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White Chocolate Cheesecake Tartlets with Blood Orange Swirl

You guys know me by now. I take any and every excuse for celebration and do my best to turn it into a full-on party. Maybe it’s because I love my friends; maybe it’s because I love seeing fresh-cut flowers and balloons scattered about my house. Whatever the case may be, I adore the party planning process, particularly as it pertains to selecting a menu and theme. These white chocolate cheesecake tartlets were among the goodies I shared at a gathering a few weeks ago, and I’m thrilled to get to chat about them with you all today as the last installment of this year’s #monthofchocolate.

Brett and I attend a couple’s small group at our church on Sunday mornings. It’s a mix of couples, mostly married and some not, ranging in age from late twenties to late fifties-ish, and it is such a healthy and life-giving thing for us. In an effort to get out of the “classroom” and really just have fun, we decided to have a Valentine’s Day Italian dinner. I bought big, shiny heart-shaped balloons and tacky heart confetti and banners to put around my house. We drank wine and ate big pans of my mother-in-law’s lasagna by the candlelight provided from leftover glass votives and tea lights from our wedding. It was entirely cheesy and unnecessary, but even as I sit here typing, I’m totally smiling big because it was just so fun.

It feels good to unplug, connect, and have silly, easy conversation with people that love you back.

Dessert was all chocolate, partly due to theme and partly out of sheer convenience. In the throws of testing recipes for #monthofchocolate, I was overrun with test batches of flourless chocolate cake, vegan fluffernutter cookies, and these cutie little white chocolate cheesecake tartlets. It seemed like an to share with friends who wouldn’t judge a work in progress recipe. All in all, the night was terrific. I’m thrilled that you get a taste of that evening today with this elegant and simple recipe.

White Chocolate Cheesecake Tartlets

These white chocolate cheesecake tartlets are a variation of a no-bake cheesecake that I’ve been making for years. The crust is a shortbread and is the only part that requires any time in the oven at all. With few ingredients involved, I lean on Kerrygold’s salted butter for flavor and quality. As with most shortbreads, the flavor of this crust is seriously buttery; I prefer to use a product that has the just-right balance between sweet and salty. This crust melts in your mouth and there’s not doubt that Kerrygold butter plays a starring role in that.

Making the Tarts

The filling here (made in the microwave, btw!) is nothing more than cream cheese, white chocolate, and sugar. The mixture gets folded into whipped cream and it sets up in the fridge to a soft-cheesecake consistency. The fancy show-stopper of these white chocolate cheesecake tartlets is the blood orange swirl. A simple sauce made from blood orange juice, sugar, and cornstarch comes together on the stove and sets to a thick saucy consistency. The mixture can be used in a number of ways (think flavored cocktails, cake fillings, toast toppings, and ice cream compotes!), but here, we use it for it’s floral tang, mild sweetness, and stunning color. You can use a store-bought jam or sauce here in a pinch, but I love putting that fleeting winter produce to use.

I finished off the white chocolate cheesecake tartlets with candied walnuts that I purchased from the store, but this is entirely unnecessary. You can serve solo or opt to finish off with more sauce, whipped cream, or even little ginger cookie crumbles. Find something with texture in your pantry and HAVE AT IT. These little white chocolate cheesecake tartlets are seriously adaptable and would be complimented by a multitude of toppings.

Many thanks to Kerrygold for sponsoring these little white chocolate cheesecake tartlets. Be sure to grab a pack (or five!) of their butter for baking up these little tartlets and more. Any dessert this special deserves the added bonus of quality, uncompromised butter, and you can expect that with Kerrygold. I hope you all have enjoyed this year’s #monthofchocolate and I look forward to getting back to business in March with tons of all new words and recipes. Happy Thursday and Happy Baking!

If you like these white chocolate cheesecake tartlets you should check out:

Blood Orange Cheesecake

Blood Orange Bundt Cake

White Chocolate Cake

Lemon Pound Cake

Meyer Lemon Cheesecake

Pumpkin Cheesecake Tartlets

White Chocolate Cheesecake Tartlets with Blood Orange Swirl

Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

These white chocolate cheesecake tartlets are mini no-bake cheesecakes swirled with a simple blood orange sauce.

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 25
Cook Time: 15
Total Time: 120
Yield: 6
Category: Dessert

Ingredients

For the blood orange sauce:

1 pound blood oranges
¼ cup (50 gm) sugar
1–1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the shortbread crusts:

¾ cup (170 gm) salted butter, at room temperature
1–1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
1–1/2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon cinnamon

For the cheesecake filling:

5.5 ounces white chocolate, chopped
8 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces heavy whipping cream
½ cup chopped toasted walnuts, if desired

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Instructions

To prepare the blood orange jam:

Peel, slice and seed the blood oranges, being sure to remove as much of the pith (white skin on fruit) as possible, as this will cause the jam to taste bitter. Puree the fruit in a blender or fruit processor until a pulpy juice forms. Pour the juice into a saucepan and whisk in the sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla. Turn the heat to medium and bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Allow to boil, stirring frequently, for 1-2 minutes until thickened slightly. Turn off the heat, skim the bubbles off the top and and place in a heat-safe container to chill in the fridge to at least room temp.

To prepare the crusts:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter in a medium-sized mixing bowl until smooth. Add the confectioner’s sugar, cinnamon, and flour and stir on low until a crumbly mixture forms. When you press it between your fingers it should pack like wet sand. Divide the mixture between the 6- 4” tart pans with removable bottoms (I used just shy of ½ cup in each pan) and press into the sides and bottom of the pan in an even layer. I find it’s easiest to press into the sides first and then smooth the remaining dough into the bottom. Place the tart pans on a rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven to pan until firm, about 13-15 minutes. Remove from oven to cool completely.

To prepare the tarts:

Combine the white chocolate and cream cheese in a microwave-safe mixing bowl and microwave in 25 second intervals, stirring regularly afterwards. This allows the white chocolate to melt gently. Continue this process until the clumps of white chocolate combine smoothly with the softened cream cheese. In a separate bowl, combine the vanilla and heavy whipping cream and whip until medium peaks form. Fold about half of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and then fold the remaining whipped cream in until smooth. Be careful to not overwork it. Fill the cooled tart dishes with some of the cream cheese mixture, about 2/3 of the way full, alternating with some of the blood orange jam. I use about 2 tablespoons of sauce in each tart pan. Once the tart pans are filled, use a toothpick to gently swirl the two mixtures together. If you ended up with a big glob of cream cheese on top you can drop a few rounds of sauce on top to make pretty swirls. Place the finished tarts in the fridge to set up. Prior to eating, pull the tarts out of the fridge, pop the tarts out of the pan, and allow to rest at room temp for about 15-20 minutes to allow the crust to soften slightly. Top with toasted walnuts, if desired.

Notes

You can substitute in a different jam or preserves for the blood orange sauce. Just loosen it a bit with water until it reaches sauce consistency.

This post has been sponsored by Kerrygold. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting brands that make Wood & Spoon possible.

Blood Orange Cheesecake

20 Comments / Cakes

There’s a reason I drink wine. It’s the same reason I go for walks and listen to the same comforting records over and over again. It’s the reason I lose myself in perfecting cinnamon bread recipes and hide little slices of blood orange cheesecake in the back of the fridge.

Kids. The reason is kids.

Let me be clear: Mothering is the honor of my life. It’s full of surprises and joy and tears burning in the corners of your eyes because you didn’t know a tiny person could make you laugh so hard. It’s rich and life-giving, and I wouldn’t trade these days for all of the long legs, designer handbags, and front row tickets to Hamilton that the world has to offer.

Mothering: The Hard Stuff

But there’s also endless laundry. There’s sassy toddlers who spend a week’s worth of dinners in time out. There’s blueberries smashed in the seat cushions and about one million questions that start with “Why?” and end with absolutely nothing of importance. This work that we do, Mothers- this beautiful, repetitive, insanity-inducing joy of our lives- is quite often a literal and proverbial poop show, and you’ll never guess who gets the backstage pass to the whole thing.

Yup. It’s the same person who shoves peas into chubby cheeks and clips microscopic toenails. And it’s the person who loses their last French fry to a quick-handed toddler. It’s the gal who sorts through the trash to find the various remotes, sippy cups, and shoes that someone “hid” in the garbage can. A mother’s list of responsibilities is only outmatched by the number of tears they wipe and tantrums they tame, and we somehow trick ourselves into signing up for it again and again and again.

Brett and I recently started talking about the potential of growing our family in the distant future. Sometimes the thought of taking on one more human makes me absolutely choke on my own spit. If I have to listen to one more person whining at the dinner table, I will face-plant in my plate of spaghetti. But still, there are intangibles to mothering that make it irresistible.

Mothering: The Good Stuff

Like sometimes I watch my two children from afar as if the whole thing is happening in slow-motion, black and white. I see little faces wrinkled with smiles, heads thrown back with laughter. They move wildly, chasing each other around the kingdom of our backyard like they could run anywhere in the world. Suddenly, they turn. We lock eyes, and no sooner than a whispered “Mama” unfurls in the wind, they’re running towards me- arms open and voices shrieking into a knock-you-over kind of embrace. The exchange we make for all of the broken dishes and dirty socks is suddenly worth it, because there is nothing quite as remarkable as the sound of little voices whispering your name. There is nothing like the chance to be loved back.

Blood Orange Cheesecake

So yes, motherhood is hard. I don’t know if it gets easier, but while we wait to find out, let’s indulge in simple luxuries. Like this blood orange cheesecake.

This recipe was adapted from a blog favorite, my Meyer lemon cheesecake. You guys go crazy for that thang, so I knew I had to create more cheesy, citrusy goodness. The result is this head-turning, creamsicle-colored blood orange beauty that is sure to beat the pants off of any other dessert in your fridge.

Making the Cheesecake

First, to make it, we start with the crust. Crushed graham crackers, brown sugar, and cinnamon are mixed together to soak up a pool of melted butter. Next, press the mixture into a 9″ springform pan and bake it in the oven while you get started on the filling.

In the meantime, cream cheese and sugar come together until light and fluffy. Afterwards, add a few eggs, some heavy cream, and the blood orange juice and zest. Take care to not overwork your batter, and be sure to incorporate all of the little bits of cheese and zest. No one wants a clumpy cheesecake. Lastly, bake the whole thing in the oven until jiggly but set around the outer edges.

I like to take a few precautions with my cheesecake. First, I always prepare a water bath. This will ensure that my cheesecake bakes evenly and avoids any major cracks in its top. Secondly, I triple layer the aluminum foil around my pan to ensure that no water leaks into my pan. Even supposed “leak-free” pans have sprung a leak, and I promise, nothing is more demoralizing and wasting all of your precious blood oranges on a soggy cheesecake. And thirdly, I let my cheesecakes cool in phases to prevent any major structural damage. This includes a brief stint in a hot, but turned off, oven, a rest on the counter, and a long chill in the fridge.

This blood orange cheesecake is sweet and tart, a brilliant ode to that stunning winter fruit, so pick up a bag of blood oranges at your market and give this recipe a try!

If you like this blood orange cheesecake, you should try:

Blood Orange Bundt Cake

Meyer Lemon Cheesecake

Brown Sugar Cheesecake with Oatmeal Cookie Crust and Butterscotch Sauce

Orange Cardamom Rolls

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cheesecake

Blood Orange Cheesecake

Print Recipe

★★★★

3.3 from 3 reviews

This blood orange cheesecake is a sweet and tart, creamy dessert with a cinnamon-spiced graham cracker crust. Learn how to make a successful cheesecake here!

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 25
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 360
Yield: 10