Let's face it - we all need a little sweetness sometimes and sometimes we need it fast. Enter a stunning no bake cheesecake crowned with fresh berries and dark chocolate that can be whipped together in a half hour and on the table later in the day. What's not to love?
I made my cheesecake with a combination of softened cream cheese and labneh - a thickened yogurt cheese with a delightful tanginess. If you don't want to do that or don't have access to labneh, you can easily just use 12 ounces of your favorite cream cheese instead. For the crust, you can use just about any kind of graham cracker crumbs, including a gluten free variety. I like the depth of flavor that comes with using dark brown sugar in the crust, but light brown sugar will work well too. As for the topping, you need not use dark chocolate and fresh berries …. but you'll get wows if you do!
I've used this recipe to make any number of cheesecakes, including setting them up in 1 cup shallow canning jars for an individual treat. If I opt to do that, I make a dessert table with all manner of toppings and let everyone build their own cheesecakes. This is a great idea for graduation parties, garden parties, weddings, etc. However you choose to enjoy this no bake delight, get ready to smile!
No Bake Fruit & Chocolate Cheesecake
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 16 full sheets) - I used half chocolate and half cinnamon graham crackers
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 4 ounces labneh (yogurt cheese), softened
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 teaspoons lemon juice
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 cups assorted fresh berries - I used strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries
- 1 cup dark chocolate
- 2 tablespoons dark chocolate shavings
To make the crust, place the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse until you have uniformly fine crumbs, but not a powder.
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar until well combined. Stir in the butter until well combined.
Press the mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9” tart pan. Pat it as evenly as possible. Freeze the crust while you make the filling.
To make the filling, combine the cream cheese, labneh (or more cream cheese if labneh is not available), vanilla, lemon juice, and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream to soft peaks, then gently stir into the cream cheese mixture until completely combined. Transfer the filling into the chilled crust, loosely cover, and chill 3 hours or up to a day.
To serve, remove the tart ring and slide a spatula under the tart to release it from the pan base. Transfer the tart to a serving platter and arrange berries, chocolate, and chocolate shavings on top.
- Yields: 12 servings
- Preparation Time: 30 minutes, plus chilling time