These Mini Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes are made with a creamy bite-sized strawberry cheesecake and juicy chocolate covered strawberries. These are the perfect treats to finish off a romantic Valentine's Day dinner!
Valentines Day is near and nothing says "I love you" more than chocolate covered strawberries! Unless you place those chocolate covered strawberries on top of a delicious, silky strawberry cheesecake. You're just proposing at that point.
These yummy desserts are pretty much chocolate-covered strawberries in cheesecake form! You get the best of both worlds in this recipe since it contains two tasty treats wrapped up in one ultimate dessert! First you enjoy a delectable dark chocolate dipped strawberry, then once you're finished, you get to enjoy a cheesecake version!
Mini Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes
The best thing about these beauties is that they're bite sized! Not only are they a billion times easier to make than a full-sized cheesecake, you can eat more than one without feeling guilty!
The recipe makes 12 mini cheesecakes, but you could probably get away with twice as much chocolate-covered strawberries. And the individual portions makes it easier to gift to your loved-ones.
To begin, I started by making the crust. I used Vanilla Wafers, but feel free to use any type of cookie or biscuits you prefer. The recipe makes a lot of crust, so I had quite a bit of crumbs leftover. I recommend adding about 2 tablespoons of crumbs instead of 1 to get a thicker crust.
The cheesecake itself is a simple vanilla cheesecake with diced strawberries blended in. To make it, simply beat the cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch together with a hand mixer (or if you're strong enough you can blend it with a whisk). Then we add some sour cream and heavy cream to give the cheesecake that extra smooth, rich and creamy texture.
Next, mix in the vanilla and eggs. You can half the amount of vanilla and add some strawberry extract to give the cheesecake batter a strawberry flavour instead of just pure vanilla.
I didn't make a strawberry purée because I wasn't sure how that would work out in the actual cheesecake. I didn't want the batter to look plain, so I tinted it pink to make it look more like a strawberry cheesecake and because it's a classic Valentines Day colour. Then we fold in some fresh, diced strawberries, which gives us a delicious chunk of strawberry in every bite!
Once the cheesecakes are chilled, top them with a generous amount of dark chocolate. Now you have a chocolate-covered strawberry in the form of a cheesecake! The only problem is that the hardened dark chocolate causes the soft cheesecake underneath to fall apart when you eat it. Next time I'll top these cheesecakes with a ganache to make these neater and easier to eat.
Chocolate Covered Strawberries
To finish these mini desserts off, I topped them with the classic Valentines Day treat: Chocolate-Covered Strawberries! Chocolate-covered strawberries are one of the best things about Valentines Day! Juicy strawberries encased in a dark chocolate shell, and when you take a bite you get a burst of strawberry juices that blend perfectly with the rich chocolate — am I the only one drooling right now?
Thank God I had plenty of strawberries and chocolate remaining after I topped the cupcakes, because I honestly couldn't resist dipping strawberry after strawberry into the chocolate and eating it right away!
Just like the chocolate drip, I kind of wished I dipped the strawberries in a ganache instead. As great as the chocolate tasted, it also caused the strawberries to stick to the tops of the cheesecakes when it hardened, making it a bit more difficult to eat.
xA ganache would stay soft and wouldn't fall off the strawberry like the hard chocolate did. Don't worry though, I've included a ganache recipe in the notes below if you prefer to use that instead.
The strawberries won't need to be made ahead of time and chilled. I just dipped them in the chocolate and immediately placed them on top of the cheesecakes and they hardened up quickly. You can also leave them plain, like I did, or you could jazz them up with a drizzle of melted white chocolate, sprinkles, nuts, whatever you like.
These Mini Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes will surely impress your sweetheart, or anyone you plan to share them with. They're the perfect Valentines Day treat! Pair them with a glass of champagne or red wine and you'll have a night of pure romance!
More Valentines Day Treats:
White Chocolate Fudge Red Velvet Brownies
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Yield: 12 mini cheesecakes
These Mini Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes are made with a creamy bite-sized strawberry cheesecake and juicy chocolate covered strawberries. These are the perfect treats to finish off a romantic Valentine's Day dinner!
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 cup Vanilla Wafer Crumbs
- 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¼ cup salted butter, melted
Strawberry Cheesecake:
- 1 and ½ packages (12 oz) cream cheese, room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ¼ cup sour cream, room temperature
- ¼ cup heavy cream, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- Pink Gel Food Colouring (optional)
- 8 Fresh Strawberries (about ¾ cup), diced
Chocolate Covered Strawberries:
- 12 strawberries, rinsed and pat dry
- 8 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
- 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350F and Line a 12-cup muffin pan with liners. Set aside.
- Add vanilla wafer crumbs and sugar to a mixing bowl and mix together using a fork. Mix in melted butter. Place 1 or 2 tablespoons of crumbs into each liner and flatten using the back of the tablespoon or a small glass. Bake in preheated oven for 4-6 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack. Lower oven temperature to 325F.
For the Strawberry Cheesecake:
- In a large bowl using a handheld mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch on medium-low speed until creamy, about 1 minute.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add sour cream, heavy cream and vanilla and continue beating until smooth.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating slowly until just combined, do not overbeat. Tint with pink gel food colouring, if desired. Fold in diced strawberries. Forcefully tap bowl on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles.
- Fill each liner with ¼ cup of batter. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until centers are slightly jiggly, like Jello.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm and chilled, about 4 hours or overnight.
For the Chocolate Covered Strawberries:
- Wash and dry the strawberries. Set aside.
- Melt dark chocolate and shortening in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until fully melted and smooth.
- Take the chilled cheesecakes out of the refrigerator and remove all of the paper liners. Spoon the melted dark chocolate over each cheesecake. Set aside.
- Using a toothpick or holding the strawberry by the stem, dip the strawberries in the chocolate. Shake off excess chocolate and place onto the cheesecakes. The chocolate should set quickly without chilling. Serve and Enjoy!
Notes
- I used melted chocolate to top the cheesecakes and dip the strawberries, but found it to be too hard, which made it a bit difficult to eat. If you prefer, you can make a ganache to both pour on the cheesecake and dip the strawberries, making the cheesecakes easier to eat.
To make the ganache you need:
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
Directions:
- Put the chocolate chips into a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Heat the heavy whipping cream in a small saucepan until it just begins to boil.
- Remove hot cream from heat then pour it over the chocolate chips. Cover the bowl and allow it to sit for 5 minutes.
- Remove cover and stir ganache until smooth. Spoon over each cheesecake and return to the refrigerator until set.
- Dip the strawberries in the remaining ganache and top cheesecakes.
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Bon Appétit!
Love, Dedra ❤
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