Instant Pot Cheesecake Bites with Andes Mints

Creamy chocolate and cool mint go well together, making Andes Mints so popular. They are good for clearing the pallet, especially after eating Italian dishes. I’ve always been fond of the flavor combination and my husband loves his cheesecake. That makes these instant pot cheesecake bites with Andes mints all the more enjoyable to make for this St. Patrick’s Day. They aren’t just for the day when we celebrate our Irish heritage. You could make these anytime for a special treat, dessert, or party food. Making them in the instant pot really speeds up the process, too!  I hope you’ll enjoy making these. Plus we have a couple of other recipes that are great St. Patrick’s Day desserts: Saint Patrick’s Day Cake Pops & St. Patty’s Day Wafers Dipped in White Chocolate.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• 3/4 cups of chocolate animal cracker crumbs
• 8 oz. package of cream cheese
• 3 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon of mint extract
• 3 drops of green food coloring
• 3/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 15 Andes mints

Instructions:

1. Combine chocolate animal cracker crumbs and melted butter until crumbs are completely coated
2. Spoon cookie crumbs into greased instant pot egg molds. Fill molds halfway and then compress crumbs until packed tight.
   
3. Whisk softened cream cheese and sugar until mixed smooth. Once smooth, mix in egg, mint extract, and food coloring, mix until completely combined and the desired color is achieved.
   
4. Using a small spoon or small cookie scoop, spoon mixture in egg mold filling on top of cooking crumbs. Tap egg mold to make sure filling has no air pockets
   
5. Cover egg mold with a layer of paper towel and a layer of foil.
6. Place trivet in the instant pot with 1 cup of water and place egg mold on the trivet. Then place the tall trivet over the first egg mold and place the second egg mold on the tall trivet. If you don’t have a tall trivet, you can cook one mold at a time.
   
7. Cook on high pressure for 4 minutes then let it naturally release pressure for 10 minutes.
8. Once finished, remove egg mold and let sit in the refrigerator for 4 hours.
9. Chop Andes mints into bits.
10. Remove cheesecake poppers from the mold. Melt chocolate chips and drizzle over cheesecake poppers. Place Andes mint bits over the instant pot cheesecake bites before the chocolate hardens.