Mini Black Cherry and Chocolate Cheesecakes

Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners. Heat your oven to 325 ˚F.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, mix all of the crust ingredients until just mixed. Place a tablespoon of mixture in the bottom of each liner. Push the crust mix down with the back of your spoon to create a solid layer on the bottom, and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. Keep oven on.

Place cherries, sugar, and cornstarch in a sauce pan and cook medium heat until hot and bubbly. Add the nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne, dessert wine, mix to incorporate and set aside to cool to room temperature.

To make the cheesecake batter, mix the cream cheese, vanilla, sugar, and syrup until smooth. Next, mix in the eggs one at a time, letting each egg become fully incorporated before adding the next. Add the cocoa powder and mix until completely blended in.

To assemble, spoon about a tablespoon of cherry sauce on top of each crust. Fill each muffin cup with cheesecake batter up to the top of the tin. Bake for 25 minutes or until the tops are set and firm. Remove from the oven and let cool slowly for at least 3 and half hours, but overnight is best.

To serve, ladle some of the cherry sauce on a small 6 inch plate. Remove the cupcake liner from a mini cheesecake and place on the sauce crust side down. Top with a couple of the cherries from the sauce and serve paired with Heritage Dessert Wine.