Little cookie dough cheesecakes

I like cheesecake. I like cookie dough. I like chocolate. All of the boxes get ticked with these dreamy little treats. A big cheesecake is all good and well, but a take a forkful here and there, and all of a sudden the whole thing is gone and my pants don’t fit. Instead, I can make these little cakes, keep a couple and give the rest away, and they’re also a great idea for dinner parties or pot-luck. They’ve got a rich chocolatey base and a tangy cream cheese filling. Hidden in the middle is a decadent cookie dough packed with chocolate chips, and it’s all topped off with a dollop of ganache. Go on, you know you want to.

 

Ingredients

For the cookie dough

60g butter
65g brown sugar
65g sugar
1½ tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla essence
100g flour
1c dark chocolate, chopped (or chocolate chips)

For the cheesecake

250g chocolate biscuit crumbs (I used Oreos with the filling removed)
¼c sugar
60g butter, melted
750g cream cheese, softened
400g can sweetened condensed milk
3 eggs

For the ganache

170g dark chocolate
¾c cream
20g butter, cubed and at room temperature

Method

Cookie dough

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy.
With the mixer on low, add the milk, flour  and vanilla and mix until combined. Stir in the chocolate. Transfer to another bowl and pop in the fridge while you prepare the cheesecake.

Cheesecake

Preheat your oven to 150°C and lightly spray 2 x 12 hole muffin trays.
To make the cheesecake base, combine the biscuit crumbs, sugar and butter in a bowl and mix until combined. Press about 1 tablespoon of the mixture into the base of each muffin hole and tamp down with the bottom of a glass.
Using your stand mixer, beat the cream cheese until it’s smooth. Add the condensed milk and eggs and mix well until everything is incorporated.
Scoop up scant tablespoons of the of the cookie dough and flatten them into discs. Plop one onto the top of the crumb base in each hole.
Pour the cheesecake mixture into the muffin tins and bake for about 25 minutes, or until they are just set.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tins before refrigerating for at least 3 hours.

Ganache

Chop the chocolate and place it in a bowl.
Pour the cream into a small saucepan and heat it over low heat, until the edge starts simmering.
Tip the cream onto the chocolate and leave for a couple of minutes then whisk until it’s lovely and smooth. Add the butter and whisk again.
Leave at room temperature until it’s set to a piping consistency. Remove the cheesecakes from the molds, and pipe a dollop of ganache on each one. (I used Ateco tip #869).

These will keep in a container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Notes

• You could also make one big cheesecake, using a 23cm springform tin. Increase the heat t o 180°C and bake for around 1 hour.

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