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I know, it probably wasn't the best, most responsible behavior for early in the morning, but I think you ........ would have probably done the same thing. There we were in our front foyer with the door wide open. The early morning sun was just peeking up over the housetops and dappling summer leaves in the gentle breeze.
Scott (my wonderful husband, photographer, editor and CEO of taste-testing) and I, still clad in jammies, were in the midst of a photo shoot. It sounds a bit crazy, but we've found that during these warm weather months, 7A.M. in the front doorway is the perfect place to capture the light for Café food photos.
If you were a little mouse out for a morning stroll in our neighborhood, you'd probably laugh. You couldn't help but notice the two in the doorway, seriously working with tripod, scrims, reflectors and a honkin' big camera. A little table set against the open door with a scene of small mason jars and a tiny bouquet of berry-flowers set atop bright polka dot cocktail napkins. Moving the cheesecake jars this way and that, changing the angle or height of the camera, tilting the reflectors a little up, a little down, slightly to the left, a smidgen to the right, just a tiny adjustment here and there until finally ... they're satisfied! Whew!
But after spending an hour taking pictures of these Layered Cheesecake Jars, we couldn't stand it another minute. Even though there was steel cut oatmeal waiting patiently on the stovetop, intended for our "healthy" breakfast, we looked at each other and that was that.
We took one of those long slender spoons, slid it down through the sweet ruby red, glistening raspberries, then into the silky smooth, fudgy ganache. But there was more. Next came the lightest, creamiest layer of fabulous cheese cake and last, but definitely not least, a little scoop of golden, buttery graham cracker crust.
One bite and our eyes got big. Wow! We looked at each other. Sorry oatmeal. One statement slipped out of Scott's mouth in between bites; "This is the best dessert I've had in a long time .......... wow!". Yup, I agreed as I scooped down deep for one more delicious layered bite.
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I think you'll agree too. Give this lovely dessert a try, but for heaven sakes behave; not for breakfast, please! These layered Mason jar treats are perfect for parties, picnics, potlucks; you can make them ahead, close up the lids and tuck the jars away in the fridge. Pull them out 30 minutes before serving, twist off the lids and add a pretty garnish. Voila! A super delicious, quite dazzling dessert.
Although there are four separate layers to prepare, both the ganache and the raspberry sauce are made literally in minutes .......... in the microwave! And you can actually make the jars weeks in advance and store them in the freezer after cooling. Just hold off on the raspberry sauce layer until after thawing.
The recipe makes 12 8-ounce jars (or 24 4-ounce jars if you prefer smaller servings). Oh, and if you're out taking a morning walk and see a photo shoot going on in a neighbor's front doorway, that would be us! Feel free to check it out and say hello, we always welcome new taste testers!
P.S. If you're not a chocolate lover, these can be made without the ganache layer, still really wonderful!
P.P.S. An update: it looks like they completed the work on our computer and we should get it back later today. They said A LOT of photos have been restored (yeah!!!) but we won't know for sure if it's all of them till we can check it our ourselves. Thanks so much for your kind thoughts and comments. We WILL be backed up from this day forward!! Lesson learned :).
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- Ingredients for the graham cracker layer:
- 12 whole crackers graham crackers about 6.5 ounces, crushed (about 1 ½ cups crumbs)
- ½ cup 100g granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 ounces 113g butter, melted
- Ingredients for the cheesecake layer:
- 3 8- ounce packages 681g cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup 100g sugar
- 1 14- ounce 397gcan condensed milk, sweetened
- 4 large eggs beaten
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- ½ cup 113g sour cream
- Ingredients for the raspberry layer:
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 ½ tablespoons corn starch
- 1 12- ounce jar strawberry jam I use my Strawberry Freezer Jam, but your favorite strawberry jam will work fine.
- 3 cups 375g fresh raspberries
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Ingredients for the ganache layer:
- 1 cup 240ml heavy cream
- 12 ounces 340g good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips
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For the graham cracker layer:, preheat oven to 350˚F. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter and cinnamon in a medium size bowl and mix well. Press 2 ½ tablespoons into the bottom of 12 8-ounce mason jars.
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Place jars in a 9x13 inch cake pan and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven to cool slightly while preparing the batter.
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For the raspberry layer: combine orange juice and cornstarch in a medium size microwave-safe bowl. Stir till smooth. Add strawberry jam (yes, strawberries enhance the flavor of raspberries) and 1 cup raspberries, stir to combine. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, stirring half way through. Remove from microwave and stir in remaining 2 cups berries and vanilla. Smush whole berries slightly with the back of a spoon. Set mixture aside to cool then cover and refrigerate till ready to use.
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For the cheese cake layer: beat cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer until very fluffy. Add condensed milk, sour cream and vanilla. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed. Scrape sides of bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping bowl after each addition. Beat on high for two more minutes.
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Divide batter among prepared jars, about ½ cup in each jar and return jars to the 9x13-inch cake pan. Add enough water to pan to fill the pan ¾ full. Bake at 350˚F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow jars to cool to room temperature in pan.
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For the ganache layer: place cream in a medium size microwave safe bowl. Cook on high until cream is starting to simmer, about 3 minutes. Remove from microwave and immediately add chocolate chips. Allow mixture to sit for 1 minute, then stir slowly until thick, creamy and all chocolate is incorporated. (This take a few minutes, at first it will seem like it's not coming together but don't give up, it will!)
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Divide ganache between jars. Refrigerate for at least two hours.
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Divide raspberry sauce between the jars. Leave some space at the top. Screw lids on jars and store in refrigerator for up to 3 days. (To prepare further in advance, see instructions below regarding freezing.) Remove cheesecake from refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving for maximum flavor. Serve with long handled dessert spoons to allow guests to scoop up all the layers.
To prepare more than 3 days in advance, prepare through the step 7. Allow to cool then cover and freeze for up to 1 month. To thaw remove from freezer and allow to sit at room temperature for several hours till thawed. Add raspberry layer after thawing.
To make even layers, I use a wide-mouth funnel to add each one.
You can use any type of jam you like. Raspberry would work well as would peach or apricot or blackberry. I really love the combination of raspberries and strawberries.
Katy says
A number of comments mention the "apple pie mason desserts" .. as though they are available on this site (I do love this site, but the search function isn't the best). I have looked & looked & can't find the recipe for the apple pie jar desserts. Can you provide a pointer to it .. pretty please?
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Katy, I don't have an apple pie mason dessert recipe. I'm wondering if perhaps they used apple pie filling instead of the raspberry and ganache?
Hannah says
Hi, am I missing something? What is the baking temperature? And how come the directions don't include adding the sugar to the graham cracker crust?
In the middle of making these! Help!
Thanks!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks Hannah for noticing that. The recipe is corrected!
Debbie says
I made these previously and never noticed the missing sugar or temp...guess I just assumed, which can be dangerous in baking! I did a dry run for my daughter's baby shower using the large mason jars. Everyone at work loved them!! We all just found to be a lot to finish at one time...not that they were complaining too much, as dessert for later. For shower, I used 4 oz mason jars and they were the perfect size. Once again, everyone raved about how delicious they were. I am now making again as favors for a 50th anniversary party. Thanks for sharing this fabulous recipe!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks for your comment Debbie, so happy you enjoyed them! 4-ounce jars would be great!
Maureen says
I’d prefer the smaller version too I think.... what were the bake times for the 4 oz version?
Nancy B says
I have made this awesome recipe & froze it when we couldn't, use it fast enough. Was very suprised with results ! Will make again and freeze for use at a later date ????
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks Nancy, so happy you enjoyed it!
Tersha Marshall says
Cheesecake in oven now, I made full recipe, kept filling for 6 another day , lol. Off to make ganache now. Making apple pie mason jar desserts later
Chris Scheuer says
You're one busy baker Tersha!
Tersha Marshall says
I am attempting this tomorrow for a dinner for 6 people. Also making apple pie crumble in jars.
Could you give me. Measurements for only .6 jars pretty please
Chris Scheuer says
Tersha- Just halve all the measurements to make 6 jars. You could also make the whole batch as they freeze beautifully!
Carla says
I'd like to make this as a layered red, white and blueberry cheesecake for the 4th of July. Do you think I could bake it with a layer of blueberries between cheesecake batter?
Chris Scheuer says
I’m not sure it would come out in pretty layers if you baked it with a layer of blueberry. What might work better would be to do a layer of a blueberry sauce under the raspberry sauce, then add a nice dollop of whipped cream and a few fresh blueberries on top with a sprig of mint.
joepy says
I have 50 jars to serve this January 15, 2015 for baptism giveaways.
joepy says
I love cheesecake in a jar, they looks yummy.
Loran | Polder's Old World Market | Old World Kitchen says
These look so incredibly delicious! We are definitely trying this recipe! With a family of 14, we're always needing something new to serve for dessert 🙂
Emily says
Do you think frozen raspberries would work for this recipe?
Chris Scheuer says
Yes Emily, I think frozen berries would work fine.
Gayann says
....completely forgot to review the cheesecake in a mason jar...I took twelve of these cuties to a July 4th celebration....did six with blueberries, and six with cherry topping....JAWS DROPPED!!! The event was a grilling contest, and I was not part of the competition, but everyone there said my sweet dessert was the winner! Thanks Chris! I will be repeating this for Christmas!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks Gayann, we love those little cheesecakes too!
Val (from Alberta) says
Just found your site lately and loved your Pumpkin Bundt Cake. I will try this for company tomorrow night. I will reiterate a previous request. Even Canadian packages are not sized the same as in the U.S.A. so, could you would you give us quantities in grams or ounces (we can do the conversion) so we are sure of the amounts required. By the way, love the blog.
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Val, I've worked on this recipe and have done the conversions. Thanks for pointing that out, I will be working on some of the other recipes.
Sheila says
Love this post! I made the cheesecake jars last night and froze them.. I plan to add the toppings later for our July 4 gathering, but will do half with raspberry/strawberry and half with blueberry. Can't wait to share these with my family 🙂
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks for leaving a comment. Warning: they are dangerous to have in the house, even in the freezer. I know this from personal experience 🙂
Nicole says
Hi Chris!
This looks awsome! I would like to make it next weekend for my friends... but I am in Germany and it is not easy for me to know how much I have to take from the single ingedients. How much (in oz or gram) are three packages of cream cheese? 🙂 thank you for your help! Best wishes from Potsdam!!