Mini Mocha Cheesecakes

At a glance

What stands out: Satisfy your craving for a creamy chocolate dessert with mocha mini cheesecakes. This is a straightforward cheesecake recipe that is lowfat but still tastes great.

How long it takes: 35 minutes plus 1 hour chill time
Equipment you’ll need: Food processor or blender, muffin tin, wire rack
Servings: 12

Healthier Mini Cheesecakes

Secret ingredient. This straightforward chocolate dessert has a surprise ingredient — cottage cheese! Before you say yuck! and stop reading, take a minute to reconsider. Cream cheese can’t hold a candle to the kind of nutrition that cottage cheese offers. Cottage cheese is low in calories and fat, and it’s packed with protein.

Loaded with creamy chocolate flavor. But how does cheesecake taste when you replace cream cheese with cottage cheese? Surprisingly good! Mini mocha cheesecakes are rich and chocolaty, with a rich creamy texture. We love the mini chocolate wafer crust which provides a nice balance to the creaminess.

A dessert that isn’t a splurge. Each mini mocha cheesecake has 222 calories and only 5 grams of fat. A slice of New York style cheesecake will average 390 calories, and a whopping 25 grams of fat. We don’t know about you, but if we're looking for a chocolate fix, and we can find one that is lower in calories and tastes great, the choice is straightforward.

How it comes together

You’ll need a food processor and a cupcake pan or silicon cupcake molds to make these straightforward cheesecakes.

Make the filling. Add two cups of cottage cheese, a couple of eggs, powdered sugar, a bit of flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and vanilla to the bowl of your food processor. Process until the mixture is nice and smooth. It takes about two minutes, literally. Scrape down the sides as needed.

Fill cups. Put paper cupcake liners into the cupcake pan. You’ll need twelve. Pour the cheesecake mixture into the wells and place a chocolate wafer cookie on top of each. Yes, on top! Weird, huh?

Bake. Pop these little gems into the oven for 25 minutes or so, until the filling is set. Cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate at least one hour, but up to three days. It’s so convenient to make these ahead if you’re expecting guests.

Serve. Place a cheesecake upside down on a plate, and carefully peel off the cupcake liner. Voila! the chocolate wafer is now the crust! Garnish as desired and serve.

Ways to change it

• Cottage cheese choices: Use full fat or lowfat cottage cheese. It doesn’t matter what size the curds are because they get pulverized in the food processor.
• Garnishes: Top with a dab of whipped cream. A few strawberries or raspberries sprinkled on top adds a nice touch, or a drizzle of chocolate syrup, hot fudge sauce, or caramel sauce.
• Mint chocolate cheesecakes: Omit the instant espresso powder and substitute a couple drops of mint extract. A little goes a long ways so start with a small amount; you can always add more.
• Double chocolate cheesecakes: Fold mini chocolate chips into the batter. If you don’t care for mocha, you can skip the espresso powder.
• More lighter desserts: If you like the idea of desserts that are actually good for you, be sure to try our chia seed pudding or chocolate chia pudding. It’s straightforward to mix with just a few ingredients. We enjoy it for breakfast! Speaking of breakfast, another popular recipe is this cinnamon swirl breakfast cheesecake. The concept is similar to the mini mocha cheesecakes.

Make-Ahead Idea

Cheesecake is one of those desserts that actually should be made ahead, making it a great choice if you’re having guests. There’s no last minute preparation; simply plate the cheesecakes and serve.

Bake these mini cheesecakes up to three days in advance and refrigerate them. They’ll be ready to serve when you are.

Keeping leftovers

Cool the cheesecakes completely before covering tightly with plastic wrap or putting them into an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to three days.

To freeze, wrap the cheesecakes well. They’ll keep for up to three months. If you prefer, wrap them individually so you can take one out for a speedy snack or lunchbox treat. Thaw the cheesecakes in the refrigerator. They thaw fairly quickly at room temp, too.

Cottage cheese can be a hidden hero. If you love the idea of adding nutrition and protein to your diet, try these surprisingly rich cottage cheese recipes.

• Yield: 12
• Prep: 10 minutes
• Cook: 25 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups low fat cottage cheese (see note)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 ½ cups confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar)
• ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 9 chocolate wafer cookies, such as Famous (or vanilla wafers, if you prefer)
• additional garnishes: whipped cream, chocolate syrup, fresh raspberries (see note)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 275°F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with cupcake liners or silicone liners.
2. In food processor, combine cottage cheese, eggs, confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, flour, espresso powder, and vanilla. Process until smooth, 2 minutes. Scrape down sides as needed.
3. Divide mixture among the cups and place 1 cookie on top of each.
4. Bake until filling is set and cookies soften, 25 minutes. Let cool to room temperature in pan on a wire rack, then refrigerate at least 1 hour (or covered, up to 3 days).
5. To serve, invert cheesecakes onto plates and peel off liners. Top with whipped cream, chocolate syrup, or fresh fruit, if desired.

Notes

Cottage cheese note: Use full fat or lowfat cottage cheese. It doesn’t matter what size the curds are because they get pulverized in the food processor.

Filling variations: Omit espresso powder if desired, or substitute a couple drops of mint extract for a minty chocolate cheesecake. If you like, fold mini chocolate chips into the batter.

Garnishes: Top with a dab of whipped cream. A few strawberries or raspberries sprinkled on top adds a nice touch, or a drizzle of hot fudge sauce or caramel sauce.