These Easy No-Bake Cheesecake Cups with layers of creamy cheesecake filling, a cookie crumb crust and fresh fruit topping are a quick, versatile, and delicious dessert that everyone will love!
Don’t you just love a patriotic red, white and blue dessert for a summer holiday barbecue or cook-out? I sure do!
I also love simple, so these cheesecake cups are on the menu this Memorial Day – but they’re awesome any time of the year!
The unofficial start to summer is finally here! Woo-hoo!! This winter seemed to go on foreverrrr, didn’t it?
But sunshine and brighter days are ahead of us, my friends – so let’s talk about another thing that makes us happy… dessert (more specifically, cheesecake)!
There’s no doubt that cheesecake is super scrumptious, but it definitely can be time-consuming (and a little tricky) to make. So when you’re in the mood for some cheesecake but not in the mood for any of the fuss, these quick and easy cheesecake cups have it all!
And you don’t even have to turn on the oven!
And you can have them made in about 20 minutes flat!
And you can make them ahead of time!
And they’re SOOO GOOD!!!
Are you sold yet???
BUT WAIT… THERE’S MORE! This is also a super versatile dessert! There are so many flavor combinations you could come up with by changing one or all of the three components.
The simplest, of course, is changing the fruit topping. You can use any fresh fruit you like (my all-time favorite with cheesecake is pineapple…holy YUM!). Canned fruit works too (drain it first). You could even use a prepared pie filling or topping or jam or preserves.
Then there’s the creamy filling. Add different flavored extracts (almond or coconut would be delicious) or you could add some lemon, lime or orange zest. Add some cocoa powder and turn it into a chocolate cheesecake filling. Or how about some peanut butter?
And don’t forget the crust. Use traditional graham crackers or any crunchy cookie that you could easily crush into crumbs – chocolate wafers, Oreos, chocolate chip, shortbread, peanut butter, just to name a few.
Lots and lots of possibilities!!
INGREDIENTS YOU NEED:
- Butter
- Vanilla wafer cookies
- Cream cheese
- Sugar
- Heavy cream
- Vanilla extract
- Cool Whip or Truwhip
- Fresh strawberries
- Fresh blueberries
HERE’S A QUICK LOOK AT HOW TO MAKE EASY NO-BAKE CHEESECAKE CUPS:
TIPS & TIDBITS:
- Use block-style cream cheese and let it soften before you start making the filling. I let mine sit at room temperature for about an hour, and that always works for me.
- Use either an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer to make the filling. This will make the quickest and easiest work of getting it nice and smooth. Of course, if you don’t have an electric mixer, you could always beat it by hand (give those arm muscles a workout!).
- If you don’t have a food processor to crush the cookies, just put them in a plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin or a measuring cup.
- If not serving immediately, cover and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to enjoy.
- When making these in advance, don’t make them too far in advance. After a while, the fruit will start to release some of its juice and the filling will begin to make the crust soggy. I recommend making these just a few hours ahead and definitely no longer than a day.
- If you would rather a smaller serving size, you could divide everything between 8 4-ounce mason jars for mini-cups!
Have a great Memorial Day weekend, everyone!
Let’s all be sure to take a few moments to remember and honor the brave men and women of our military who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving to protect us, our country and our freedom!
I hope you try this recipe for Easy No-Bake Cheesecake Cups and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
MORE RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE:
- Pound Cake With Marsala Mixed Berries
- Vanilla Almond Pound Cake
- Chocolate Zucchini Cake
- Easy Homemade Cocoa Brownies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easy No-Bake Cheesecake Cups
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 30 vanilla wafer cookies, enough to make about 1 cup of crumbs, add more or less as needed
- 8 ounces cream cheese (block-style), softened
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup Cool Whip or Truwhip, thawed
- fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced (I use 1 large strawberry per cup)
- fresh blueberries, I use about 8 per cup
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat; remove from heat.
- Place the vanilla wafer cookies in a food processor and pulse to make fine crumbs. You want to end up with about 1 cup of crumbs; 30 wafers should get you there, but you may need a few more or less depending on the brand you buy. If you don't have a food processor, put the cookies in a Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin, measuring cup, pot, etc.
- Add the cookie crumbs to the melted butter and stir until well-combined; set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract with an electric hand mixer until smooth (or you could use an electric stand mixer). If you don't have an electric mixer, you can beat it by hand.
- Fold in the Cool Whip (or Truwhip) until well-combined.
- Evenly divide the cookie crumb mixture among 4 small glasses (I use 12-ounce glasses).
- Evenly divide the cream cheese mixture among the glasses.
- Top each with sliced strawberries and blueberries.
- Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- When making these in advance, don’t make them too far in advance. After a while, the fruit will start to release some of its juice and the filling will begin to make the crust soggy. I recommend making these just a few hours ahead and definitely no longer than a day.
- These cheesecake cups are very versatile! You can change things up by varying the fruit topping, adding flavored extracts, citrus zest, cocoa, peanut butter, etc. to the filling, or you could use graham crackers or other cookies for the crust.
- If you would rather a smaller serving size, you could divide everything between 8 4-ounce mason jars for mini-cups!
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