be wonderful for any occasion. I could definitely see them being served for baby showers, birthdays, a special dinner, or simply as the perfect dessert for the perfect husband!

Mini White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecakes

~makes 6 Mini Cheesecakes~

(Print this Recipe)

Ingredients:

For the crust:

1 cup slivered almonds

2 cups (7 ounces) graham crackers

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

7 ounces fine-quality white chocolate

4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

4 large eggs

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam, slightly warm and whisked to remove any lumps

Fresh raspberries for decoration (optional)

Directions:

For the crust: Finely grind almonds and graham crackers in a food processor and add butter, blending until combined. Press over bottom and 2/3 up the sides of 6 mini springform pans*. Set aside.

For the filling: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a large metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth, and remove from heat.

Beat cream cheese with an electric mixer at medium speed until fluffy, then beat in sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well at low speed and scraping down the bowl after each addition.

Beat in flour and vanilla until just combined, then add melted chocolate in a slow stream, beating until filling is well combined.

Pour filling over crust. Add a couple of teaspoons of raspberry jam to each pan and gently swirl with a toothpick to get a marble effect being careful not to overmix.

Set mini-pans on a baking sheet and place in the middle of oven. Bake for about 25 minutes or until cake is set, but center is still wobbly when pans are shaken gently shaken.

Remove from oven, run a thin knife around edge of cake to loosen, then cool completely in pans on a rack. (Cake will continue to set as it cools). Serve chilled with additional raspberries if desired.

*Alternately you can just make this in a 10-inch springform pan. 

Adapted from: Foodnetwork

Susi's Kochen und Backen 1st Blogoversary!

Wow, I can't believe it's been one whole year already since I started this "blog thing". One year ago, my very smart 17 year old daughter told me I should start a blog. Little did she, or I know what a fun and at times exhausting ride this would be. The year has certainly been filled with a few trials, a few extra gray hairs, but mostly great memories. If it wouldn't have been for my little "hiatus" named Valley Fever, I would have finished as strongly as I started, but sometimes life does not work out the way you intend it to. However, through all of this I could not be prouder of this blog and how far I have come. I have challenged myself with recipes, photography and writing. I'd like to think that I've improved in all areas. The cooking and baking part comes easily to me, the other two don't come as naturally, but it has been a great experience and learning curve. None of this would have been possible without all the support you guys have given me. Some of you have been around since the very beginning and I can't begin to express how much your kind comments have meant to me. Some of you are newer to my blog, nonetheless your friendship and equally encouraging comments have been what keeps me coming back. All of your great blogs are what drives me to push and improve myself everyday. The last year would have not been as possible or successful without all of you and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I could not be prouder to have "met" every single one of you!

So what is in store for year 2 on Susi's Kochen und Backen Adventures? At this point, I'm just happy that I'm feeling well enough to blog again, however, I do have a few "monsters" I would like to tackle this year. Baking more of my own bread is on the top of my list, along with trying my hand at macarons which I have only admired on other blogs thus far. I would also like to challenge myself into creating more "original" recipes and keep working on my photography skills, which is still my greatest struggle (even though I think I've improved from my early months). I will also continue to feature more German recipes since I enjoy sharing my heritage with you. Lastly, but not least, some popular features will make a return along with a few more recipes that focus on healthy eating in general. I'm certainly looking forward to a great year and can't wait to share all of this with you!

To celebrate this momentum occasion I struggled with the decision of what recipe to feature today. I finally decided to go with this cupcake recipe and in true Susi's Kochen und Backen fashion, this recipe ended up turning out a bit different then intended.  Chocolate cupcakes, with a cream cheese center who were "supposed" to be topped with a chocolate glaze and chocolate curls. Unfortunately, once baked, the cupcakes decided to have a mind of their own and the cheesecake center decided to sink on me, leaving them looking more like craters then photographic gems I had envisioned. That's when I decided to macerate some of my bounty of frozen fruit from last summer and top the cupcakes with that. Everyone agreed that they looked prettier than the original in the book and while I can't compare taste, I'd like to think that the fruit gave them this little extra special something. These cupcakes were a hit and I will definitely be baking them again, "Susi's Kochen und Backen Style".

Black & White Cupcakes

 ~makes 12 cupcakes~

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

8 ounce cream cheese, at room temperature

1 tablespoon sour cream

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 cup cake flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

1 cup berries, frozen or fresh, tossed with 2 tablespoons sugar

Preparation:

Toss berries with 2 tablespoons sugar and set aside.

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

To make the cream cheese filling, in a bowl, using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the cream cheese until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sour cream and 1/2 cup of the sugar and beat until combined.

To make the cupcake batter, sift together the cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. In another bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and remaining 3/4 cup sugar together until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk in 2 additions, beating on low speed until just combined; scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each about one-half full. Spoon the cream cheese filling onto the center of each, dividing it evenly (the filling will sink into the cupcakes as they bake). Bake until the cupcakes are set in the center, about 15-20 minutes. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Transfer the cupcakes to the wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour.

Right before serving top each cupcake with the berry mixture.

Adapted from: Cupcakes