Cheesecake Cupcakes

I’m the most popular guy on the block. My neighbors love me.  Sweet Lady Wife and I cannot eat the entire batch of these so I pass them out to my neighbors.The favor is starting to be returned.  The other day the UPS driver delivered some chocolate-covered strawberries from one of  my (apparently) kitchen-challened neighbors.  They don’t realize all they need to do in order to return the favor is to eat the cupcakes and other pastries I give them.  They are keeping me from eating them myself and getting fat.

These cheesecake cupcakes tend to come out lighter and fluffier than your normal dense cheesecake, and the reaction to that has been universally favorable.  I think they are also a lot simpler to make as well.

One thing to note about this recipe is that most of the measurements are by weight instead of volume. The amount of eggs is in weight as well, but don’t hyperventilate if the weight of eggs is off by an eighth of an ounce or so.

This recipe makes two dozen standard cupcakes, so you will need two cupcake pans and sufficient liners. A piping bag makes the job of getting the batter into the cups easier. You’ll need a rimmed baking sheet to act as a water bath.

Ingredients for the Crust

• 8 oz Graham crackers
• 8 Tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 2 Tablespoons sugar

Ingredients for the Cheesecake

• 2.5 Pounds Philadelphia brand cream cheese (the original) at room temperature
• 10 oz sugar
• .75 oz Cornstartch
• 3 Tablespoons vanilla extract
• 8 oz Whole Eggs at room temperature
• 3 oz Egg Yolks at room temperature
• 4 oz Heavy Cream
• 2 oz Whole milk
• 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

Ingredients for the Decorative Raspberry Swirl

• 1/2 cup Fresh Raspberries

Make the Crust

Melt the butter. Put the graham crackers in a food processor or blender and pulse until well ground. Pour them into a bowl and add the melted butter and sugar. combine well.

Make the Decorative Raspberry Swirl

Run the raspberries thru the blender on high to puree them.  Pour the puree through a fine strainer into a small bowl.  Straining removes the seeds and leaves you with a smooth puree.

Prepare the cupcake pans

Place a paper cupcake liner in each well of the pan. Sprinkle some of the graham cracker mixture into each cup and press it down lightly.  After pressed down, the layer of crumbs should be 1/8 – 3/16 inch thick, though more or less is not critical.

Prepare the Cheesecake Batter

Preheat the oven to 325F.

Put the cream cheese into your mixer’s mixing bowl. Run the mixer on low speed until the cream cheese is smooth.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch, then slowly add it to the cream cheese.

Add the whole eggs and egg yolks slowly. Mix until thoroughly combined. Occasionally stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.

Add the heavy cream, whole milk, vanilla, and lemon juice.  Mix until thoroughly combined.

Pour the mixture through a strainer into a bowl to remove any lumps.  You may want to use a flexible spatula to ‘squeegee’ the mixture through the strainer.

The easiest (and least messy) way to get the batter into the cupcake cups is to use a piping bag. Put a large portion of the mixture into the piping bag. If you don’t have a piping bag then simple spoon or ladle the batter into the cups. Fill the cups to within about a quarter-inch of the top.

Adding the Raspberry Swirl

Let the batter rest in the cups for 2-3 minutes so that the top surface levels out. Use a small spoon to drop a dime-sized dollup of raspberry puree onto the center of the top of each cupcake. The shape of the dollup does not matter. Let the cupcakes rest for a minute or two so the raspberry dollup has time to smooth out and sink in a bit.  Dip the end of a toothpick into each dollup and move it around the cupcake in an irregular pattern to make the swirls.  This is easier than it sounds, and is impossible to screw up.

Bake the Cheesecakes in a Water Bath

Put the cupcake pan on a rimmed cooky sheet and place it in on a rack in the middle of the oven. Then carefully pour water into  the cookie sheet. Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until the centers of the cupcakes are still a little jiggly but the outside edges are firm.

When they are done let them cool at room temperature for a few minutes then place them in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours.