Excellent for an easy no bake cheesecake recipe. I absolutely love this homemade dessert, and even have a craving for it every now and then. It's so easy to make too. You will see what I am talking about once you taste this. More homemade cake recipes at the bottom of the page...
You may use any pie filling for this recipe - I usually use strawberry. If you don't want the canned filling - just slice strawberries and cover with sugar. Let sit for a few hours to produce juice. Use this homemade topping instead.
EASY NO BAKE CHEESECAKE RECIPE
Crust 1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/4 cup butter, softened 1/4 cup white sugar
Filling 2 (8oz) pkg cream cheese, at room temperature 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted 1 cup heavy cream, whipped 1 TBS pure vanilla extract 1-1/2 cups strawberry pie filling (or any other filling of your choice)
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees. (This is just for the crust)
Mix together graham cracker crumbs, margarine, and sugar in a bowl until well incorporated and crumbly. Press into a pie plate, going up the sides as much as possible. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes; cool completely.
Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, heavy whipping cream and vanilla in a bowl until smooth and spreadable. Pour cream cheese into prepared crust. Smooth the top with a spatula, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 to 3 hours.
Spread the cherry (strawberry, blueberry, etc) filling over the top, and refrigerate until serving. Easy to make isn't it? No hot kitchen. Hands down, I prefer this easy no bake cheesecake recipe to the baked cheesecake version - any day.
VANILLA NO BAKE CHEESECAKE RECIPE
Filling 2 pkgs cream cheese, softened 1 cup powdered sugar 1 cup heavy cream, whipped 2 TBS pure vanilla extract
Crust 2 cups crushed vanilla wafers 2 tablespoons white sugar 2/3 cup walnut pieces 6 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
For the crust: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. You will need one buttered, nine-inch deep-dish pie pan either a light-colored or glass pan.
Crush the vanilla wafers. Place the crushed wafers in a deep-dish pan. Place the nuts in a food processor or blender and pulse just long enough to chop the nuts finely, not into a paste. Scrape the nuts into the pie pan. Add the sugar. Stir to combine.
Add the melted butter and combine well. Press the mixture into the buttered pie pan making certain that the crust is evenly thick.
Bake for 8 minutes or until it just starts to brown on the edges. Do not over bake. A light-colored or glass pan will absorb less heat than a dark one and help ensure against over baking. Cool.
For the filling: Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, heavy whipping cream and vanilla in a bowl until smooth and spreadable. Pour cream cheese into prepared crust. Smooth the top with a spatula, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 to 3 hours.
TIPS TO Make PERFECT Chocolate Covered Strawberries
SECRET #1 There are many way to prepare these strawberries, but I am going to give you my easy methods. When you are melting the chocolate over a double boiler, don't let the water touch the bottom of your upper pan. Heat until only 1/2 of the chocolate is melted, then remove from heat and stir gently until it is all melted.
The chocolate should actually be cool or tepid to the touch. If it's hot, chances are it will seize up and thicken. If it does that, no amount of heating or stirring will fix it.
If you don't have a double-boiler, use a saucepan - bring the water to a boil, and then use a stainless steel bowl to rest in the saucepan to melt the chocolate.
SECRET #2 Strawberries are grown with many pesticides, so rinse the strawberries first with a veggie wash, and let them drain on paper towels until they were thoroughly dry so the chocolate would adhere properly. Any moisture would have interfered with the chocolate adhering.
SECRET #3 Spike the strawberries! Fill a syringe with a sweet white dessert wine, and slowly inject the wine into the strawberries from near the stem (after you've done the dipping in chocolate.) You want to inject enough wine to saturate the berries, but watch not to add too much otherwise they end up becoming runny. These are always a hit when I bring them to dinner parties.
SECRET #4 Pierce the strawberries on the stem side with a toothpick. Holding the strawberry by the toothpick, dip into the chocolate mixture. Turn the strawberries upside down and insert the toothpick into Styrofoam for the chocolate to cool.
A delicious twist on my favorite red velvet cake recipe. Yum.
HOMEMADE RED VELVET CHEESECAKE RECIPE
Ingredients
CRUST: 1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/4 cup butter, melted 1-1/2 TBS white sugar shaved chocolate bar
CHEESECAKE: 3 (8oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened 1-1/2 cups white sugar 4 eggs, beaten 3 TBS cocoa, unsweetened 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup buttermilk* 1 TBS pure vanilla extract 1 tsp white vinegar 2 (1oz) bottles of red food coloring
TOPPING: 3 oz cream cheese, softened 1/4 cup butter, softened 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted 2 tsp pure vanilla extract shaved chocolate bar, for garnish
Directions
PREHEAT oven to 325 degrees. The cake is baked with a water bath to prevent cracking. Wrap a large pan with foil (big enough for the spring form pan to fit in).
Mix the graham crackers and sugar together and add the melted butter. Mix with a fork and press into a 9 inch spring form pan. Sprinkle the bottom of the crust with chocolate shavings from a candy bar.
Beat 3 packages of cream cheese with 1-1/2 cups white sugar until fluffy. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into the prepared spring form pan and place in the center of the foil covered pan. Fill with water.
Bake for 10 minutes and lower oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake for 70-80 minutes. The cheesecake is done when the center is firm. Cool completely on a wire rack.
TOPPING: Beat the cream cheese with the butter until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and mix until smooth and creamy. Spread evenly over the top of the cooled cheesecake. Garnish with the shaved chocolate bar.
*Buttermilk: Place 1-1/2 tsp vinegar or lemon juice in 1/2 measuring cup and fill remainder with milk. Wait 15 minutes, stir, and it's ready for this recipe.