These adorable Easter Bird’s Nest Mini Cheesecakes will be a hit at your Easter brunch or dinner and are so easy to make! Delicious, silky mini cheesecakes, topped with toasted coconut and mini egg candies make a cute and festive dessert!
Ingredients
For Cheesecakes
16 ounces Cream Cheese, softened (2 packages)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
zest of one lemon (optional)
For Crust
8 sheets graham crackers
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons melted butter
For Topping
1 cup sweetened coconut, toasted
36 mini egg candies
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake liners, set aside.
Crush the graham crackers into crumbs in a food processor. Add the 2 tablespoons of sugar and the 1/8 teaspoon of salt, pulse a few times to combine. Pour in the melted butter and pulse until mixed. (If you don’t have a food processor, crackers can be crushed by sealing in a large ziptop bag and crushing with a rolling pin or other heavy object until they are fine crumbs. Pour them into a bowl, whisk in sugar and salt, then stir in the butter and mix until combined))
Evenly divide the crumb mixture between the 12 muffin cups. Use a small flat bottomed measuring cup to press the crumbs into the bottom of each cup (I used a 1/4 cup).
Beat the cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla and sugar until smooth.
Add the eggs, one at a time and mix until well combined. Mix in lemon zest if using.
Evenly divide the cheesecake mixture between the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until centers are set.
Allow to cool completely, then refrigerate for 2 hours or up to overnight.
To toast the coconut, spread in an even layer on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven at 325 degrees, stirring every 5 minutes, until golden. This should take 10-15 minutes. Watch closely because the coconut can go from golden to burnt in an instant!
Before serving, sprinkle the toasted coconut in a circle around the edges of each mini cheesecake to form the “nest” Place 3 mini egg candies in the center. Enjoy!