Reindeer Cherry Cheesecake Tarts

By carol gorman

Celebrate Christmas with our festive Reindeer Cherry Cheesecake Tarts. They taste as good as they look and these mini tarts are deceptively simple to make - just what you want out of a festive dessert recipe!

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Ingredients

• 300 g (1/2 of 600-g pkg.) frozen sweet cherries, thawed, juice reserved and divided
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar, divided
• 1 pkg. (85 g) Jell-O Cherry Jelly Powder
• 1 Tbsp. corn starch
• 1 pkg. (250 g) Philadelphia Brick Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 cup thawed Cool Whip Whipped Topping, divided
• 2 pkg. (120 g each) mini graham cracker pie crusts (12 crusts)
• 24 miniature pretzel twists
• 2 oz. Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted
• 24 Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 12 maraschino cherries, well drained

Details

Servings 12
Preparation time 30mins
Adapted from kraftcanada.com

Preparation

Step 1

Add enough water to reserved cherry juice to measure 1/2 cup; pour into medium saucepan. Add 1/2 cup sugar, dry jelly powder and corn starch; mix well. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally; cook and stir 2 min. Cool 20 min.

Beat cream cheese and remaining sugar in large bowl with mixer until blended. Stir in 1/4 cup Cool Whip; spread onto bottoms of pie crusts. Top with sweet cherries and jelly glaze. Refrigerate 3 hours.

Meanwhile, cover baking sheet with parchment. Use fork to dip pretzels, 1 at a time, into chocolate; holding pretzel over bowl, gently shake off excess chocolate. Place on prepared baking sheet. Refrigerate 15 min. or until ready to use.

Decorate tops of tarts with pretzels and remaining ingredients to resemble reindeer as shown in photo.