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With cinnamon sugar swirls mixed into mini cheesecakes, these Mini Cinnamon Roll Cheesecakes are a super fun recipe! These simple cinnamon rolls are a comforting and tasty breakfast option.
If you love the mini version of this recipe, you need to try the full sized Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake recipe. And if you crave all things cinnamon flavored, be sure to also check out this Apple Cinnamon Cheesecake!
A Fun and Easy Breakfast Recipe
This post is sponsored by Challenge Dairy, but all opinions are my own.
If you’ve hung around here a lot, then you probably already know I love my cinnamon. If I thought it’d be good, I’d add it to just about anything. When you toss it in a cinnamon roll and cover it with frosting, it only gets more delicious. It’s definitely one of the best parts of breakfast. Even better is when you combine pancakes and cinnamon rolls and make cinnamon roll pancakes. Um, yes please!
There’s no doubt that a fun dinner night is making breakfast for dinner, but what about making breakfast for dessert?! I mean let’s be honest – most of the pastries that are called “breakfast” can totally double as dessert so it’s totally fitting.
And course anything mini is better, right? So clearly these mini cinnamon roll cheesecakes have everything going for them.
To top it all off, they are made with Challenge butter and cream cheese. Challenge butter is made with real cream – nothing artificial – and both the butter and cream cheese are made from the freshest milk and cream. Challenge is the only dairy product company that controls the whole process – from milking the cows all the way to packaging the butter. Pretty cool, right?!
How To Make Mini Cinnamon Roll Cheesecakes
So let’s talk a little about how to put these cheesecakes together. Since they are mini, they’re made in a cupcake pan. It makes these super easy to make because you don’t need to use a water bath. #CheesecakeGoals
The crust is made with some vanilla cookies, Challenge butter and little cinnamon and sugar. You guys, there is some cinnamon in every single bite of these cheesecakes. Everything for the crust is combined, pressed into the cupcake tins and baked for about 5 minutes.
While the crusts bake, you can make the filling. You’ll first want to combine the Challenge cream cheese, sugar, flour and cinnamon and mix everything until it’s smooth. I always recommend using a low speed when mixing to make sure you don’t incorporate too much air into the batter, which can cause cracks. Next you’ll add the sour cream and vanilla extract, and finally the eggs. The cinnamon sugar swirls are made with a mix of cinnamon and sugar.
Once you have everything combined, it’s time to layer the cheesecakes. You’ll start with between 1/2 to 3/4 a tablespoon of cheesecake filling in the bottom of each crust – it doesn’t have to be exact. Sprinkle a layer of cinnamon sugar over the filling so that it’s fully covered. Add another layer of filling and cinnamon sugar, then one more layer of each, for a total of 3 of each layer. The cupcake tins should be mostly full.
How Long Does It Take To Bake These Mini Cheesecakes?
The cheesecakes bake for about 15 minutes, then have a slow cooling process to make sure they don’t cool too quickly and crack. Once they are done, they should be refrigerated until cold and firm. They’re topped with a swirl of frosting to give them that cinnamon roll look and finish them off with the necessary frosting that all cinnamon rolls should have!
And there you have them – super fun mini cinnamon roll cheesecakes! Not only did the hubs and I love them, but he also took some to work and they were a big hit! Delicious cinnamon sugar in every bite!
Watch How To Make These
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Mini Cinnamon Roll Cheesecakes
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 12 Mini Cheesecakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
With cinnamon sugar swirls mixed into mini cheesecakes, these Mini Cinnamon Roll Cheesecakes are a super fun recipe! These simple cinnamon rolls are a comforting and tasty breakfast option.
Ingredients
CRUST
- 1 cup (134g) vanilla wafer cookie crumbs
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tbsp (56g) Challenge butter, melted
CHEESECAKE FILLING
- 12 ounces (339g) Challenge cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (104g) sugar
- 3 tbsp (24g) flour
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (115g) sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
CINNAMON SUGAR FILLING
- 1 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (52g) sugar
FROSTING
- 3 tbsp Challenge butter
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tbsp milk
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325°F (162°C). Add cupcake liners to a cupcake pan.
2. Combine the vanilla wafer cookies crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and melted butter. Divide the mixture between the cupcake liners (about 2 tablespoons per cup) and press into the bottoms.
3. Bake the crusts for 5 minutes then remove from oven. Allow to cool while you make the filling.
CHEESECAKE FILLING AND FROSTING
1. Reduce oven to 300°F (148°C).
2. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar, flour and cinnamon until combined (Use low speed to keep less air from getting into the batter, which can cause cracks). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until well combined.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating slowly and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Set filling aside.
5. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar for the cinnamon sugar filling
6. Add about 1/2 to 3/4 of a tablespoon of filling into each cupcake, then sprinkle some cinnamon sugar over the filling, fully covering the filling. Repeat two more times for a total of three layers of filling and cinnamon sugar. The cupcakes should be mostly full.
7. Bake the cheesecakes for 15-17 minutes, then turn off the oven and leave the door closed for another 5 minutes.
8. Crack the oven door and allow cheesecakes to cool for 15-20 minutes, then put in the fridge to finish cooling.
9. When cheesecakes are cooled, remove them from the pan.
10. To make the frosting, mix the butter until smooth.
11. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and mix and mix until smooth.
12. Add the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a small round piping tip (or a ziplock bag with the corner cut off) and pipe a swirl of frosting onto each cheesecake.
13. Refrigerate cheesecakes until ready to serve.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Mini Cheesecake
- Calories: 250
- Sugar: 23 g
- Sodium: 170.2 mg
- Fat: 12.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 30.1 g
- Protein: 4.8 g
- Cholesterol: 61.1 mg
Enjoy!
hi! how can I translate this recipe to make one big cheesecake? does anything change other than baking time? thanks
You’d want to double the recipe for a full 9 inch cheesecake. I also suggest baking it with a waterbath. There’s also this version of a full sized cinnamon roll cheesecake.
Do you know if they could be made without the cookie crust? Or would that make them hard to get out of the wrapper?
They might be a little harder to get out of the wrapper, but they should be fine.
Lindsay, this is divine, I couldn’t believe how perfect this is until i made it and everybody was gasping out of joy. Thanks alot for such an amazing blog.
God bless your twin.
I’m so glad they were a hit!
What a nice recipe, I hope to try it. I have a suggestion for you. It really isn’t necessary to post EIGHT nearly identical photos of your baked goods to get my attention. All that does is slow my computer way down (and make me unhappy).
Hi Linday,
I was reading the instructions which call for 3 layers of the cheese filling and cinnamon sugar (Step 6) but the video only has two layers. Please clarify. Thank you.
Either way would work just fine, it just depends on how much cinnamon sugar you want. The recipe does call for three layers.
I noticed you didn’t mention a water bath. What’s the secret to your cheesecakes not sinking?
I find that they don’t have the sinking issue so much with the minis. I always use a water bath with a full 9 inch cheesecake.
These look heavenly! I can’t wait to try this for our Easter family gathering!
hi there! i really love all your recipes!! i would just like to ask, if ever I want/need to make a smaller batch, since I don’t need about 1-2 dozen of cupcakes. just small batches to taste 🙂 I was wondering if I could divide the recipe in to two? which will make it about 6 cupcake yield? something like that, if it will be accurate 🙂 please help and I hope to get response from you 🙂
That should be fine. As long as you can cut things in half evenly, they should work.
Could you substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream?
I think it’d be fine. I haven’t tried it. It could also depend on the yogurt, since the liquid content can vary quite a bit.
These look devine! Would you (or anyone else) have an idea how to make these dairy free? Of course dairy free cream cheese & then maybe a dairy free yogurt to sub for the sour cream?
Making these for a work meeting this week. Can’t wait to try them. If I double the recipe and make 2 dozen, will that affect my baking times?
Ns long as you are still using the same amount of batter per each cupcake, it should be the same baking time.
I can’t wait to try these! I was wondering if they would freeze well.
I haven’t tried freezing them, I think they’d be ok.
I saw this on FB but it showed using a graham cracker crust. Just wondering why this one is with cookies.
You can really use them interchangeably. I used one in the original recipe and then graham cracker crumbs in the video. Feel free to use either – you don’t need to change anything else.
I made these and had to substitute another brand of butter and cheese. They turned out great. I also used Biscoff cookies to make the crust and they added even more cinnamon taste.
If I were to make these as mini cupcakes how long would it need to bake them? Any idea how many this recipe would yield?
I’m glad you enjoyed them! The biscotti crust sound delicious! I haven’t tried these as mini cupcakes – they’d be so tiny! 🙂 I’m guessing around 8-10 minutes. Maybe it’d make double the amount or so?
at the beginning it says 12 minis, so is that incorrect? Does it yield 12 regular cupcakes?
They are made in regular sized cupcake tins, I call them mini since they aren’t a full cheesecake. The 12 minutes is correct with a regular sized cupcake pan.
Wow, these turned out absolutely perfect! I love the pictures!
Thanks Miranda!
Can you make these with another brand of butter and cream cheese? I can’t get Challenge where I live. Thanks
Yes, you certainly can.