Mini cheesecakes

I have a recipe for pumpkin cheescake and I'd like to try it in bite-size servings. Can I do this with just the tiny muffin papers or do I need to purchase the tins? Also, should I use a little of the graham cracker crust on the bottom or just the filling?

[m brown]

depending on how liquid the mix is, you may need the tins. you could try espresso cups with the liners.
is the cake cooked in a water bath? than you would need some kind of container to bake them in. or arrange the paper cups snuggly in a cake pan and put that in a cookie sheet and put the water in that.
the crust part is up to you. you could always bake the cheese cake in a sheet pan and cut bite sized pieces out of it.
let me know what happens.

The recipe does not call for a water bath. I hadn't considered using a sheet pan - how would that work? What size and type pan to use? How to adjust temperature if at all?

[m brown]

I would start with a 9x13 pan, buttered or greased, toast off a layer of crust and then pour out the desired thickness of cheese cake. I would bake it slightly cooler, 10-20 degrees because there is more surface. Let cool, cut n' serve. If the recipe is really good, could you post it?
thanks.

While the site was under construction, I broke down and bought one pan and will keep refilling it.

The recipe is nothing fancy or creative on my part, it's on the label of the Libbey's large can of pumpkin!

[Charlie_M]

Hi,
You can just put the muffin papers in a mini-miffin pan and fill with crust and bake. Then fill with cheeseake and bake again. I suggest freezing before depaning. Use a Pallet knife to remove form the muffin pan while frozen

Charlie

[beachbum4249]

At the bakery where I work we use 4 inch springform pans for mini cheesecakes but we also bake them in sheets and cut them for bite-sized pieces for trays and such. We don't pre-bake the crust, just make sure it is firm in the bottom of the pan lined with parchment.

[AprilB]

For bite sized I'd get small cookie cutters. Maybe 1 1/2".

It's time intensive but wrap each one of the cookie cutters with foil (just up the outside and not folded over into the ring itself) and arrange on a sheetpan. Spray with pam.

I'd then make the mini cheesecakes like I would a full up one. A tbsp or so of the crumb crust pressed firmly in the bottom (stainless shot glasses work wonders for pressing into small rings.) Bake it off for a few minutes then proceed with the cheesecake mix. I wrap the bottom of the rings and don't just rely on parchment because I like to use a water bath about halfway up the side. A trick for that is to put the pan in the oven and then add your water so you don't slop. (I've seen many a creme brulee ruined trying to juggle a panful of water and ramekins to the oven)

Obviously the small rings don't need to be baked as long so you have to pay attention to them. I'd say check after about 15 minutes and bear in mind that the centers don't need to be completely firm before you pull them. (toothpick tests don't work) Remove them from the sheetpan to a dry sheetpan, cover the whole tray with plastic and chill thoroughly before trying to unmold them. Run a thin heated knife down around the edge.

I've never had much success with sheet pans of cheesecakes.

Anyway, that's my favorite mini-cake method.

April

[foodpump]

You can bake virtually any cheesecake recipie in a waterbath as well. For mini poached cheesecakes you can use PVC pipe, the kind used to pipe fresh water, 2"or 21/2" in dia. Buy a 4 foot length and get someone to slice it up in 11/2"high rings for you. It's not difficult, cuts like wood. Wrap each ring in foil, fill and bake. When cold place the mini cake on a prebaked crust, "glueing" it on with hot apricot glaze or melted chocolate....