By Tracey
Pumpkin Swirl Mini Cheesecakes
adapted from Fine Cooking
Ingredients:
- 2 8-oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoons salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup canned pumpkin
- 2 1/4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed until very smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the sugar, vanilla, and salt, and continue beating until the mixture is smooth (make sure it is free of all lumps), about 1 minute. Finally, add the eggs to the bowl, one at a time. Beat only until everything is just blended (overbeating at this stage may cause the cheesecakes to crack during baking).
Transfer 2/3 cup of the batter to a small bowl. Use a rubber spatula to mix in the pumpkin, flour and spices until completely blended.
Use a small cookie scoop to divide the plain batter among the prepared muffin cups (about 2- 2 1/2 tablespoons per cup). Then use the scoop to add a dollop of the pumpkin batter to each cup (about 1-1 1/2 tablespoons per cup). Use a toothpick or small knife to swirl the two batters together to create a marbled look.
Bake for about 17-20 minutes, or until the centers of the cheesecakes are just set. Let the cheesecakes cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack. Once they reach room temperature, cover them and set the pan in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours (or up to 3 days) before serving.
