Mini Cheesecakes

Remember the old recipes for one layer cakes and cottage pies? Intended for couples or small families, such recipes used fewer, generally less exotic, ingredients and produced smaller portions (probably one of the reasons our grandparents were thinner than we tend to be today.

Today I opened a 15 ounce container of whole milk ricotta to make filling for a batch of blintzes I am preparing now and freezing for later. After filling a dozen, I still had half the filling left. Loathe to freeze it, I decided to make cheesecake instead. And knowing that a whole cheesecake, even a small one, would make for an outrageously tempting snack attack during our “stay at home” experience, I decided to make two small ones instead. Having acquired a pair of mini (5″) spring form pans as a freebie add-on to a purchase a few years back, I finally have a reason to use them.

Mix this up in the blender, and when baking, place the spring-form pan/s in a larger pan of inch deep hot water. When they are done, turn off the heat, wedge the oven door open with a wooden spoon and let the cheese cakes cool completely before removing the outer ring of the pan and refrigerating or freezing.

Makes 8 small (dessert sized) servings.

1 cup whole milk ricotta
6 ounces cream cheese
4 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp dried granulated orange peel

1. Combine all ingredients in blender and process for 3 minutes at high speed.

2. Pour into one 8″ or two 5″ prepared spring form pans.

3. Place into a larger cake pan and add enough hot water to come half way up the sides of the pan/s.

4. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, or until the center is set, and the top is puffed and golden.

5. Turn off the oven. Using a wooden spoon if necessary, prop open the door and let cheesecake cool to room temperature before refrigerating.

6. Note that the cheese cake will deflate as it cools. That’s normal.

7. Transfer to refrigerator and chill for several hour before serving.

8. Enjoy plain or topped with fresh fruit.

9. Refrigerate or freeze any leftovers.

Servings: 8
Yield: 2 small cheese cakes

Cooking Times
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Inactive Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes

Oven Temperature: 350°F

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1/8 of a recipe (3 ounces).
Percent daily values based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition information calculated from recipe ingredients.