Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes

{my house smells like the cheesecake factory}
I've been anxiously awaiting for today to come for many weeks. Why? I finally have the chance to make a ton of baked goods- and have a place with many mouths to transport said baked goods to. Sometimes I run into the problem of not having enough people to eat all the things I make- and that doesn't make husby very happy. I've been wanting to make these baby cakes for a really long time. Unfortunately, I skipped the water bath as suggested by Martha Stewart because I didn't have a way to create one- so I think these could have been better, but I'm not complaining. I found these to be a bit of a more challenging recipe, which is right up my ally. Go big or go home is my motto. Don't let that scare you, there are definitely some short cuts.

Ingredients:
for the cheesecake:
16 oz cream cheese (two regular size packages)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 eggs
1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional- but after tasting one, I think a little zip of lemon would go really well)

for the raspberry topping:
6 oz fresh or frozen raspberries
2 tablespoons sugar


for the crust: (you could buy the premade crumbs, but I found with one box of graham crackers, I could double the recipe whereas with the premade crumbs, I could only do one batch)
22 Graham crackers
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons sugar 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325F. Line cupcake pan with liners. In a food processor, process graham crackers until crumbly. Switch crumbs into a bowl, and mix in butter and sugar and stir with a fork until the crumbs are moistened. Fill each cupcake liner with 1 tablespoon of crumbs. Use a small drinking glass to press the crumbs down. Bake for 5 minutes or until set. Set aside to cool.


Also in your food processor (obviously you can make the crumbs ahead of time) puree raspberries and sugar. Strain puree into a bowl using a strainer to collect the seeds. Set aside.


In a large mixing bowl, blend cream cheese until fluffy. Add sugar and blend again until well mixed. Add vanilla and mix again. Add each egg one at a time, mixing in between each addition. Pour 3 tablespoons (or 1/4 cup if you have a little measuring up like me ;) ) of cheesecake mixture onto the graham cracker crusts. Once each one has been filled, take a 1/2 teaspoon of raspberry puree and dot it on the top. Take a tooth pick and swirl it around.

Pop them in the oven and bake for about 22 minutes. Now, if you have a pan big enough and have enough room in your kitchen feel free to do a water bath, but again, I skipped it and the only thing that happened was my cheesecakes kind of sank down little in the centers. Make sure you sit in front of your oven and watch them like a nerd. Just kidding, you don't have to.

Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Not so bad, right? You will die when you smell these out of the oven... :)


Source: Annie's Eats via Martha Stewart