You know those foods, that you just can’t stop thinking about. I’m personally not a big cheesecake fan, but I saw a recipe for chocolate cheesecake a couple of weeks ago, and I haven’t been able to not think about it. In Southern California today it was pretty warm, so I wanted a dessert that would be quick in the oven – and this seems like it would be the perfect recipe! For these little very rich and decadent cheese cakes they are quite lower than the original at 354 calories, 25 grams of fat and 2.2 grams of fiber. My rendition of these little cheese cakes is just under 200 calories at 198.6 calories, 10.8 grams of fat and 2 grams of fiber – not a bad tradeoff! I only had light cream cheese on hand and because I don’t have an abundance of money I decided that would have to do, but you can also do a blend of fat-free and light cream cheese if you want to take those calories and fat down a little more. By using 8 ounces of fat-free and light each cheesecake would come to 174 calories, 8 grams of fat and 2 grams of fiber. To make these a little lighter I used 100 calorie Oreo thin packs for the base of the cheese cakes instead of Oreo’s. I also used light butter and Splenda instead of their more caloric partners. For the cream cheese, I used light cream cheese instead of the full fat kind, and a blend of sugar and Splenda instead of all sugar for the cheesecake base. For the eggs, I replaced them with Eggbeaters and reduced the amount of chocolate chips from 3/4 cup to 1/4 cup – believe me, you don’t need more than that, and that comes from a true chocoholic! Enjoy these decadent desserts, when you really need them, they aren’t the dessert for everyday but are a great swap when you want to grab a piece of French Silk pie – a personal favorite of mine!
Chocolate Cheesecake Cupcakes
Ingredients for the Crust
4 packages of 100 calorie Oreo thin crisps
3 tablespoons light butter, melted
1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons Splenda, granulated
3 tablespoons finely chopped almonds
Ingredients for Cheesecake Filling
16 ounces (2 packages) light cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup +1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup Splenda, granulated
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon Eggbeaters
1/4 cup strong brewed coffee, cold
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl combine the crust ingredients, until they are slightly crumbly. Press an even amount of the crumb mixture into the bottom of 12 ungreased cupcake cups and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, Splenda and sugar until smooth. Add Eggbeaters and beat on low-speed until just combined. Stir in cold coffee and vanilla and mix well. Beat in the cocoa powder until just blended and fold in the chocolate chips. Pour an even amount of cream cheese mixture into each muffin cup until just barely full. Pop cheese cakes into a 375 degree preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes or until they are completely set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before sliding around the edge of the cheese cakes and popping them out of the pan with a spoon. Allow to continue to cool in the refrigerator for 2 hours or completely cool. Enjoy with a little teaspoon of raspberry or cherry canned pie filling and enjoy a little piece of chocolately heaven.
FYI – The tops of the cheese cakes will crack while baking and after they are removed, don’t worry just add a little pie filling on top and they will look perfect!
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