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Key Lime Cheesecake – Perfectly tart and sweet mini cheesecakes. Top with whipped cream for a great dessert any time!
I love the sweet and tart flavor of key lime. Key Lime Pie is a one of my go to desserts when I am entertaining. Everyone loves it, and it is so easy to make! So I decided I needed to combine another favorite with that tart key lime flavor to make an extra delicious dessert.
Mini cheesecakes are great because you have built in portion control, and you can serve them easily to guests. They do have a special mini cheesecake pan you can buy, but I like to just use a regular muffin tin.
In the summer No Bake Oreo Cheesecake is a great easy dessert to make. But sometimes you just want the real thing. And this key lime cheesecake recipe is darn easy to make and so worth turning on the oven for. It is very similar to a classic cheesecake, just add in key lime juice and a little flour to help make up for the extra liquid.
If you are a fan of the key lime flavor, you are going to love these. They are bright, sweet, tart, creamy, rich, and just down right delicious!
What You’ll Need
Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card.
- Graham Crackers
- Butter
- Sugar
- Cream Cheese
- Sour Cream
- All-Purpose Flour
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Key Lime Juice
How to Make Mini Cheesecakes
- Make the crust. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter together. Then use a tablespoon to fill each muffin liner and gently press into the pan. Bake the crusts for 5 minutes and then set aside until your filling is ready.
- Make Cheesecake. Use an electric mixer to blend cream cheese and sugar until it is smooth and super creamy. Mix in sour cream, key lime juice and vanilla. Mix until well blended.
- Add the eggs. Mix the eggs in one at a time until they are well incorporated. You do not want to mix on too high of a speed, incorporating too much air will lead to cheesecakes that sink. Mini cheesecakes tend to sink slightly in the middle anyway, you just don’t want them to completely sink. Use a spatula to mix in the flour. This helps give you the creamy texture despite all the extra liquid from the key lime juice.
- Bake. Place the cheesecakes in the oven and bake until the cheesecake is set. It takes about 25-30 minutes. If they are cracked on top, they are done.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Starting with room temperature ingredients makes for a creamy and delicious cheesecake. So set out the cream cheese and eggs before you are ready to start.
- Don’t over mix. When you are adding in the eggs, you want to really mix them in well, but not whip them for too long. You don’t want to incorporate too much air, or the cheesecakes will sink. As you can see by the pictures, they will sink a little no matter what, that is just the nature of them. But you don’t want a giant hole in the center either.
- Use cupcake liners. When I make muffins I often recommend just spraying with non-stick spray. But there are next to impossible to get out with the crust if you don’t use liners.
- Key Lime Juice. Most grocery stores carry Nellie’s brand Key Lime Juice. It is in the juice aisle where you buy the bigger bottle of traditional lemon and lime juice. You can also order on Amazon. Or if they are in season you can sometimes find key limes in the grocery store that you could squeeze your own. If you really can’t find it, regular lime juice will work.
How Long to Bake Mini Cheesecakes
They take a small fraction of the time that traditional cheesecakes do. They take closer to 25-30 minutes until the centers are set. You don’t have to let it sit in the oven with the door closed or any of the other steps in a full cheesecake either. Just take them out of the oven and let them cool. Then store in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
Next time you are looking for a different recipes to try this mini cheesecake recipe is it! Sweet, tart, and absolutely delicious.
Storge
These mini cheesecakes are best stored in the fridge, but I like to take them out and let them come closer to room temperature before serving. The tartness of the lime comes up and they are much more flavorful that way.
More Delicious Dessert Recipes
Mini Key Lime Cheesecakes
Equipment
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 4 Tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
For filling
- 24 oz 3 packages cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup sour cream
- 2/3 cup key lime juice, (1/2-2/3 cup depending on taste)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 whole large eggs
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350º F. Line muffin cups with liners. Makes a 24 (2 12-cup muffin tins).
- Combine graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar together. Put about 1 Tablespoons of crumbs into the bottom of the muffins tins. Press down. Bake for 5 minutes. Set aside.2 cups graham cracker crumbs, 4 Tablespoons butter, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- Cream together cream cheese and sugar for a couple minutes until very smooth, scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.24 oz 3 packages cream cheese, room temperature, 1 cup granulated sugar
- Add sour cream, key lime juice, and vanilla. Mix well.2/3 cup sour cream, 2/3 cup key lime juice, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add 1 egg at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition. Stir in flour until it is just combined.3 whole large eggs, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- Scoop batter into muffin cups. Return to the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, until set.
- Remove from the oven and cool for 10-15 minutes and then remove from the pan and finish cooling on a wire rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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These look and sound so good! Love the key lime flavors!
These were perfect for dessert last night! Like little bites of heaven and exactly what I was looking for to cure my sweet tooth!
These sound delicious and so perfect for entertaining!
I need these so much! These may even satisfy my sweet tooth!
I’m reading all of the comments as my cheesecakes finish up in the oven. Cheesecakes are tricky and you can’t just follow the cooking instructions, you have to modify based on your weather, elevation, etc. I live in central NC, so for where I live I have to add a few more minutes for cheesecakes and I turn off my oven and open the door and let them sit for a little bit (15-20 for these and a whole hour for a regular cheesecake).
Mine have cracked some, and gone down a little, tapping the batter in the pans to get the air bubbles out also helps.
Just keep experimenting with it. It’ll all work out.
I agree. All of the irritated comments make me irritated. Mine turned out just fine. People just don’t know how to bake
These are a wonderful tasting and looking dessert. I too, was surprised and irritated by the negative comments. I found this recipe about two years ago and have made it often, never having a less than delightful result. I do laugh at some comments like the one that said 1 cup of lime juice is too much. Yes it is! The recipe calls for 1/2 to 2/3 of a cup. Don’t fault the poster if you are not following her careful and specific directions. I was looking for something elegant and light for my ladies book club. These got rave reviews from all! Thank you for sharing.
This was a fairly easy recipe and I’m sort of a new cook after living in a motorcoach for 16 years and eating out EVERY night. I now have a kitchen to cook in so just trying various recipes. The only thing I didn’t see in the instructions was how to let these cheesecake cupcakes cool. I left them in the muffin container and the pan sweated and all 24 cupcakes got wet on the bottom making the crust inside the paper liner, wet. So, for a new cook, maybe even mentioning that could help the next person who doesn’t know you must cool on a wire rack. I had planned on taking these to shut-ins but will have to come up with another dessert.
This recipe uses regular size muffin tins correct? Not the tiny ones?
Yes