I am sure this recipe can be made gluten free since there is so little flour, but I haven’t tried it yet. This version of cheesecake without crust really allows the flavor of ricotta (I’m partial to Natural and Kosher brand) to shine and it glows. Confession time, I don’t like cheesecake and if I am going to eat it I need chocolate. That is why I garnished with this chocolatey fudge sauce, it looked pretty and made it a dessert we all fought over. (I really like the one by Coop’s Micro Creamery. They even have a vegan one.) I also added some mini chocolate chips to the mix, optional if you are a chocaholic like me.
Mini Ricotta Cheesecake
Servings
18 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 pound Natural & Kosher Ricotta
- Zest from 1 lemon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons flour
- Cooking spray
- Chocolate sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees .
- Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and vanilla on high speed until pale yellow and fluffy, about 7 minutes. Slowly beat in the granulated sugar. On low speed, mix in the ricotta, lemon zest and flour. 3. Using a mini muffin tin you can line or just spray with cooking spray as I did. I used about 18 cups. Spoon the cheese mixture into the cups.
- Place the muffin pan on a rimmed baking sheet, transfer to the oven and pour about 1 1/2 cups water onto the baking sheet to make a water bath. Bake until the cheesecake centers are just set, about 20 minutes. Remove the muffin pan from the baking sheet. If the cakes are not fully set, you can put them back in without the water bath for another 5-10 minutes. Then remove and allow to cool.
- When ready spread your favorite chocolate sauce on the plate and/or on top of each cake.
I haven’t tried it, but since most cheesecake does I think it would.
Thanks Rebekah, great tips.
Do these freeze well?
If you’re looking for a gluten-free variation to satisfy your chocolate tooth at the same time, you can completely skip the flour and put in about 5-6 Tbs dark cocoa powder – to your own preference –, and swap orange rind (or tangerine) for the lemon…of course, it’s still very naughty, but good for those moments when you need to be pampered. I’ve tried a few different GF variations on plain cheesecakes, and prefer a little extra-fine sweet rice flour rather than skipping the flour entirely. It holds up just a little better.
Yes, keep it bite size and a savor the taste.
I love this idea and since I am watching calories and am on a strict diet plan, this might afford a little cheat. I will try it for Shavuous. thanks for a great idea.