Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts
Mini pumpkin cheesecakes with gingersnap crusts are irresistible, individual desserts. This easy cheesecake recipe makes the perfect fall dessert!
Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts
My friend and fellow blogger, Kate of Kate’s Kitchen, sent me an email asking if I wanted to be a “Celebrity” chef at a benefit to raise funds for folks with developmental disabilities. Huh? I guess I could fake the celebrity status with a confident attitude, right? How could I say no?
The last 4 weeks have been crazy: flying to Iowa, moving my sick and elderly parents 800 miles to Denver in an RV, flying home, flying to Seattle for a food bloggers conference, flying back to Denver when my dad was admitted to the ICU. Ugh. Enough already. I needed 75 servings of a dessert, so instead of making a traditional, full sized cheesecake, I went with a simple fall classic, Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes.
Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes
Instead of the typical graham crackers in the crust, I bought a bag of gingersnaps and crushed them for some extra zing. I love the contrast of white chocolate with the orange pumpkin, so I topped these all with a round of ganache and varied the garnishes: crystallized ginger, candied pecans, and candy corn. The toppings are great at disguising any imperfections (shhh…don’t tell!) plus making for a more elegant presentation. As luck would have it, this month’s Dessert Challenge theme is pumpkin and cream cheese, so thankfully, these served double duty. If you’re interested in supporting this wonderful cause, you can go to the Indy Cooks site and follow the link to “tip the chef.” Even a dollar will help…thanks SO much!!!
A couple of items you may need to make the mini pumpkin cheesecakes:
Mini Muffin Pan
Nielsen-Massey Vanillas Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Extract
Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts
Mini pumpkin cheesecakes with gingersnap crusts
Ingredients
Crust:
- 12 ounces gingersnap cookies, processed into crumbs (I used Archway cookies)
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
Filling:
- 4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 4 eggs, at room temperature
Optional garnishes:
- White chocolate ganache (6 ounces chopped white chocolate melted with 1/4 cup cream)
- Candied pecans
- Crystallized ginger
- Candy corn
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325º. Line mini muffin tins with muffin papers. Set aside.
- Mix together gingersnap crumbs and melted butter, till well incorporated. Put 1 teaspoon of crumbs into the bottom of each muffin tin. Tamp down to make the bottom crusts. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar till smooth. Add vanilla, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and pumpkin puree and beat till incorporated, scraping the bowl with a spatula as needed. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing just till incorporated.
- Spoon filling into prepared mini-muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove to cooling rack to cool completely.
- When cool, may top with a round of white chocolate ganache, then a pecan half, piece of crystallized ginger or a candy pumpkin, if desired.
Notes
Total time does not reflect cooling and chilling time
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
37Serving Size:
2 mini cheesecakesAmount Per Serving: Calories: 285Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 161mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 1gSugar: 30gProtein: 3g
54 Comments on “Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts”
they look yummy!
Wow, you have been busy! I like portion controlled sweets. It helps to keep me honest.
I love mini desserts, these are too cute!
These mini pumpkin cheesecakes are so cute. Pumpkin cheesecake perfect dessert for this time of year.
How cute are these little cheesecakes!! LOVE that pumpkin.. Is it made out of ceramic??
You are a celebrity to me! Love the recipe you made…very good idea to add the white chocolate ganache.
Delicious! Don’t you just love individual desserts? I really like how you swapped graham crackers for gingersnaps…or actually vice versa 🙂 This looks so good Liz!
These look GREAT! Pinned!
Please share at our linky when you can! Xo
These are so pretty Liz !! Love the gingersnap addition!
These are adorable! I love one-person desserts 🙂
I love using gingersnaps as an alternative to spice things up. Your treats look divine.
Holy mackerel, Liz, I think each of us challengers should pack up some of our creations and ship them to you. That is a FULL PLATE of a week there! *HUGS*
I appreciate the #lowcarb and #glutenfree mods I saw on your Google+ page on various recipes, as there is a history of diabetes in both sides of our family. Pumpkin is one of my favorite veggies (or are they one of those fruit/vegs), cheesecake is my favorite cake and the gingersnap is my favorite cookie. Can you guess what challenge recipe just made my todo list? :O)
Take care of yourself, too, while you’re taking care of everybody else. Prayers and fabulous dessert karma coming your way!
With everything you’ve had on, I’m super-impressed with how you’ve been able to keep up with not only your baking but also your blogging. Until yesterday, I had never heard of or even seen candy corn. But then it appeared on two blogs and now your blog. I wonder what it tastes like. We definitely can’t buy that here xx
I bet these were a huge success at the fundraiser! They look delicious, I especially like the gingersnap crust!!
What a big honor to be cooking for The Arc as a celebrity chef!! Woo Hoo! Now I can say-I knew you when!! I am loving your cheesecakes and the different toppings are are scrumptious looking!
You are a busy lady and super generous with your time and talent. I’ve used gingersnaps once as a crust and they have the perfect among of zing. Hope you’re taking some time to rest.
what cutes and delicious!!!
You’ve had a crazy month, Liz. Hope you sit down with a cup of tea and eat one of these cute desserts above! They are perfect. Hope you had fun being a celebrity chef!
You celebrity chefs come up with the best desserts! These are awesome and SO cute!
So pretty, Liz! Because they are small, I’d consider them guilt-free.