Mommy Lifesaver - No-bake Strawberry Cheesecake

Mommylicious

It was my husband's birthday last weekend and (like always) I could not zero in on the kind of cake I wanted to make for him. I always bake him a cake for his birthday, no matter what the situation. Last year, when I was still very pregnant, it was relatively easier for me to get things done. But this year I have an 11 month old, and let me just tell you my hands are full. It is just incredibly hard to get anything done around the house, let alone do something fancy like bake a cake.

So, I had to come up with a quick fix. A no bake cheesecake it is, I thought. After using my son's nap times to research on the kind of cheesecakes, I finally zeroed in on a very simple yet crazy delicious Strawberry Cheesecake 2 days before the birthday. That evening I made a quick trip to the grocery store. 

Let me first tell you how it is a Mommy Lifesaver. Firstly, it requires no baking. Yes, that means no eggs, no flour and no checking in on the oven. All you do is mix everything up and shove it in the refrigerator. Secondly, it takes a few ingredients and very little time (I am talking 30-45 minutes) to get the cheesecake done. I made this cake when son went to bed the night before the birthday. 

To give you some perspective, we just moved into our new house exactly a week back, there is an 11 month old cruising around the house bumping into and banging everything, it is my husband's birthday and I am expecting a few guests. This No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake just made me look in-control and put-together (despite the craziness). It is so delicious that everyone tasting it will only rave about your culinary and mommy skills and how you managed to pull this cake off with a toddler sticking to your legs in the kitchen (true story!).
Now, getting down to the recipe. I found this recipe from the Philadelphia Cream-cheese makers. They literally, saved the day. However, you can use any brand of cream-cheese. This blog post is not sponsored by any brand and I paid for all my ingredients (in case you were wondering).

A little side-note - you would want to make this cake at least 12 hours in advance, as it needs to set in the refrigerator. 

Ingredients (for a 9 inch spring-form pan):

Graham Crackers - 1 pack
Butter - 1/3 cup (melted) and 1/2 cup (room temp.)
Fresh Strawberries - 4 cups
Cream Cheese - 2 8oz packs (room temp.)
Heavy Whipping Cream - 2 cups
Orange Juice - 1/2 cup
Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
Confectioner's sugar - 2.5 cups
Unflavored Gelatin - 2 envelopes

Method:

Crust - Ground the Graham crackers in a food processor and mix in the melted butter. Line a 9 inch Spring-form pan with parchment/wax paper on the bottom and the sides. Pour in the graham cracker-mix at the bottom and press it hard in place with a flat-bottom cup. 
I recommend using a spring-form pan for cheesecakes, it just makes life easier. 

Keep this in the refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the cake.

Cake- Keeping aside about 6 strawberries for garnish, slice up the remaining strawberries vertically. Use the largest slices to line up the sides of the spring-form pan over the wax paper. Finely chop up the smaller bits of strawberry slices and keep aside. 

Heat up the Gelatin in a small pan over low heat while you mix up the rest of the ingredients. Stir occasionally. 

Use a stand or hand mixer to mix the following - cream cheese (room temp.), 2 cups sugar, 1 cup whipping cream, orange juice, lemon juice, gelatin and chopped strawberries. 

Pour this mixture into the spring-form pan.

You could leave it at this and just garnish with a few fresh strawberries.

Or you could just add a whipped cream frosting, which is incredible easy to make but ridiculously yummy.

Frosting - Use an electric hand mixer to mix 1 cup of whipping cream, 1/2 cup of confectioner's sugar, 1/2 cup room temperature butter (a few drops of vanilla essence - optional). Make sure this is beaten till it is light and fluffy.
A little tip - never microwave the frozen butter, you will never get the right texture for the frosting. Use soft room temperature butter for the perfect fluffy frosting.

Spread this yummy goodness over the cream-cheese mixture on the spring-form pan and garnish with strawberries on top. Decorate the cake with fresh strawberries whichever way you want. 

Keep the cake in the refrigerator overnight or at least 6 to 8 hours before serving. 

Before serving, take off the side of the spring-form pan. Slowly remove the wax paper from the sides and a gorgeous Strawberry Cheesecake will be staring at you, ready to be cut. 

I will confess I tasted the batter while making it (only to check the sugar I promise). So I kind of knew how yummy this No bake Strawberry Cheesecake was getting. 

It completely wow-ed my husband and my guests. They did not mind the huge slices I gave them. This no bake cheesecake is of a supreme kind that you can make on special occasions. It is perfect for birthdays. No one will ever know how pressed you are for time and how easy this is when they have this cheesecake. A must-try this mommy says. 

Are you looking for a healthy smash cake recipe for your baby's first birthday? Find it here.

Find a delicious one pot pasta recipe here, totally mommy-approved.