Despite all of the rich, delicious flavor inherent in a cheesecake, if you were to name any negatives about a cheesecake the would be the following:
- It is hardly a healthy food.
- It can take a while to bake.
- It can be a bit fussy about cracking during the bake unless you break out a water bath.
Fortunately, no-bake cheesecake solves two of those drawbacks. By following this recipe, you will not only never need to worry about irregularly drying out your cheesecake in an oven but you will also have an indulgent treat in half the normal amount of time.
What about the crust?
No-bake means no-bake. Not only does this recipe entirely eschew the need for an oven, the only heat involved in this recipe would be when melting butter to be used in the crust. The genius of this recipe is that its crust hardens at the same time that its cheesecake filling firms up, meaning you also get to skip the practice of freezing a crust while making the actual cheesecake.
How do you make a cheesecake without baking it?
A normal cheesecake recipe calls for flour and eggs in order to get the cheesecake to set during the baking process. This recipe skips the inclusion of those ingredients in favor of whipped cream folded into the cream cheese to generate the amount of creaminess and volume you associate with cheesecake. Lastly, the inclusion of sour cream and lemon juice ensures that the cheesecake still has a bit of tang.
How about refrigeration?
Yes, you will still need a fridge to complete this recipe. Also know that skipping the chill time means that slicing it up is going to be frustrating. When it comes time to serve, your best bet will be to serve it straight cold from the fridge.
How about freezing it?
Yes, you can freeze it and keep it frozen for no more than a week. From there, you can either defrost it in your fridge or serve it straight.
Ingredients
The crust
- Graham crackers, crushed, 1 sleeve
- Butter, 5 tbsp, melted
- Sugar, 1/4 cup
- Salt, kosher, pinch
The Filling
- Cream, heavy, 1 cup
- Cream cheese, 16 oz (2 bricks), softened
- Cream, sour, 1/4 cup
- Sugar, powdered, 1 cup
- Vanilla extract, 1 tsp
- Juice, lemon, 1 tsp
- Salt, kosher, pinch</li>
Equipment
- Large bowls, 2
- Springform pan, 8″
- Hand mixer
- Spatula
- Cling-wrap
- Refrigerator
Directions
Use one large bowl to mix up all of your crust ingredients together.
Press the crust against the bottom and the interior sides of your pan.
Use the same large bowl and your hand mixer to beat heavy cream to stiff peaks, roughly five minutes.
In your other large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sour cream until they reach a smooth, blended consistency and then add the powdered sugar, vanilla, lemon juice and salt.
Use your spatula to fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mix and level out the top with said spatula.
Cover the pan with your cling-wrap and leave it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
Serve according to any of the methods recommended earlier in this article.
