Tiny cheesecakes, big payoff! These mini elderberry cheesecakes pair a crunchy crust and creamy filling with tart berries and luscious elderberry sauce.
I can’t remember when was the last time I made a full-sized cheesecake. Mini cheesecakes are so much easier to make, to bake, and to eat. Best of all, the process is also a lot faster, which means we don’t have to wait nearly so long to stuff these delicious treats in our mouth.
These sweet little mini elderberry cheesecakes have all the texture and flavor contrasts that I’m often looking for in a dessert. Crunchy, crumbly crust gives way to luxuriously dense filling, with little pops of tiny fresh berries and a velvety, crimson sauce oozing over the edges. Creamy indulgence meets jammy tartness. It’s heaven.
Below, you’ll find step-by-step instructions and my top baking tips so you can whip these up without any fuss.
👉 This recipe is based on my Mini Huckleberry Cheesecakes. Check that out for an alternate version with different toppings!
Recipe highlights
- Creamy cheesecake, buttery crust, bright lemon zest, tart elderberries
- A simple yet elegant way to bake with elderberries
- Easy and un-fussy to make
- Absolutely delightful texture contrasts
- An optional elderberry sauce takes things to the next level
Recipe overview
⏱️ Prep: ~20 mins • Bake: 20 mins • Chill: 2 hrs
🍴 Yield: 12 mini cheesecakes
💪 Skill level: Beginner
😋 Flavor notes: Tart, jammy wild berries, buttery graham crackers, fresh lemon zest, indulgent creaminess. Pairs well with: Coffee, whipped cream, creme fraiche, fresh berries.
How to make mini elderberry cheesecakes
What I love about mini cheesecakes is how much easier they are to make than one big cheesecake. They come together in minutes and only require about 20 minutes baking time! They’re also less prone to “big cheesecake problems”, like sinking and cracking.
You’ll find full instructions and ingredients measurements in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick and dirty overview of how to make these little cheesecakes:
- Make the crust. Mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter, press into muffin liners, and bake for 5 minutes.
- Make the filling. Beat cream cheese until soft, then mix in sugar, yogurt, vanilla, lemon juice, and zest. Gently add eggs, one at a time, mixing just until combined.
- Add berries. Fold in fresh or frozen elderberries until well distributed.
- Bake. Fill muffin cups to the top and bake until just set with the slightest jiggle in the center. Remove to a cooling rack, then chill in the fridge.
- Make elderberry sauce. Cook elderberries with a little water until the berries burst, then strain. Cook strained juice with sugar until thickened.
- Cool & serve. After cheesecakes are completely cool, serve cold with elderberry sauce.
Pro tips for perfect mini cheesecakes
Use room temperature cream cheese. Cold cream cheese will leave lumps in your batter. Let it soften at room temperature until it’s nice and soft.
Don’t overmix after adding eggs. Overbeating once the eggs are added can create too much air in the batter, causing cracks. Mix eggs in last and mix them in gently, just until combined.
Fold berries in by hand. Using a mixer can be a bit too aggressive for your delicate berries. Folding them in by hand keeps them whole and won’t stain the batter purple.
Don’t overbake. The cheesecakes should be just set in the middle with the slightest jiggle. They’ll finish setting as they cool. Overbaking can lead to dry, cracked cheesecakes.
Cool them gradually. Let your mini elderberry cheesecakes cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before removing. Then, cool them at room temperature for about another 30 minutes. Finally, chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving. This gradual cooling process helps to achieve the perfect texture, without cracks or sinking.
Where to find elderberries
Wild elderberries truly grow everywhere. I’ve found them in just about every single country I’ve ever visited and every town I’ve lived in. They like to grow on the edges of forests, disturbed hillsides, and near sources of water.
For more information on finding, identifying, and preparing elderberries, check out my complete elderberry guide.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, they’re typically in season between late July to the beginning of October. But if going foraging isn’t an option, you may be able to find them at farmers’ markets and specialty stores, and they’re available online year-round.
Substitutions & variations
Use a different berry. If you can’t get your hands on elderberries, try substituting huckleberries or blueberries (cultivated or wild).
Try a different crust. Instead of the classic graham cracker crust, you could swap vanilla wafer cookies for a richer flavor or gingersnaps for a lightly spicy version (an excellent pairing with elderberry!).
Biscoff cookies would be delicious as well. Check out my Mini Passionfruit Cheesecakes recipe if you’d like to try a Biscoff crust.
Swap the citrus. Substitute orange juice & zest in place of lemon for a slightly sweeter flavor. I love to pair orange with wild berries, since they’re typically less sweet than cultivated fruit.
Serving & storage
Cheesecake tastes best (and has the best texture) after a good solid chill, so I recommend making these little elderberry cheesecakes at least a few hours before you plan to serve them. Keep them stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Serve super cold with a spoonful of elderberry sauce. Divine!
More elderberry recipes to try:
If you make these Mini Elderberry Cheesecakes, please let me know what you think! Leave a star rating and comment below the recipe card. I love hearing from you!!
Mini Elderberry Cheesecakes
Equipment
- Muffin tin & paper liners
- Stand mixer or electric beaters
Ingredients
Graham cracker crust
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs, 7-8 full sheets
- 2 ounces (4 Tbsp) salted butter, melted
Elderberry cheesecakes
- 16 ounces cream cheese, super soft, room temperature
- ½ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup elderberries, fresh or frozen
Elderberry sauce
- 1 ½ cups elderberries, fresh or frozen
- ½ cup water
- 2-3 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C). Line a muffin pan with paper liners.
- Make the crust: In a small bowl, mix 1 cup graham cracker crumbs with 2 oz melted butter until the crumbs are evenly hydrated.Distribute evenly into prepared muffin tins, about 1 Tbsp of mixture per tin. Lightly press mixture into muffin liners (a ¼ cup measuring cup is about perfect for this!), and bake for 5 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack while you make the filling.
- Make the filling: Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or electric beaters, cream 16 oz cream cheese until soft and smooth. Then mix in ½ cup sugar, ⅓ cup yogurt, 1 tsp vanilla, 2 tsp lemon juice, and the zest. Gently add 2 eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed, and mixing just until combined. Be gentle here – you don't want to incorporate too much air at this stage.
- Add berries: Fold in ½ cup fresh or frozen elderberries, by hand, until well distributed.
- Bake: Fill muffin cups to the top with filling and bake until just set with the slightest jiggle in the center, about 17-21 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack. After about 15 minutes, carefully take the cheesecakes out of the muffin tin and cool at room temperature for another 15-30 minutes. Then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
- Make elderberry sauce: While cheesecakes are cooling, make the (optional) sauce. Cook 1 ½ cup elderberries with ½ cup water over medium-low heat in a heavy-bottomed sauce pan until the berries break down and get juicy, about 8-10 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning or sticking.
- Strain and sweeten: Strain berry mixture through a coffee filter or cheesecloth, squeezing out as much juice as possible. You should end up with around ¼ cup of elderberry juice.Pour juice back into a saucepan, add 2 Tbsp of sugar, and cook over low heat, stirring often, until thickened, 2-5 minutes. Taste and add more sugar if desired.
- Cool & serve: After cheesecakes are completely cool, serve cold, spooning elderberry sauce on top.
Did you try this recipe?
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