Cheese Cupcake with Graham Crust, Oh My!

In my opinion, the best part of cheesecake is definitely the graham crust. I love all deserts involving graham crackers and firmly believe that graham crust is the most delicious thing IN THE WORLD after lemon curd. I know, I’m weird.

When I saw a cupcake recipe that involved that delicious crust, BAM! I knew this was going to be, for sure, my new favorite cupcake recipe.

Being around buttercream all the time (because I’m a cake artist), regular buttercream cupcakes don’t appeal to me as they once did. Buttercream’s good… but cheesecake is better! hehe!

SO, here’s the recipe:

Cheesecake Style Cupcakes

• 180 g  (1 1/2 cup) graham crackers ( crumbled)
• 75 g (1/3 cup) melted butter
• 250 g (8 oz.) cream cheese
• 3 eggs (whites and yolks separated)
• 60 ml  (1/4 cup) milk
• 100g (1/2 cup) sugar
• 40 g (1/4 cup) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder

1) Preheat the oven (350 F / 180 C)

2) In a large bowl, mix the graham crumbles and the melted butter

3) Put the mixture in the cupcake liners and press firmly. The crust as to be compact. MY TIP: I used an old nutella glass container. I fit perfectly into the cupcake cavities!

4) With an electric mixer, mix together the cream cheese and the milk. MY TIP: I put the cream cheese 15 sec. in the microwave to soften it up to make sure the mixture is as smooth as can be!

5) Add half of the sugar, the egg yolks, the flour and the baking powder. Mix.

6) In another bowl, mix the egg whites until they are light and fluffy and add the remaining sugar.

7) With a spatula, gently mix the egg whites with the cheese mixture.

8) Fill the cupcakes liners a little over 3/4. The batter won’t rise very much.

9) Cook for 15 minutes until your mini cheesecakes look like those:

Finally, be patient and let cool!! They’re definitely better once they’re cool, as the crust will hold itself together instead of falling completely apart when you take your first bite … true story.

As for the topping, I opted for a drop a yogurt and fresh lemon zest. The mix of the graham crust and the citrus reminds me of a key lime pie! AND, I can almost make myself believe I’m eating healthy stuff.

Another great toping would have been whipped cream and raspberries, or even a homemade raspberry coulis!

…That’s it, I’m having another one!