Miss M and I had a great time in Amsterdam, but I have been struggling to come up with a recipe to make to help us remember our trip. After much umming and ahhing, I came up with these mini stroopwafel cheesecakes. The best part is that they take next to no time and have fewer steps than normal cheesecake. And they’re delicious!
Ponder, Mary, Ponder
You will only get the reference if your child is a big Dino Dana fan.
Anyway, I thought long and hard about which recipe I would do to showcase our trip to Amsterdam.
I thought of poffertjes, but I didn’t want to buy a poffertjes pan that I would use only a few times (and induction pans are very expensive!). I also considered doing something with Gouda, but we have a trip to Gouda planned in about two months time, so that wouldn’t work. Fruit meringues seemed too easy (and besides, we have pavlova for leftover egg whites) and I didn’t want to take the cheat’s way out and make nasi goreng to celebrate the Indonesian influences in the Dutch cuisine.
Update: As you might have predicted, out trip to Gouda did not happen. We went into lockdown about two weeks before and the cheese market we were going to visit is also cancelled until further notice. We will get there one day, but when that will be is not clear.
Stroopwafels were a possibility. I considered making some and then coming up with toppings that were different from the ones they sell at van Wouten Stroopwafels. Still, that would involve buying a waffle iron, which was a cost I did not need.
Then it hit me – why not combine ‘cheese’ and ‘stroopwafels’ and make stroopwafel cheesecake? We can buy stroopwafels here at the supermarket, so it is an easy ingredient to add. Besides, if I make mini stroopwafel cheesecakes, I can use a stroopwafel for the base and not have the extra step of creating a base. Genius! Any timesaver is good in my book.
Tips for making these mini stroopwafel cheesecakes
Patty pans
When I was checking a couple of mini cheesecake recipes to work out the best ingredient volumes to use, I read more than once that you shouldn’t use metal patty pans. Apparently, they can make give the cheesecakes a metallic taste. I didn’t try it personally to confirm…
The bases
To cut out the stroopwafel discs, I used the largest of the three cookie cutters I used to make the German terrace biscuits for Christmas. My scone cutter was simply not the right size. Whatever you use, make sure it has a relatively sharp edge so that it can cut through the stroopwafels.
The stroopwafel base on these mini stroopwafel cheesecakes makes them very quick to make, which in my book is a good thing. To speed things up even more, you can use store-bought caramel sauce for the top.
The filling
If you like, you can add some of the leftover stroopwafels to the cream cheese mix. I did this for the last three of my 15 mini stroopwafel cheesecakes. If you do, you probably do not need more stroopwafel pieces on top.
The sauce
If you want to make your caramel sauce even closer to the syrup used to sandwich the two sides of the stroopwafels together, add some cinnamon to the caramel sauce recipe. I would recommend about half a teaspoon; try your caramel sauce before using to see if there is enough cinnamon. The sauce should have a subtle cinnamon taste.
Have you been to Amsterdam recently?
Or are you planning a trip? Make some of these simple mini stroopwafel cupcakes to remember your trip or prepare yourself for what you are about to see and taste!
The simple stroopwafel cheat base makes them quicker to make than (almost) any other cheesecake but they are definitely delicious. The best of both worlds!
What excuse will you use to make your own mini stroopwafel cheesecakes?
Mini stroopwafel cheesecakes
Ingredients
For the mini cheesecakes
- 12-15 stroopwafels
- 250 g cream cheese at room temperature
- 1/2 cup caster superfine sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1 egg yolk at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
- pinch of salt
- 125 g double cream
- 200 g sour cream
For the caramel sauce
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the mini cheesecakes
- Preheat the oven to 160°c (fan-forced). Line a muffin tin with patty pans.
- Using a scone or cookie cutter, cut discs out of each stroopwafel. The discs should each be about the size of the bottom of the patty pans.
- Mix together the cream cheese and sugar. Add the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, mixing between each addition. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Pour about 1/4 cup o the cream cheese mixture into the patty pans, filling until the mixture is about 5-10 mm below the rim of the patty pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until just risen and starting to firm up in the middle. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours until cold.
For the caramel sauce
- Pour the sugar in a saucepan, then shake it so that it is an even layer.
- Add the water and warm the sugar and water over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the mix turns clear.
- Increase the heat to medium-high and cook the sugar and water until it is amber coloured. This may take up to 10 minutes.
- Turn the heat off and immediately add the heavy cream, stirring well, then add the butter and stir until it is well combined and the caramel is smooth.
- Finally, add the vanilla extract, if desired.
- Let the caramel sauce cool to room temperature, then spoon onto the top of the cupcakes to make a think layer. Add pieces of the stroopwafels to the top of the cheesecakes to decorate.
Notes
Nutrition
Leave a Reply