Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits
Hi friends! Oh my lord it is hot – or at least, it was when I was writing and pre-scheduling this post, which I suppose was sometime last week for you. In real-time, I’m currently en route to Bologna, likely thinking about the aperitivo I’ll be enjoying later today, but I had the forethought to write up this post before leaving. In case you too have recently found yourself thinking about how nice an ice-bath for your feet would be, allow me to introduce you to these Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits. Aka, the no-bake, quick-to-make, chilled dessert of our humid summer dreams. Honestly, any dessert that stops me from turning on the oven these days – today for me, last week for you – feels like a win.
Don’t worry, I’m going to stop with the time warping now because my brain is literally struggling to keep up with itself. RE these parfaits: there has actually been a rendition of these on the blog since May 2013, but the post needed a ginormous overhaul. The photos literally looked like they’d been lifted from a murder scene in a horror film, and the recipe was just straight-up convoluted. This is the new and improved version – version 2.0, if you will.
Shall we?
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
quick links
what are strawberry cheesecake parfaits?
I hear you. Honestly, I’m not too sure if these would technically be classed as a parfait, but Google is giving me conflicted answers. I think for sure parfait would be the right term if I’d served them in a tall glass of some sort, which, naturally, we don’t own any of. I was partially tempted to call them deconstructed cheesecakes, but parfaits just sound so much more professional. Either way, here’s the breakdown:
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
• buttery biscuit crumbs. Nothing unusual here – just digestives, butter, and a little sugar all whizzed up together in the food processor. So easy, and so delightfully buttery!
• creamy cheesecake filling. It’s cheesecake, but without any of the baking or chilling or waiting that normally comes with it. Ours is light and swoopy, lusciously smooth, and sweetened just enough to be perfectly moreish. I’ve left the sugar quantity open ended in the recipe below, depending on the natural sweetness of your berries; I used 35g and it was perfect!
• macerated strawberries. Gorgeous summer strawberries, chopped up and lightly tossed with some lemon juice and sugar. They’re a little tart and a little sweet – is there anything better?
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
why make strawberry cheesecake parfaits?
There are really only two answers to this question, so I’ll keep it brief:
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
• they’re no-bake. A no-bake dessert in the depth of summer is ideal – and not just if you have a faulty oven seal like we do! Also, this might just be me, but whipping up a dessert that requires no heating or baking makes me feel like an actual magician. It’s rather gratifying work!
• they’re super quick to make! I’ve guess-timated 30-minutes for the official recipe below, but in reality it’s probably closer to 20-minutes, all in. And going from zero to cheesecake parfaits within 20-minutes is a very good skill to have up your sleeve, wouldn’t you say?
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
how to make strawberry cheesecake parfaits
It’s almost laughably easy to make these summer cuties. Here’s the lowdown:
strawberry cheesecake parfaits
• first, mix together the strawberries with the sugar & lemon. They only need about 15 to 20-minutes to macerate, so if you do them first then they’ll be ready just as you’re about to serve.
• then, blitz together the biscuit ingredients in the food processor. They should be finely ground and moist with butter. Mmm, butter.
• lastly, whisk together all but the icing sugar for the cheesecake filling. I used a trusty ol’ hand whisk; no need to dirty the stand-mixer, or even the electric whisk. When everything’s looking smooth and luscious, gradually whisk in the icing sugar and stir until luscious once more.
• to serve, sprinkle the biscuit crumbs into bowls, top with the cheesecake mix, and finish off with a generous pile of macerated strawberries + syrupy juice. Ta-dah!
the end of the description
That’s all there is to it! I just know you’re going to love them!
Happy no-baking! xo
how to make
Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits
INGREDIENTS
for the strawberries
- 400 g ripe strawberries, cut into small chunks
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp caster sugar
for the base
- 140 g digestive biscuits
- 28 g salted butter, melted
- 13 g caster sugar
for the cheesecake
- 250 g cream cheese, softened to room temp
- 1.5 tbsp full-fat milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 25-50 g icing sugar, sifted*
DIRECTIONS
for the strawberries
- In a medium bowl, lightly toss the diced strawberries with the lemon juice and the sugar. Cover, and set aside.
for the crust
- In the food processor, blitz together all of the ingredients until everything is homogenous and slightly dampened. Set aside.
for the cheesecake filling
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and luscious. Gradually add the icing sugar to the bowl and whisk to combine. The finished product should be smooth and perfectly swoopy.
to assemble
- Evenly divide the biscuit crumbs between four serving dishes (I've tried plates, single serving ramekins + oversized bowls; personally I prefer the bowls because you have more room for strawberries, but you decide!).
- Evenly divide the cheesecake filling over the four biscuit bases – dollop/swoop/quenelle, whatever! Lastly, generously pile the macerated strawberries atop the cheesecake filling, making sure to drizzle the juices evenly across the four dishes. Serve immediately and enjoy!
NOTES
- * anywhere between 25-50g of icing sugar is a base guide for how sweet you’d like your filling to be. I had exceptionally ripe, and therefore sweet, strawberries and so only used 35g of icing sugar. Taste it as you go and see how you get on! If you use closer to 50g, the filling will have a stiffer set, but will still be delicious.
- to make ahead: store the biscuit crumbs in an airtight bag in the fridge until assembling. Prepare the cheesecake filling and store covered in the fridge until assembling. Macerate the strawberries and store in the fridge for maximum 6-hours before serving, as they soften with time.
- leftover biscuit crumbs keep extremely well in an airtight bag in the freezer! Very handy to have on standby in case of a dessert emergency.
Did you make this recipe? I’d love to know! Please leave a comment & a rating below, or tag me on Instagram @imvcki. Thank you so much for supporting Passionate Baker!
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