Cheesecake Cupcakes with Oat and Walnut Crust
Recipe courtesy of Liz Weiss on behalf of the FMI Foundation
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned or quick oats
- 1/2 cup walnut halves or pieces
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch salt
Filling:
- 1 package light cream cheese, at room temperature 8 ounces
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 lemon zest only
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Toppings (optional):
- plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
- sliced strawberries
- sliced raspberries
- sliced blueberries
- fresh mint
- toasted coconut flakes
- agave
- sliced almonds
- lemon zest
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Line cupcake pan with eight paper baking cups and set aside.
- To make crust: In bowl of food processor, pulse oats and walnuts until coarsely ground. Add olive oil, butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt; pulse until evenly moistened and combined.
- Press 1 tablespoon of mixture firmly onto bottoms of cups. Bake 7 minutes until cooked.
- To make filling: In medium bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy. Add egg, cornstarch, lemon zest and vanilla; continue beating until well combined.
- Spoon mixture evenly into muffin cups. Bake 20-22 minutes until cream cheese mixture is set. Remove from oven and cool in tins about 10 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and cool completely. Place in refrigerator and chill completely before serving or decorating with yogurt, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, mint, coconut flakes, agave, almonds and lemon zest, if desired.