No Bake Cheesecake With Strawberry Topping

No bake cheesecake with strawberry topping is an easy dessert that suits any occasion and most importantly you don’t need to bake it!!! how good is that!!! it has 3 components, a crunchy and semi-sweet biscuit base, with a creamy and rich cream cheese middle topped with bursting strawberries that adds sweet and sour notes.

Now I have to admit, I am not a big fan of cheesecake, I always preferred a vanilla cake or chocolate cake, growing up in Sri Lanka, the cheesecake was quite famous in top-end pastry shops, not in normal pastry shops. and definitely growing up literally in Hilton Colombo and then doing my apprenticeship in Hilton, I always remembered that they had a pastry cabinet filled with gorgeous cakes, and the cheesecake always caught my eye.

The cheesecake sold at Hilton always had a berry compote, topped with whipped cream design around it. And I don’t find that combination anywhere else. Many cheesecake recipes, calls for adding a tiny bit of strawberry compote or sauce, but I wanted it to be filled with the compote on the top, to give that extra punch of flavour and beauty.

I am not going to lie, but I had to make this cheesecake several times, to nail the texture and flavour. My brother who lives 1 km away was definitely over tasting my cheesecake over and over again he is my guinea pig for many of my sweet recipes.

I encountered a few issues along the way. and I resolved them, and I am sure you all are going to come across these issues so I will add a few tips and tricks to nail the perfect cheesecake

No bake cheese cake with no gelatine?

Cheesecake needs to be set in order to cut neat slices. in this recipe, there is no gelatine. The reason why gelatine is added is to set the cream cheese, but you actually don’t need it, as it will be set without any gelatine, I personally don’t like the gelatine added as the texture is quite hard and dense, and I prefer the no gelatine version.

Why cheesecake does not set

My recipe should definitely set, if the cheesecake has not set, it is largely because the cream required in the recipe is not beaten to a stiff peak, so make sure it is beaten until stiff peaks are formed. But there is a fine line between stiff peaks and over beating, if you overbeat it will curdle, which is not good at all.

How to stiffen a cheesecake

So without gelatine how do you stiffen a cheesecake. well cheesecake itself is a thick mixture, so naturally, it should be hard, and when you rest it overnight in the fridge it will harden up.

What kind of pan to use for a cheesecake

The most important question is the pan that needs to be used for the cheesecake especially if you want to present it well. you can definitely use any pan if you are not going to unmold the cheesecake from its pan. but if you want to present it beautifully, you need to use a springform pan (the one that has the side and bottom that comes off)

Why is the biscuit base sticking to the pan

Ok, there is a 99.99% chance that the biscuit base will be stuck to the pan. You will only know that once you rested overnight and try to unmould it. rather than taking the chances, line the baking pan with baking paper on the bottom and on the side and go one extra step and spray with canola oil spray or canola oil on the baking paper, so it will remove without breaking.

How do you decorate the top of a cheesecake?

Make my easy peasy strawberry or any berry compote and use it as a topping, its not only beautiful, it adds additional flavour and adds a depth of fruitiness to the overall dish.

How to make a strawberry sauce that goes over the cheese cake?

My easy peasy strawberry compote only requires 5 ingredients that need to be heated in a pot and thicken with corn starch. beware as you might end up eating the compote with toast or yogurt, it is sooo yummy. And most importantly you can either use frozen strawberries or fresh strawberries.

What type of cream cheese to use for the no bake cheesecake?

Normally I would not recommend a brand, but in this dish, the distinct flavour is the cream cheese, so make sure to use a good quality one. I use Philadelphia cream cheese and its one of the best out there in the market.

What biscuit to use instead of graham crackers in a cheesecake

Traditionally this is a dish originated from the USA, which sells graham crackers. but for the rest of us, who cannot access graham crackers, Marie biscuit is the best alternative.

How to cut cheesecake slices

Cheesecake needs to be neatly cut, thus make sure you spray water to the knife and slice it. clean the knife each time you slice the cheesecake, this way you will have beautiful slices.