No-Bake Peppermint Cheesecake – Recipe from Yummiest Food Cookbook (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep a no-bake cheesecake firm? ›

For a sturdy no-bake cheesecake with beautifully neat slices, refrigerate for at least 12 hours. This makes for a great make-ahead dessert! Do not freeze the cheesecake to set it. The filling won't slice and you'll lose the velvet texture!

Yes, you can freeze a no-bake cheesecake to hasten its setting time. However, you should only keep it in the freezer for approximately an hour since if you keep it there for too long, it might freeze solid.

That means you need to ensure both the heavy cream and the cream cheese are fridge-cold. If your ingredients are too warm, you'll end up with a soupy mixture that will never set, no matter how long you leave it in the fridge.

You can line your tin with parchment paper or an acetate strip to make them easier to get out – but that is up to you! I find using a springform tin is MUCH better because it automatically makes it easier to get the cheesecake out of the tin – but the bases of these tins can be a little annoying.

Thus, cheesecake is perishable. Even if your recipe is traditional in that you bake your cheesecake (no-bake recipes don't contain eggs), once it has had a chance to cool outside the oven (about an hour), it must go back in the fridge.

If you find that the crumb base is still too hard, then you could slightly reduce the amount of butter used, though we would advise caution on this as the base could become too crumbly instead.

Try this: The cheesecake should be shiny and firm to the touch when set. You can move the cheesecake to the fridge for 30 minutes before slicing, but freezing any longer will make for a frozen cheesecake without the same delightfully creamy texture as the just-refrigerated version.

No-bake cheesecake needs time to firm up, and speeding up the process by placing it in the freezer won't help. Instead, play by the rules and refrigerate for 6 hours or ideally overnight. You can also freeze cheesecake (see instructions below); it makes a great make-ahead dessert!

If your filling is really runny, you can add a little bit of gelatin or cornstarch to thicken it up. Gelatin is great for adding firmness, while cornstarch can thicken the mixture without making it too firm.

A cheesecake can become grainy due to overbeating the eggs, which incorporates too much air and changes the texture. If the cream cheese is not fully softened before mixing, it can result in a grainy texture. Using room temperature ingredients can help. So, your cheesecake is a weird grainy texture – almost like sand?

Why put cornstarch in cheesecake? ›

Flour or cornstarch is sometimes included in cheesecake recipes to preventing cracks. If you find that you always have problems with cracking and your cheesecake recipe does not call for any flour or cornstarch, it's ok to experiment and add some cornstarch (one to two tablespoons) to the batter when you add the sugar.

They both are great in their own way. It all narrows down to your personal preferences. If you enjoy dense and velvety cake, a baked cheesecake is the one for you. Or if you crave some light and airy dessert post-dinner, go for the no-bake one.

However, a deep dish or standard pie pan can be used as an alternative. Normally I'd recommend using a 9-inch square pan instead of a springform pan. If you'd like to actually remove the dessert from the pan, be sure to line it with parchment paper.

A bit of alcohol or acid can help set your cheesecake a bit firmer, as well as making sure that you use full fat cream cheese (the cheaper stuff can be a bit looser than something like philly too) as well as double cream which you whip quite firm.

After the chill time, if your cheesecake still isn't firm enough, you can freeze it to help it set up. Be careful not to freeze it too long unwrapped though; it can cause the texture to become gritty.

It also needs to spend four hours, or ideally overnight, in the fridge before slicing and eating to ensure the perfect velvety smooth texture.