Mini Red Velvet Cheesecakes – The Girl Who Ate Everything

These Mini Red Velvet Cheesecakes are a moist red velvet cheesecake with an Oreo crust. This is the best red velvet recipe I’ve ever had. Topped with cream cheese for the ultimate indulgence. Add some edible blood and mini meat cleaver cookies for a dramatic Halloween dessert or keep them plain for Christmas or Valentine’s Day.

MINI RED VELVET CHEESECAKES

I recently hosted Halloween Bunco at my house. I love Halloween and we have more decorations than we should. The one thing that bugs me about Halloween is the food. It’s always really fun to look at but either impossible to actually eat or tastes bleh. This girl like good food and I’m not willing to compromise taste for looks. So I’m always looking for ways to dress up something that I known is already delicious with a little Halloween flair especially since I host our annual Halloween Bunko every year.

I usually make this Mummy Brie and these Candy Corn Sugar Cookies.

Red Velvet is alluring to the eye and I knew I had to make it. Here’s the thing. Honestly, I’ve never been a huge fan of it which is why I only have one to die for red velvet recipe on this blog.

I’ve always thought of it as something that had an identity crisis. Are you just a cheesecake with red food coloring? Are you a chocolate cheesecake? The answer is that this red velvet cheesecake is moist with a big hint of cocoa in the batter and buttermilk to make it super moist (you can’t skip the buttermilk). What takes this red velvet cheesecake to the next level is the cream cheese frosting. I know what you’re thinking. Why does cheesecake need frosting? Well it doesn’t neeeed it. But I promise you won’t want to have it without once you’ve tried it with. It is rich. You might not want to add as much as I did here – just a thin layer will do the trick.

I also whipped up some edible blood and added these adorable Wilton Meat Cleaver Decorations to give them a little Halloween gore. You can also find these at Walmart and Party City. Maybe Halloween isn’t your thing? I’m already adding them to my Christmas baking list garnished with some mint leaves as holly.

OTHER CHEESECAKE RECIPES:

Mini Red Velvet Cheesecakes

This is one of the best red velvet cheesecakes out there coming from someone who hasn’t always been a fan.

Oreo Crust:

• 36 Oreo cookies, crushed finely using a food processor or by hand
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 Tablespoons granulated white sugar

Cheesecake:

• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 2 ounces red food coloring, (two 1-ounce bottles)

Edible Blood:

• 4 parts corn syrup to 1 part water
• red food coloring
• blue food coloring
• cornstarch

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a regular sized cupcake pan with paper liners.

• For the crust. Combine Oreo cookie crumbs, butter, and sugar. Press 1 Tablespoon of the crumb mixture into the bottom of each liner. I used a Tablespoon measuring spoon and pressed it down with the spoon.

• For the cheesecake: Beat cream cheese and sugar at medium-low speed with an electric mixer for 1 minute. Add eggs, cocoa, sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla, vinegar, and food coloring and mix until just combined. Using a cupcake scooper, fill each tin about 3/4 of the way full. You should get between 30-36 cheesecakes depending on the size of your pans. Mine two pans were a little different in size.

• Bake for 25-35 minutes or until centers are set. Cool cheesecakes in the pan, cover, then chill in the fridge overnight (or at least 8 hours). I chilled mine in the cupcake pan. Cheesecake is better as it chills longer. I remove the paper liners before topping with frosting.

• For the edible blood: Mix 4 parts corn syrup to 1 part water. Add red food coloring until desired color is reached. Add a drop of blue food coloring to give it an authentic color. Add cornstarch until desired thickness is reached.

• For the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until fluffy. Spread or pipe a thin layer of frosting on top before serving. Drizzle edible blood if desired and garnish with the meat cleavers. Serve cold and keep stored in the refrigerator.

This cheesecake is really rich and the frosting on top makes it even richer. I don’t mind it being rich but you can use a thin layer of frosting on top or leave it off completely.
Source: Slightly adapted from RecipeGirl. I made them mini cheesecakes and used a little more cream cheese in the frosting.

Christy is the voice behind The Girl Who Who Ate Everything! She is no stranger to making meals that kids and adults will love. She grew up in Mesa, Arizona as the youngest of ten kids. She can always be found in her kitchen with music playing and cooking with her kids. She published her first cookbook in 2014. She loves party food that gets the conversations going!