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No-bake cheesecake has all the great things about baked cheesecake, but you don’t have to bake it. This creamy, rich cheesecake filling does not require baking, and in most cases, the crust of the cheesecake does not need to be baked either. A delicious baked dessert that does not require the use of an oven!
4 Mistakes To Avoid When Making No-Bake Cheesecake
A no-bake cheesecake is one of those crazy-easy desserts that can be made in about 30 minutes with just a few ingredients, but as with many things that seem simple, one or two mistakes can completely ruin the cheesecake. We have compiled the most common mistakes people make when making no-bake cheesecakes and how to avoid them.
1. Baking the crust in the oven. Having a “no-bake” dessert means just that — you do not have to bake any part of it, including the cheesecake crust. As no-bake crusts have more fat in them, trying to bake a crumb crust for a no-bake cheesecake will result in a soggy crust. Using a baked crust (even one made with less butter) means the filling will ooze into the crust and cause it to become soggy.
Try this instead: The most important thing you should do when preparing the crumb crust is to chill it for at least 10 minutes before filling it, but even longer is better. No-bake crusts have a higher ratio of butter to crumbs in contrast with baked versions. As a result, they provide a more sturdy crust when refrigerated.
2. Allowing the filling to be mixed for longer than the recipe states.
In the past, I have tried mixing cheesecake filling in a food processor, after I had chilled the crust – because, well, I had to have the food processor out to make the crust anyway, so I thought it would make it even simpler to mix. Unfortunately, the next day I found a super-soft cheesecake awaiting me as a result of mixing the filling for longer than the recipe had called for.
Instead, in order to avoid breaking the emulsion that the cream cheese created, use a hand mixer or mix by hand and make sure that the cream cheese is at room temperature (more on that below).
3. Using cold cream cheese instead of room temperature cream cheese. It is important to have your cream cheese at room temperature before mixing it with the other ingredients. Trying to whip cold cream cheese into the filling will result in small lumps forming in the filling.
Instead, you might want to try this — Remove the cream cheese from the refrigerator at least an hour before you mix it. When you are in a rush to get the cheesecake finished and into your fridge, you can unwrap the cream cheese and cut it into cubes.
4. Rushing the chill. If you wish to slice the filling into sections, it needs to be chilled for at least four hours, but ideally overnight, to set into sliceable sections. In my opinion, freezing a cheesecake results in a crust and filling that are too hard to eat and cannot be easily enjoyed.
We suggest that you try this. You want your cheesecake to be shiny and to feel firm once it has set. Before cutting, you can put the cheesecake in the freezer for 30 minutes, but any longer freezing will result in a frozen cheesecake that lacks the same deliciously creamy texture as a cheesecake that has just been chilled.
Are No-Bake Cheesecakes Any Better Than Baked Cheesecakes?
The big advantage of unbaked cheesecakes is that they require less time to prepare than baked cheesecakes. The cheesecakes are also pretty fantastic in the middle of summer if you’re craving a slice of creamy cheesecake but don’t want to deal with a hot kitchen in the hot weather. There will be no oven to heat your kitchen up in summer. Even so, one type of cheesecake isn’t necessarily better than the other type of cheesecake since each of these types of cheesecake have their own unique textures.
There is nothing better than a creamy, delicious cheesecake to enjoy, either baked or unbaked. An unbaked cheesecake is very light and fluffy, almost like a souffle, compared to a baked cheesecake. The texture of baked cheesecakes is firm, similar to the texture of custard.
Ingredients Of A Cheesecake
Many cheesecake recipes call for cream cheese, white sugar, and heavy whipping cream, which are the most common ingredients needed to make them, whether unbaked or baked.
Regardless of the type of cheesecake, all of them usually have one thing in common: a graham cracker crust, which is made by combining plain graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Occasionally, a little bit of sugar will be added in order to add a little sweetness to it.
It is also possible to make a cheesecake crust from chocolate graham cracker crumbs or even cookie crumbs in order to add more flavor to the cheesecake.
Generally speaking, in order to make a classic baked cheesecake, eggs must be used. Because raw eggs can cause food poisoning, no-bake recipes will not include raw eggs since food poisoning is associated with raw eggs.
Some, but not all, no bake cheesecake recipes call for sweetened condensed milk to create a fluffy cheesecake filling with good structure. There are some people who opt to use Cool Whip as a substitute for heavy whipping cream when they are in a pinch.
Is It Okay To Put A Cheesecake In The Freezer So That It Sets?
If you want the cheesecake filling to firm up completely, you need to refrigerate it for a minimum of 6 to 8 hours. If you skip this step, the cheesecake will end up with a much more mousse like texture. Naturally, what we are trying to achieve here is to create a cheesecake filling that is similar to a baked cheesecake filling.
In the event that your cheesecake is still not firm enough after chilling, you can freeze it to help set it up. However, you should be careful not to freeze it too long unwrapped because this can cause the texture to become gritty.
How Long Will Homemade Cheesecake Last Before It Spoils?
A cheesecake will stay fresh for up to six days if it is well covered and kept in the refrigerator.
The cheesecake should keep well for three to four months if it is wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen.