These mini gluten-free cheesecakes are perfect for when you don’t need a full cheesecake! They’re so much easier and they freeze great. They’re also grain-free. Perfect for Mother’s Day, the 4th of July and parties.
As much as I love cheesecake, I rarely make them. At least not the full-sized ones.
If I made a cheesecake just for the heck of it, I’d eat it all. I used to make them for parties and get-togethers but when you don’t have a car, those things get heavy after about 10 minutes of walking.
Not only that, but full-sized cheesecakes are so fussy. I almost always mess them up.
But mini cheesecakes? They’re pretty difficult to ruin as long as you don’t forget to line the muffin pan with muffin liners, which I may or may not have done the first time.
Also, these mini cheesecakes freeze wonderfully well! They taste just as good post-freezing so you could even make them ahead of time if you’ve got room in your freezer.
Looking for another mini grain-free recipe? Try these Mini Pavlova Nests!
As far as grain-free crusts go, I think this one is pretty awesome. Pre-baking them prevents a soggy crust, which seems all too common in grain-free and gluten-free almond flour-based crusts.
After baking the cheesecakes, the crust isn’t exactly crisp, but it’s far from soggy! For another great crust, try this cannoli cheesecake that uses gluten-free graham crackers.
If you don’t want to use almond flour, use any nut flour or nut meal you’d like. I’ve tried hazelnut meal and that was delicious.
Then I tried making a chocolate hazelnut version by adding some cocoa powder to the cheesecake filling. That sounded like such a simple change but it came out horribly. Definitely don’t do that.
For another alternative – I haven’t tried them, but I think these Mango Cheesecake Bites look fantastic!
Almond flour, sugar and butter on their own don’t taste all that exciting so I added some lemon zest to liven up the crust. If you don’t want to use lemon zest, add some lime zest, almond extract, or something. These mini cheesecakes just aren’t the same without it!
If you’re not trying to impress anyone with your dainty cheesecakes, I suggest drowning these mini cheesecakes in this honey sweetened strawberry sauce. It’s delicious, just not so pretty. Though I suppose you could smash / puree the strawberries first a bit to make it look nicer.
This rhubarb compote would also be a wonderful choice for spring. As would this strawberry compote!
If you live outside of North America, you might have wondered why cream cheese-based recipes often don’t come out correctly. That’s because the cream cheese sold elsewhere (at least in Europe), has extra whey in it so it’s softer and can be spread on bread.
So if you don’t have American style brick cream cheese (that comes wrapped in a foil package in a little box), then get 600 grams of cream cheese, place it in the center of a cheesecloth or tea towel, and wring out the liquid until you have 450 grams of cream cheese left.
The big packages sold at Aldi, Lidl, etc. are 300 grams so it’s perfect! Get 2 packages for this recipe.
Prefer a no-bake version? These Mini Gluten-Free No-Bake Cheesecakes with Chocolate Chip Cookie Crust look pretty awesome! And so very easy. And for something keto, try these keto cheesecake bites. This keto blueberry cheesecake also looks great.
Photos updated 3/2020. Here’s an old one:
Mini Cheesecakes (grain-free, gluten-free)
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 12
See notes for the vegan version!
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (125 grams) blanched almond flour1
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar or raw sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons (42 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 pound (450 grams) cream cheese2
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar or raw sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 2 large (50 grams each, out of shell) eggs, room temperature
- berries and powdered sugar, optional
For the crust:
For the filling:
For decoration:
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin liners.
- Prepare the crust. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together all the dry ingredients, then stir in the butter and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Divide the mixture between the liners (18 grams or 3 1/2 teaspoons of mixture per liner) and lightly press down with the bottom of a shot glass.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until very lightly browned.
- Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes while preparing the filling.
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the beater attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until light and creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Beat in the eggs on low, one at a time, and just until well incorporated. Do not over mix!
- Fill each liner about 2/3 full with the batter and bake for 10 minutes or until the centers of the cheesecakes don't jiggle when the pan is tapped. Open the oven door (at least 1 foot wide) and let the cheesecakes cool to room temperature - about 1 1/2 hours. For easiest removal, remove the paper liners now. They can also be removed after chilling, though a little more cheesecake may stick to the liners then.
- Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Decorate with berries and dust with powdered sugar, if desired. Refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Notes
- If you don't want to use an almond flour-based crust, you can use:
– 1 cup (113 grams) GF graham cracker crumbs (or digestives)
– 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
– 3 1/2 tablespoons (49 grams) butter, melted
– pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 325 °F (163 °C). Line a standard-size muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together the crumbs, sugar and salt.
Stir in the butter until combined.
Divide the crust mixture between the 12 liners and firmly press it down.
Bake for 5 minutes or until lightly golden. Go to Step 5 above. - If you live outside of North America and don't have American style brick cream cheese (that comes wrapped in a foil package in a little box), then get 600 grams of cream cheese, place it in the center of a cheesecloth or tea towel, and wring out the liquid until you have 450 grams of cream cheese left.
- For a vegan version, use vegan butter in the crust. For the filling, use:
12 ounces (338 grams) Tofutti vegan cream cheese, room temp
3/4 cup (150 grams) full-fat coconut cream
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Make the crust as instructed. Let cool. In a large mixing bowl, beat together all the cheesecake ingredients until well combined. Divide between the 12 crusts and chill for 4+ hours or freeze for 2 or until firm.
Source: My post on My Baking Addiction – Gluten-free mini cheesecakes
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Can monkfruit be substituted for ordinary sugar? Going to try making small cheesecakes when you have time to reply Thank you Eileenw
Hi! I can’t say for sure without trying it. But you could make 2/3 of the filling from my keto cheesecake and use that instead of the filling here. It is super yummy. :)
Has anyone made the crust with lime zest instead of lemon? Or orange? What about putting a little of the juice into the cheesecake itself? Would that mess it up? The crust recipe tastes better than graham crackers and is lower carb (sugar still a problem but I like to cut carbs where I can). I made these for my son’s birthday because one of the friends needs to be GF along with a non gf pumpkin cheesecake. Everyone gobbled up these GF ones and said that they were the best cheesecake they ever had!
I think you could use any type of zest with good results. I wouldn’t add juice to the cheesecake batter because you’d throw off the proportions. I’m so glad that everyone enjoyed them! Thanks so much for your feedback. :)
Can you advise the best way to freeze these? Leave the liners on or take them off? In a container or ziplock bag? Wrapped in plastic wrap, wax, foil? Want to make sure I freeze these properly without any mishaps.
I’m so sorry for just now seeing this! I realize I’m too late now but in case anyone else is wondering – it’s really up to you. If you leave the liners on, then the crust is more protected. But you don’t have to keep them on. I put them in Ziplocs but containers work fine. If you want to wrap them up before placing in the bag/container, you can, but I don’t bother as they don’t last long enough for it to matter. Sorry again!
I absolutely love these! So easy to make and are so yummy :)
On step 6, where you open the oven door for 1.5 hours, is the oven still turned on or do you turn it off?
I’m so sorry for just now seeing your question! It says to open the door to let the cheesecakes cool to room temperature so yes, the oven has to be off. :) Sorry again for my slow reply!
These mini cheesecakes were delicious. The almond flour as the crust is genius. Thank you for putting the amounts of grams. This helped to cut the batch in half!
You’re welcome for the grams! I’m glad you found them useful and that you enjoyed the cheesecakes. :) Thanks for your feedback!
This is such a great recipe! I made these for a large group and everyone loved them. The crust is great and I love the subtle almond flavor. I chose this recipe because I have a gluten free friend, but even if I choose to make them with a different crust for myself I will always use this recipe for the filling. They came out perfect with no cracking and were nice and smooth. Thank you so much for the recipe!
I’m sorry for just now seeing your comment! It was in spam for some reason and with my son home the last few months, I haven’t been diligent in checking it. :( I’m so glad that everyone enjoyed the cheesecakes! That was nice of you to make something for your GF friend. :) And I’m happy that you’ll be making at least the filling again. Thanks a bunch for your comment and sorry for my slow reply!
These were so easy to make and so yummy!! They taste exactly like regular cheesecake. The one thing I noticed was that some of the crusts were unevenly baked so I would make sure to rotate the pan in the over after 5 min so everything cooks evenly!!
I’m so glad that you enjoyed them! And exactly like regular cheesecake? Woohoo. :D Glad that you think so! Thanks for your comment. :)
Haven’t tried these yet. I am wondering if anyone has used Monkfruit sweetner(Erythritol and Monkfruit extract)? I have tried using it in cakes and cookies and it definitely changes the texture. I wonder if it would change the texture of something more creamy?
My family loves these! I actually make several batches and freeze. Perfect for pot lucks or large family gatherings
💝💝💝💝💝
Several batches?! Yay! Love it. Thanks a ton for your feedback! I’m really happy that your family loves them.
If I may ask, how do you freeze your mini cakes? Do you wrap them? Do u leave the liners on? Thanks for any information!
I’m sorry for just now seeing your comment! Go check out the most recent comment here. In my reply, I say how to freeze them. :)
My husband’s favorite dessert is cheesecake. That being said I have been to scared to try making it. This recipe was very easy. I do have a couple of questions. When mixing filling is the batter still lumpy? #2 mine came out sticky, could it be because I used the Greek cream cheese? It’s not as fatty. I am anxious to try the Irish fill next time. They taste good just not very pretty. 😟
The batter shouldn’t be lumpy. I haven’t tried Greek cream cheese but maybe that was indeed the issue? I just updated the photos yesterday (or maybe the day before) and think these cheesecakes are pretty so I’m curious what went wrong! Perhaps you could try normal cream cheese next time? That could have an effect on the texture, which might have resulted in cracks.
I made these using cup for cup gluten free flour, however my crust didn’t seem to bind when mixed with the butter. Can u add a little more butter, I am assuming the crust should come together not still look like flour when mixed, correct? I would have loved to have seen a picture of the crust mix. I don’t make a whole lot of homemade crusts. The filling is delicious though!!
I’m sorry for just now seeing your comment! (my son and I have been sick for weeks). So you used a gluten-free flour blend in place of almond flour? The two aren’t at all interchangeable so that’s why that didn’t work. :( You can only sub other nut flours / meals for almond flour. The crust shouldn’t look like flour once mixed up. More like a graham cracker crust, if you’ve made that before. I’m happy you liked the filling!
The cheesecakes were moist and delicious. I loved them and so did my family. We had such a fun time baking them. We had to put the crust in for another five minutes but other wise they were magnificent. We put berries on top and refrigerated them for a couple days and they turned out fantastically well. I give this five stars.
I am so terribly sorry for just now seeing your nice comment! It landed in spam and since things have been chaotic since Christmas, I hadn’t checked it in months. :( Sorry about that. I’m really glad that you and your family enjoyed the cheesecakes! Thanks a ton for your feedback and sorry again.
So I’ve got little kids running around the house which makes it hard to leave a hot oven open like that. Is there another alternative to cooling? Would it mess up if I took it out and put it on the counter?
Thanks!
I’m so sorry for just now seeing your question! I haven’t tried just putting them out on the counter but they absolutely wouldn’t taste any different. They might just crack a little. I can’t say for sure without trying it. Sorry again for my slow reply!
These look amazing! Do you shave down the sides of the cheesecake to take away the “cupcake” shape? Also, could I use gluten free graham crackers for the crust?
Thanks! No, I just leave them as is. :) You could look for a graham cracker crust recipe and use that with your GF graham crackers. Hope you’ll enjoy them!
I love these mini cheesecakes! I’ve made them for my boyfriend for the last 4 years on Valentine’s Day!
Oh, wow! I’m happy that they’re now a Valentine’s Day tradition for you. :) Thanks for your feedback and my apologies for the very slow reply!
Thanks for sharing! Do they freeze ok?
Sorry for just now seeing your question! Yes, they do. :)
This looks so good! I love to make mini ones when I don’t have a group to share a big one with!
Same here! I do NOT need a whole cheesecake for myself. ;)
Can I used regular almond flour or does it need to be blanched?
You can use regular almond flour. :)
Hi there! I would like to make these for a dinner that I am hosting as we will have a friend that sticks to a gluten free diet.
I want to confirm that you use a regular size muffin pan and not the mini pan. Is that correct?
Also, if I freeze them, should I thaw in the fridge the night before? What would you suggest. I’m worried about the crust getting soggy.
Thanks!
Hi! I’m sorry for just now seeing your question. A regular-sized muffin pan is correct. You can thaw them overnight but they really don’t need very long to thaw. I don’t think they’ll be soggy but I can’t be 100% sure (it really depends on your almond flour and how you freeze them).
These grain-free, gluten-free mini cheesecakes were delicious! The lemon zest in the crust definitely made the difference, creating a very light and elegant dessert. I will definitely be making this again! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you liked them. :) Thanks for your comment and sorry for my slow reply!
I love this recipe! I’ve been making full-sized cheesecake for years and appreciate how fast and easy these are to make. The almond flour crust is perfect. This is our new favorite family dessert for special occasions :)
Hi there! What size pan do you use and for how long do you bake it? And the crust recipe is enough as written? I’d also like to try! So happy to hear that you’ve been enjoying the recipe. :) Thanks for your comment!
Hi, I love this recipe, my mom is on a gluten free diet for having hashimoto’s, I did not use this crust but I did use the filling, I made it in an 8 inch pie and baked for about 20-25 minutes. Made it for moms birthday. It came out perfect, thank you so much for your recipe!
You’re welcome! I hope that your mom also liked it and that she had a great birthday. :) Good to know that it works well in an 8″ pie pan! Thanks a bunch for your comment.
These were FANTASTIC!!!!!
Yay! So happy to hear that! Thanks for your comment. :)
These were incredible! I added raspberries on top. Super delicious.
Only thing is that they took about 10-20 minutes longer to cook each way. I didn’t pack in the sugar and it made it less sweet, and surprisingly much lighter!
Very good. Thank you!
So happy you liked them! Mine would have been way overdone with cooking them 10-20 minutes longer. What do you mean each way? You mean the crust and then the filling? Could it be that your oven is running on the low side? I’d definitely check that out. Thanks for your comment!
These were really easy to make and so delicious! Fantastic recipe. Thank you for sharing it. I added a little ground ginger to the base which went nicely with the lemon zest. Will definitely make these again!
I’m so happy you’ll be making them again! Ginger sounds like a great addition. Thanks a bunch for your feedback. :)
You saved me! I am on a gluten free diet for the next to weeks, which is not so bad but gluten free desserts are hard to come by at the store. I didn’t think I was going to make it especially since its graduation party season, but these will cure all of my sweet tooths. Thanks!
You’re welcome! I’m happy that you liked them. :) Good luck with the GF diet! I started posting GF dessert recipes years before I had to go GF myself and I promise you… they can be just as delicious as wheat recipes (as long as you have the right recipe!). Thanks for your comment. :)
Mines failed. They were nice at first and then sunk way down after a while with the door open. They look like little cups.
I’ve gotten a lot of reviews on this recipe and you’re the first to mention them sinking. Did you make any subs or changes to the recipe? Did you maybe overbeat the cheesecake batter? And are you sure your oven isn’t running too high or low?
My second attempt was a success. It could be the oven temperature being too hot. Thanks. They were a hit!
I’m happy to hear that they came out well the next time. :)
Hi, just wondering what is the difference between muffin liners and cupcake liners? Thanks
Hi! There’s no difference. :)
Can this recipe be made in a 9×13 pan instead of a muffin tin??
I think an 8″x8″ would be closer to what you’d need. But I haven’t tried it so I’m not positive. Sorry about that!
My daughter has Crohn’s disease and cannot have sugar. Is it possible to replace the sugar with honey? I am wondering if the honey will change the consistency too much.
Using honey in the crust wouldn’t work. You’d probably want to find a different crust recipe. If you want to use honey in the filling, 1/3 cup instead of 1/2 cup of sugar would probably work but since I haven’t tried it, I’m not sure what effect it’d have on the texture. It’d also have some honey taste to it.
I used swerve before and it worked great. Today I’m using monk fruit. I used regular for the crust and I did make it into powdered sugar for the base. We will see what happens. :)
That’s good to know! How did monk fruit work? Sorry for my slow reply (I was on vacation)! Thanks for the tip. :)
I replaced the sugar with pyure which is stevia and eyrithritol (probably not spelled right) and cut the amount in half and they were amazing sugar free and low carb yummy guilt free amazingness
Thanks so much for the tip! I’m happy that they came out well. :)
Do you have the calories per mini cheesecake for this recipe?
I don’t but you could use this recipe analyzer if you’d like for that info. :)
Can sugar be replaced for splenda? And what would the measurements be?
Thanks in advance.
I’ve never actually used Splenda so I have no idea. Does it say on the bag how to use it? Like 1 to 1 with sugar? Sorry I’m not more of a help!
I replaced it with truvia And it was amazing just cut amounts in,half
Hi. I made this last night not realizing I didn’t have pain vanilla extract, or enough sugar! I used a tiny amount of brown sugar to make up the lack of white, and vanilla butter flavor extract in the crust. Turned out amazingly good. I also used like 2 drops of lemon juice(didn’t have real lemon to zest) not bad for a MacGyver!
Haha. Your subs sound great! I’m happy that the cheesecakes came out well. :) Thanks a bunch for your comment!
Hi can i freeze these minis please?
You can! :)
Have you ever tried adding cinnamon to the crust?
I haven’t but I think 1/2 teaspoon would work! You can always add more to taste.
My husband has a nut allergy. Would these still come out with gluten-free 1 to 1 flour? Thanks so much in advance!
I’m afraid not. The GF 1 to 1 flours are interchangeable with wheat flour and not nut flours and other grain-free flours. Sorry about that!
Hi Hanna, have you tried these in a mini muffin pan, to make them bite size? I hope to make these weekend,
Check out the comment from Mama Schick on the first page of comments. :) She used one!
Hey! I made these months ago and they were AMAZING! I wanted to try to make a pumpkin variety for fall, do you have any suggestions when it comes to measurements? I’ll probably just wing it, but I just thought you might have some ideas :)
Hi there! So happy you liked them. And oh man… if only it were so easy to add a bunch of pumpkin to the mix. ;) Luckily, I’ve already worked out a pumpkin version! Here it is – mini pumpkin cheesecakes. Hope you’ll enjoy them! I’d love to hear how they come out. :)