A buttery biscuit base and a deliciously sweet filling, this no-bake strawberry cheesecake is adorned with freshly whipped cream and ripe strawberries. It is the ultimate dessert and centrepiece for tea time treats or special occasions.
Truth be told, growing up I was never a huge cheesecake eater. I’d always opt over it for something more chocolately and stodgy if there was an option (I am more than receptive to a slice of chocolate cake or two!).
Whether it is because this is my first cheesecake make, or simply because I adore strawberries, this creation is one I always compare subsequent bakes to! Undeniably, one of my most favourite makes (and food photography attempts) to date!
Whilst my love for this recipe is more than apparent, what actually makes it so special? I love how soft and creamy the filling is in comparison to more traditionally dense cheesecakes. This can be attributed to the fact I used low fat cream cheese (as dairy is a thickening agent). This, along with the deliciously light and fluffy cream, beautifully melted into the biscuit base which is light and chewy (I personally prefer a more chewy and cookie-like base to a crumbly one. However, any type of biscuit can be used to accommodate for your own preference. Ultimately, it is your creation – experiment and make it your own!).
This is a no-bake and no-egg cheesecake – this should hopefully appeal to more of you lazy bakers or those with dietary requirements. Unfortunately, however, I am afraid this is not a vegan make due to the inclusion of dairy and gelatin to help the cake set. But I have seen recipes whereby non-dairy cream cheese and coconut milk are used to achieve similar results! I have even seen ones made from cashews and almonds!
But how can I forget the pièce de résistance – the strawberries! The homemade purée is the perfect blend of sharp and sweet sensations. Poured within the area of the cream and strawberries, this delightfully added a pop of colour and more interest to my presentation. I love decorating my cakes with fruit – the halved strawberries tasted so fresh and added a bite to the otherwise melt-in-your-mouth filling.
I could continue to write paragraphs and paragraphs of self-appraisal for this make (I am very modest, I know!) but to reiterate, this cake was so easy and so gratifying to make! So let’s just jump into how I did it!
Strawberry Cheesecake
Ingredients
Cheesecake
- 200 g biscuits (I used chocolate chip cookies but digestives are another good option!)
- 75 g butter (Adjust as appropriate – I prefer using more butter in order to achieve a more chewy, and less crumbly, base.)
- 200 g cream cheese (Or vegan cream cheese.)
- 90 g sour cream / yoghurt / mascarpone (This can be substituted for more cream cheese but this makes for a creamier recipe.)
- 30 g sugar
- 30 g milk (Any type - dairy, soy, hazelnut, etc.)
- 6 g gelatin (Or 4 table spoons of corn starch.)
- 130 g strawberry purée
- 200 ml double cream (Or coconut cream.)
- 45 g icing sugar
- fresh strawberries to decorate
Strawberry purée
- 200 g strawberries
- 30 g sugar
- 10 g lemon juice
Instructions
- Line a cake tin with parchment paper.
- Crush the biscuits into fine crumbs and add the melted butter. Combine and press into the cake tin. (You can either leave aside or bake for 15minutes at 180C to harden the base. If doing so, please allow time for the base and tin to cool down.)
- In a large bowl, combine the sour cream and cream cheese. Add sugar and mix completely.
- In a separate bowl, combine the milk and gelatin. Mix this over a second bowl of hot water to dissolve any gelatin crystals. When done, add this to the cream cheese mix and combine until creamy. Set aside.
- To make the strawberry purée, add sugar and lemon juice to chopped strawberries in a saucepan. Bring to a high heat until the mixture is bubbling. Then blend this into a purée.
- Add the purée to the cheesecake batter and mix.
- In a separate bowl, whisk double cream and icing sugar together til thick. Combine the whipped cream with the cheesecake mix.
- Pour the cheesecake mix on top of the biscuit base in the cake tin. Freeze til set for an hour or two.
- Now this is the fun part – decorating! Do so as you please but for my cheesecake, I piped florets of double cream along the circumference of the cake (I used a 2D closed star piping tip). I then placed halved strawberries on top of the cream, and extra purée within the icing. (Other decorative suggestions may include drizzling melted white chocolate, using dried frozen strawberries or even making a strawberry jelly with the purée and gelatin. Either way, have fun with it!)
- Bon appétit.
Notes
Wow looks delicious, I’ll show it to my girlfriend
Sounds great – looking forward to seeing your recreation!