cherry glazed black and white cheesecake

My pick for Martha Stewart Cupcake Club coincided with a party that I had to go to, which was a good thing. I would have eaten the whole batch of cheesecakes if they had been sitting around here at the house. 

The cakes are light, not-too-sweet, and perfectly portioned for those of us who are - ahem- hitting that age when excess calories aren't burned off the way they used to be. If you're one of the lucky ones,

then yes, please eat two. Or three. I like the simple glaze (jam that's heated up), but if you're pressed for time, the cheesecakes are great unadorned. The recipe was supposed to yield 18, I got 15 instead, and you can see that even then, they weren't filled all the way to the top.

Cherry-Glazed Black and White Cheesecakes
from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

For Crust
¾ cup crumbled chocolate wafer cookies, such as Nabisco Famous Wafers (about 18 cookies)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For Filling
1 pound cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup sour cream
Pinch of salt
¾ cup cherry (or your favorite flavor) jam

Make crust: Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Stir to combine chocolate cookie crumbs and 1 tablespoon plus 1 tablespoon sugar, then stir in melted butter. Press 1 tablespoon crumb mixture firmly in the bottom of each lined cup to form crust. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until set, about 7 minutes. Transer tins to wire racks to cool. Reduce oven temperature to 275ºF.

Make filling: With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add ½ cup sugar, followed by the vanilla. Beat until well combined, about 3 minutes. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, stopping often to scrape down sides of bowl. Beat in sour cream and salt until combined.

Pour batter into crust-lined cups, filling each almost to the very top. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until filling is set around edges but centers appear soft, 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate (in tins) at least 4 hours or overnight.

To finish, bring cheesecakes to room temperature and remove from tins. Heat jam in a saucepan until loose. Strain through a fine sieve to remove lumps. Spoon warm jam (about 1 teaspoon) onto each cheesecake. Serve immediately.