Healthy Baby Cheesecake Bites

HOLY.

GOODNESS.

 

You guys.  I am not proud of this at all, but I literally at every single one of these yesterday as a snack.

 

Yes, you read that right: a SNACK.  It was only supposed to be one because, well, obviously I need to taste the things I’m posting on here.  But true to being me I couldn’t just stop at one cheesecake.  Before I knew it they were all piled on my plate and they were gone.

 

I think I blacked out…

I guess I’m hoping that by sharing that little tidbit of info you’ll see that these guys are actually very very good, and that if you lack any form of self control around cheesecake (like me) then you should probably not make them when you’re home alone and hungry.  Like me.

 

So a couple things here:  I used the Laughing Cow cream cheese triangles for mine because I didn’t have any actual cream cheese at my house and was not in the mood (with a sick baby) to go buy some. Plus they’re a little lower in calories and really creamy, which makes for a really easy mixing process.  I thought about using stevia rather than sugar, which obviously would have cut out a lot of the calories, but I was a little worried on how it might affect the texture – if you’re willing and able I would love to hear if stevia worked for anyone!  The crust is my favorite part though – chewy, nutty, buttery and just downright awesome.  I would say make the crust just to eat it all by itself!

HEALTHY BABY CHEESECAKE BITES

Makes 8 bites

• 1 cup raw whole almonds
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar, divided
• 1 whole egg, divided into white and yolk
• pinch of salt
• 4 wedges Laughing Cow Smooth Sensations Classic Cream Cheese (you could certainly use the equivalent amount of regular cream cheese, ~4 ounces)
• 1 Tbsp milk
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• fruit preserves (optional)

Preheat oven to 325. In a food processor grind the almonds until they are almost the consistency of almond flour (you want them to be very finely ground, but not to the point of sticking together to create almond butter).  Pour the almonds into a small bowl with the egg white, 2 Tbsp of sugar and the salt. Stir to combine. Spray 8 cups of a mini muffin pan with nonstick spray.  Dip your fingers in water and press about 1 Tbsp of the almond mixture into eight of the cups, being sure to press up the sides of the cup. Bake at 325 for 7 minutes.

 

Meanwhile whisk together the egg yolk, 1/4 cup of sugar, cream cheese wedges, milk and vanilla until smooth and creamy. When the crusts have baked for 7 minutes, remove them from the oven and fill each one to the top with the cream cheese mixture. Bake at 325 for another 15-20 minutes, until they start to crack slightly on top. Let them cool completely in the refrigerator before removing from the muffin pan.  To remove, run a sharp knife around the edge of each cup and gently lift out.  Fill the centers with fruit preserves if desired!