Mini Lime Cheesecakes

I'm late to the party as usual, but this was our Cinco de Mayo treat.  This recipe comes from Kim at The Ungourmet.  They looked so scrumptious and cute, I just had to try them.

I cheated a bit when it came to the lime juice and used mostly bottled, and just squeezed the juice out of two fresh limes into it.  I took these to work, and they got wonderful reviews. (forget for a moment that we work in a hospital and think jello and saltines is a treat)

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups gingersnap cookies (I used graham crackers with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon and sugar)
10 tbsp melted butter
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 cups softened cream cheese
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tbsp lime zest

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 24 paper baking cups into muffin pans.

Put the cookies into a food processor and pulse until you end up with course crumbs. Stir in the butter. Place a tbsp of this mixture into each paper cup and press firmly into the bottom. Chill until set.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the ricotta until smooth. Add the cream cheese, vanilla and confectioner's sugar, blending until smooth. Slowly add the eggs, blending well.  Add the lime juice and zest and mix well.  Spoon mixture evenly over crust.

Bake for 30-35  minutes. Remove pan from oven and cool 5 minutes. Then, remove the cheesecakes and cool on a wire rack. Chill until ready to serve. 

I received this awesome sample package of a product I'd never heard of before.  It's a grain called salba.  What is salba, you may ask?

  

Salba is a nutritional powerhouse, loaded with vitamins, antioxidants and minerals. Richer in protein and Omega-3s than Chia, and higher in fiber than flaxseed, Salba is a functional food that can be enjoyed daily to help manage blood sugar levels, to help reduce the risks of diseases such as heart disease, and to help reduce appetite and increase satiety.  Gram for gram, a 12g serving of Salba provides:

• 8x more Omega-3's than salmon
• 25% more dietary fiber than flax
• 30% more antioxidants than blueberries
• 15x more magnesium than broccoli
• 7x more antioxidants than oranges
• 6x more calcium than milk
• 3x more iron than spinach
• 3x more fiber than oats

You can read more here.

I really liked the chips, thought they had a nice corn flavor.  And those little bags will be perfect for my daughter's lunch.