When it comes to Valentine’s Day, no matter what your stance is on the Holiday, everyone can agree on one thing: it’s time to treat yourself. Maybe you and your Valentine are going out to a lovely dinner or making something delicious at home. Or perhaps you and your friends are celebrating a Singles Valentine’s Day. But either way, it’s the middle of winter, and a treat is needed. Whether you are still trying to get some pounds off for your New Year’s resolution or just a fan of sweet treats, it’s a great excuse to enjoy some extra special calories. Many turn to chocolate as their traditional love snack. But I myself am not a huge fan. Enter cheesecake & white chocolate.
I wanted something that was individually portioned in case you were watching your calories, was gluten free but was still indulgent. I can’t remember if I had mentioned on here how much I love cheesecake. Mentioning however several times that I am not a sweet tooth, cheesecake is one dessert that I have a very hard time turning down. Whether it be classic or souped up, it has that perfect balance of sweetness, creaminess and tartness that makes it so amazing.
The cheesecake recipe itself is a no bake recipe. Could you bake these? Absolutely. But why not make things easier and impress everyone with the other components of this and make them feel like they are eating something off the Great Valentine’s Day Baking Challenge?
First things first, let’s bloom some gelatin. Place one and a half small packets of powdered gelatin in a small microwave safe dish with two tablespoons of water. Allow this to sit for a few minutes.
Place your softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl and paddle whip it until it is smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add in your sour cream, vanilla and sugar.
Microwave your gelatin in 10 second increments, stirring occasionally until it is smooth. Pour into your cheesecake mixture and mix for 1 minute on medium until completely incorporated.
Next up, let’s make some raspberry coulis. This is essentially a raspberry sauce. You can use frozen raspberries for this or fresh. All you need are raspberries, sugar and water. Cook this down until the fruit has broken down and sauce has thickened.
Blend this in a blender, food processor or bullet. Strain to get those seeds out and cool immediately in a bowl over ice.
I bought these domes off of Amazon a year and a half ago and have gotten quite a bit of use out of them. If you don’t want to buy them or you don’t have them, you can use cupcake pans or individual tart pans if you’d like. But either way I found them perfect for this.
Carefully spoon your cheesecake mixture into each dome, leaving a small bit unfilled. Swirl in your raspberry coulis into the cheesecake mixture, using about a teaspoon of sauce in each.
Place these in the fridge or if you are pressed for time, the freezer. As they are setting, lets work on your other components.
I used raw almonds and pecans for my crust but you can use macadamia nuts, peanuts, walnuts or anything else you prefer. The key is to make sure the majority of them are ground with only a few chunks here and there. Combine them in a bowl with sugar, melted butter and an egg white. Mix this thoroughly and then press onto a sheet tray lined with parchment paper.
Make sure to press this as thin as you can get it as remember, this is going to be a crust. Using a circle cutter, carefully shape out circles for a base to your domes. Bake these in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes and allow to cool completely.
Time for our chocolate. While white baking chips could work for this, they are even more temperamental then actual white chocolate. By that, I mean the chocolate could break easily. I used white chocolate bars and chopped them up. Place it over a double boiler and melt completely. Add a few drops of red food coloring into the chocolate to give it a subtle pink flavor, or go for more if you want more of a loud pink color.
Now, time to assemble! Line up your nut crusts on your pan. Place a bit of your raspberry coulis on top of each crust, approximately 1 teaspoon on each. Carefully pop your cheesecakes out of their molds and place on top of each crust.
Now, drizzle your raspberry coulis across the top of each dome. Once that is done, repeat the same method with your white chocolate. And that’s it! They are ready to go!
These are a lovely treat for your family, your loved one or anyone else you’d like to show love to. They are also not too fancy schmancy that kids can’t help make them too. Let them get artistic with the drizzling of the sauce. If you have a lot of white chocolate, you could even cover each cheesecake dome with it, giving it a pink shell.
Either way, whether you make these or not, indulge a little bit this Valentine’s Day. Single, taken, hate Valentine’s Day or love it, give yourself some love. We could all use a little bit more these days.
Mini Raspberry Cheesecake Domes with White Chocolate and Toasted Nut Crusts
Makes 12 domes
- 1.5 1/4 ounce packages unflavored powdered gelatin
- 2 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Raspberry Coulis
- 1 pack fresh or frozen raspberries
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Nut Crust
- 2 1/2 cups finely chopped nuts, (pecans, almonds, walnuts or peanuts)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 egg white, lightly whisked
Garnish
- 12oz white chocolate chips or chopped bar
- Red food coloring
Combine the gelatin with two tablespoons water in a small microwave-safe bowl and set aside to soften, about 5 minutes.
Beat the cream cheese on medium high speed with an electric or stand mixer until completely smooth, about two minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in sour cream, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla. Beat on medium high speed until smooth.
Microwave the gelatin in 10 second increments, stirring as needed until it dissolves. Pour the gelatin into the cream cheese mixture and beat on high for 30 seconds until everything is incorporated. Set aside.
In a medium sauce pan, combine raspberries, sugar and water over medium heat. Cook until raspberries have broken down and sauce has thickened. Blend until smooth and strain through a fine mesh strainer. Cool in a bowl over an ice bath.
Pour cheesecake mixture into each dome, leaving a small bit out. Stir in 1 teaspoon of raspberry coulis. Place domes into refrigerator or freezer if you are pressed for time. Chill until completely solid.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine nuts, sugar, kosher salt, melted butter and egg white. Once combined, pour out into a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Press down into a thin crust. Cut circles out of crust that will match the side of your domes. Bake in oven for 10 minutes and allow to cool completely.
Over a double boiler, melt white chocolate completely until smooth. Add a few drops of red food coloring to create a subtle pink color.
On top of each crust, add one tablespoon of raspberry coulis. Place one set cheesecake dome on top. Drizzle raspberry coulis and white chocolate over each dome. Serve chilled.