Mini Black-Bottom Cheesecakes

When my cousin Katie asked me to bring a dessert for their annual Fourth of July party, I thought of this recipe I have had saved for awhile. I wanted something bite-sized but also chilled since I knew it would be a hot day.

The original recipe only makes 12 cheesecakes, which is not enough when bringing to a party, so I doubled the amounts for you below. It also calls for fromage blanc, which can be hard to find as well as expensive, so I substituted sour cream with no problems.

Definitely give these little guys enough time to chill, and don't take them out of the fridge too long before you serve them. The jam topping that you see here also spreads out the longer you wait to serve them, but they are still delicious!

Mini Black-Bottom Cheesecakes

slightly adapted from Food & Wine

Makes 24 cheesecakes

1 package Nabisco chocolate wafer cookies (about 48 wafers)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/3 cups sour cream

4 eggs

4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup seedless raspberry preserves

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two standard 12-cup muffin pans with foil or paper baking cups. Spray each cup with cooking spray.

Crush the chocolate wafer cookies in a food processor. Add the butter and process until fine crumbs form. Spoon the chocolate cookie crumbs into the prepared muffin cups (about 1 tablespoon cookies each). Press cookies into bottom of cups with bottom of a juice glass (picture below). Bake for 5 minutes, or until almost set. Remove from oven and leave oven at same temperature.

Beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed in large bowl of an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in sour cream, then add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Pour the cheesecake batter into the muffin cups, filling about three-quarters full. Bake the cheesecakes for 15 minutes, or until slightly jiggly in the center. Remove from oven.

Warm the raspberry preserves 15-20 seconds in microwave. Spread one teaspoon onto each cheesecake. Place muffin tins in the freezer and chill until set, about 15 minutes.

Remove cheesecakes to serving plate and chill in refrigerator 4-24 hours. Remove from refrigerator right before serving.

And with that Chuck and I are off on our "babymoon" for a long weekend. I'll be back next week!