Mini Margarita Cheesecakes – Sally’s Baking Addiction

Here’s Why You’ll LOVE These Mini Margarita Cheesecakes Too

• Fun unexpected margarita flavor that tastes like vacation!
• Full of fresh lime & lightly spiked with tequila and triple sec.
• Thick & fluffy.
• Lots of contrasting texture from the crunchy graham cracker crust and creamy filling.
• Adorably garnished with tequila lime whipped cream, lime slice, and coarse sugar.
• Recipe conveniently makes 1 dozen & you can easily double it.

Even though I titled these “mini,” they’re baked in a standard 12-count muffin pan and not a mini muffin pan. I call them mini because they are mini versions of a full-size cheesecake. Think of them as the cheesecake version of margarita cupcakes. (Because, yes, I have a recipe for those too!)

This Dessert Has 3 Layers

You need 11 ingredients total and many of the ingredients are repeated in each layer.

1. Graham Cracker Crust (3 ingredients)
2. Margarita Cheesecake Filling (8 ingredients)
3. Tequila Lime Whipped Cream (4 ingredients)

This recipe is slightly scaled up from my regular mini cheesecakes to make a full dozen batch of extra thick cheesecakes. After you mix the graham cracker crust ingredients together, press a heaping Tablespoon of the mixture into your cupcake liners. You’ll pre-bake the crust for 6 minutes.

Grab These 7 Ingredients for the Filling:

1. Cream Cheese: Philadelphia cream cheese isn’t affiliated with this post, but it IS my favorite cream cheese brand. Whichever brand you use, make sure you’re using blocks of full-fat cream cheese and not the cream cheese you use for spreading on bagels. This imperative rule applies to many other dessert recipes like cream cheese frosting, strawberry cream cheese pie, and no bake cheesecake.
2. Granulated Sugar: I tested this recipe with both 1/2 cup and 2/3 cup of sugar. I found the greater amount masked the light flavors of lime and tequila, so use 1/2 cup (100g) in the filling recipe.
3. Sour Cream: Sour cream is a magical ingredient in baked goods, especially cheesecake because it adds moisture and richness without thinning out the batter. You need just 2 Tablespoons, so buy a smaller container if you don’t use it often. (You should definitely make double chocolate muffins with your leftovers!) If it’s easier, use plain yogurt instead.
4. Flour: The mixture is too thin and lacks structure without flour.
5. Tequila*: Use your favorite.
6. Triple Sec*: Triple sec is an orange flavored liqueur commonly found in margarita beverages. If you don’t have it, use more tequila or swap with orange juice.
7. Lime: You need 1 Tablespoon juice & 2 teaspoons zest. Have 2-3 limes on hand, which would also be enough for the lime slice garnish.
8. Eggs: The cheesecake batter can’t bind together without eggs. Careful not to over-mix these and be sure to add them right at the end.

*See recipe Note for version without alcohol.

Expect a thick margarita cheesecake batter. Spoon/pour mixture on top of warm pre-baked crusts:

Success Tip: A Steamy Oven

Are you familiar with cheesecake water baths? Cheesecakes are egg-heavy desserts and eggs are notorious for rising up in the oven and then falling down in cooler air. Some sinkage is expected, but you can prevent excess sinking by filling your oven with humidity. Instead of placing your muffin pan in water, place a roasting pan filled with hot water on the rack below the mini cheesecakes. The hot water steams and gently cooks the eggs so the mini cheesecakes aren’t as prone to sinking as they cool.

I teach this method in my key lime cheesecake post, too.

Chilling & Garnishing Your Cheesecakes

Chill Them: After baking, the margarita cheesecakes must cool and chill. I like speeding this process up by cooling at room temperature for 45 minutes and then I place them in the freezer for 1 hour. If you have more time, refrigerate them for 2 hours.