Pina Colada Cheesecake Cookie Cups

It’s the last bit of summer and what’s more summery than pina colada? These don’t require too much of the oven, which is nice for summer. There are multiple steps, but nothing too complex. I suppose you could just skip the whipped cream on the top, but they look a lot fancier with the whipped cream, and it makes it easier to add the decorative pineapple and cherry on top.

This recipe uses regular-sized muffin cups, which makes for large cookies. This recipe yields about 20 cookies. You could probably adapt the recipe for a mini muffin pan, which might be better if you needed to share with lots of folks. It’s a bit frustrating that you use both crushed pineapple and pineapple tidbits, and a small amount of both, so I have leftovers. You could always finely chop the pineapple tidbits and use that in place of the crushed pineapple.

The cookie recipe is simple and the whipped cream is simple too. It’s a little tricky to whip ¼ cup of whipped cream, as my mixer is better suited to larger quantities! I wasn’t sure that I had the cheesecake filling right. You add the thickened pineapple/cornstarch mixture, but mine never really thickened all that much. I thought the filling was too thin after it was mixed, so I added more powdered sugar. It thickens up when it’s refrigerated, so it worked out. These are lovely, whether you consider them a big cookie or a petite dessert. Although they contain no coconut, they have all the flavors of pina colada.

Pina Colada Cheesecake Cookie Cups

3/4 cups butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoon coconut extract

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/4 cup pineapple juice

1 teaspoon cornstarch

12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

3 tablespoons crushed pineapple, drained

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon coconut extract

Pineapple tidbits

Maraschino cherries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two muffin pans with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter and sugar on medium until light. Add the egg and coconut extract and stir to combine. Add the flour, baking soda, and cornstarch and mix on low until the dough comes together.

Shape the dough into 2 tablespoon balls of dough. Place one ball in each of the muffin pans. Press the cookie dough into the bottom and half way up the sides, forming a cup. Bake for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned along the edges.

Allow the cookies to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, and then press the dough down with a tart tamper or a spoon, to deepen the indentation. Allow the cookies to cool completely, then gently remove from the pan and place on a wire rack.

Make the cheesecake filling: whisk together the pineapple juice and cornstarch in a small bowl. Microwave until thickened, about 30 seconds. In a large mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar on medium until smooth. Add the pineapple juice mixture and the crushed pineapple and stir to combine. If the mixture is too thin, add in additional powdered sugar. Spoon the mixture into the cooled cookie cups. Refrigerate.

Make the whipped cream: in a large mixer bowl, using the whisk attachment, beat the whipping cream, powdered sugar, and coconut extract on high until stiff peaks form. Pipe the whipped cream on top of the cheesecake filled cookie cups. Decorate with pineapple tidbits and maraschino cherries. Store in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Life, Love, and Sugar