Kind-of-Molly's Mini Cheesecake Cupcakes
After reading Betty Hetchman's Dead Men Don't Crochet, I decided to try out Molly's Cheesecake Cupcakes (a recipe listed at the end of the mystery novel). After a bit of tweaking, to accomodate my usual lack of appropriate ingredients and hardware, I adjusted the recipe to include more readily available hardware, smaller portions, a crust a little less sweet, and your choice of toppings.
(Yields 30 cupcakes total - 12 regular sized and 18 minis.)
Making the Crust
* Online Measurement Converter for those who use the metric system.
What you'll need:
- 1 box of Honey Maid Graham Crackers (this is a picture of 2 whole crackers, you need 15)
- 1 stick of butter (or margarine), melted
- 1/4 cup of powdered suger
- paper cupcake cups to line your cupcake pan (I used a mini cupcake pan and mini paper cups to match)
- A blender or food chopper (I used a small Hamilton Beach food chopper, like this)
- A fine strainer (like this)
- A big bowl
- A measuring cup
- A mixing spoon/utensil with a flat head (like this - the first one)
- cupcake pan
In the blender/chopper, crush 15 graham crackers until fine. (You may have to break the crackers down a bit so they'll fit into the blender/chopper.) Then pour into your big bowl.
Measure 1/4 cup of powdered sugar. Using the strainer, sift* sugar into the bowl of graham crackers. Mix well using the flat-head spoon.
* Here is a short video on sifting using a strainer. Basically you hold the strainer over the bowl and pour the sugar into the strainer. Give it a little shake from side to side until all of the sugar disappears.
Once the powdered sugar and graham crackers are well mixed, add in your melted butter/margarine and blend well. Once done, your crust fixings should look like the picture on the left.
Line your cupcake pan with your paper cupcake cups. Place a teaspoon of crust mixture into each cup and then press down. Rest the pan in the fridge until you're ready for it.
Making the Filling
What you'll need:
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 8 oz of cream cheese, softened
- 2 beaten eggs
- 2 cups of sour cream
- 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
- A hand mixer
- A big bowl
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In the big bowl, mix 8 oz of softened cream cheese and 1/2 cup of sugar until well blended. Add the two beaten eggs and mix well. Add 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and 2 cups of sour cream, and mix well. (The mixture will be a bit runny. That's okay.)
Once everything is nice and combined, you can start loading the filling to the cupcake cups. Fill the cups about 3/4 of the way.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Removed from the oven and let cool. Once cool, place it in the refrigerator until you're ready to eat it (should be refrigerated for about an hour).
Serve chilled.
Toppings! Toppings! Toppings! (and Variations)
Toppings
Toppings are especially helpful if your cupcakes come out a little ugly with a sink near the middle - like mine did.
- Drizzle your favorite chocolate, caramel, or strawberry sauce over the top of the cooled cupcakes before placing them in the fridge to chill.
- After removing the cupcakes from the oven, drop a few blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, or even cranberries on top of each cupcake (while still hot).
- Thinly slice strawberries and place them on top of the cupcakes right after you remove them from the oven.
Variations
If you'd like a little fruit in your cupcakes:
After pouring filling to each cupcake cup, place one or two whole berries into the mixture (using your finger or a spoon to push them into the filling until you can no longer see them).
or
If you'd like to flavor your filling, add chopped berries into the filling and blend using a spoon.
** Berries generally taste best with cream cheese but you can certainly try any fruit you want. Just make sure it's cut small enough to fit into your cupcake.
And that's that!
The recipe above is a very basic cheesecake recipe, so don't be afraid to experiment a bit with toppings and variations.
