Single Serve Cheesecakes

The other day, Dana and I were watching TV and it suddenly hit me.  I have never made cheesecake on the website.  I had to remedy the situation immediately.  So I went to the store and picked up the ingredients.  I then noticed that I did not have a spring form pan and was unable to make a standard cheesecake.  So I looked around to see what I had.  Then it hit me.  Why don’t I make individual cheesecakes using parchment paper. So I did.

Single Serve Cheesecakes – (adapted from Joy of Baking)

• Pre-requisites
  • Parchment Paper
  • sheet pan
  • butter or non-stick spray
• Crust
  • 1 cup crushed graham wafer crumbs
  • 1 tbs granulated white sugar
  • 4 tbs unsalted butter, melted
• Filling
  • 2 – 8 oz packages of cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2/3 cup granulated white sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

For the cheesecake pans, I used four sheets of parchment paper cut 4 inches wide to make four individual cups.  This makes four perfect little cheesecakes that are easy to get out of the forms.  The reason is that the parchment just peels off the cheesecakes.

I wrapped the parchment around a can that was the diameter that I wanted.  In this case it was a large can of pineapple chunks.

Then I stapled the edges together.  At first I was going to use tape, but then I realized that the tape would melt. So then I grabbed my trusty stapler and made four perfect cups.

Place the parchment cups on a greased cookie sheet.

In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar.

Once mixed, equally divide the mixture between the four parchment cups.  Then using a smaller diameter can than the one that you used to form your parchment cups, stamp down the crust.

Make sure to hold the parchment cups down while you stamp the crust.  Having a good seal on the bottom will make it so that the filling does not ooze out.

In the bowl of your mixer, beat the cream cheese on low until it is smooth.  Add the sugar and continue beating.  Make sure to scrape the bowl down a couple of times while your are mixing.  Then add the eggs one at a time.  Once the eggs are mixed in, add the vanilla and sour cream.  Continue to mix until everything is incorporated.

At this time either spoon the filling evenly between the cups, or transfer the mixture to a plastic bag and pipe the mixture into each of the cups.

Bake the cups for 30-35 minutes or until firm around the edges and a little wobbly in the middle.  Let cool on a wire rack.  Once cool transfer to the refrigerator and chill for at least 2 hours.

To serve – unwrap the parchment paper and serve with a garnish.  I melted some chocolate and swirled it over the cake before I unwrapped it.  Then I topped it with a strawberry.

The cheesecake was creamy and delicious.

The cakes were a little big for a single serving, but everyone did their best to eat them.  I will definitely be making these again.