No-Bake Mini Cheesecakes with a Hidden Strawberry Surprise

I really enjoy cheesecake, but I'm going to be honest, only about 50 percent of my cheesecakes turn out wonderfully delicious and the other 50 percent turn out okay. I didn't want just an okay cheesecake today, I wanted one that was magically delicious no matter what I do and I figured out the answer.

No-Bake.

That is it. How could I mess up something I don't have to bake?

The answer, you can't.

Instead, we can make it better!

Makes About: 12 - 14 Miniature Cheesecakes

Takes About: 1 hours (6+ hours for cooling - best left for over night)

Difficulty: 1 out of 5

Prep:

No prep needed at this time!

Ingredients:

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

12-14 small strawberries - no taller than 1 inch

150 grams dark chocolate - grated

120 grams heavy whipping cream

Cheesecake Crust

4 ounces chocolate cookies (example: graham crackers or butter cookies )

4 tablespoons unsalted butter - melted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling

12 ounce cream cheese - softened

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup greek yogurt

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping

Sliced Strawberries

Instructions:

Step 1 - Prepare the Strawberries

Wash the strawberries and cut the tops off.

Dry the strawberries well and then set aside until needed.

Step 2 - Prepare the Chocolate

Grate the 150 grams of chocolate and place them in a shallow bowl and set aside.

In a small pot, warm the 130 grams of heavy whipping cream on low heat.

Don't make the whipping cream super hat, just until it starts to steam slightly.

Once the whipping cream is hot, pour it over the chocolate and leave it alone without stirring for about 15-30 seconds.

After the 15-30 seconds have passed, take a spoon and mix until the mixture is completely combined.

If the chocolate has not completely melted, place the chocolate mixture over a double boiler and mix constantly until the chocolate has completely melted.

Once the mixture is homogeneous, collect your 12-14 small prepared strawberries.

Step 3 - Cover the Strawberries in Chocolate

If you have a better way of doing this, you should go for it. This part is not super specific in how the strawberries need to be covered, but just that they are completely covered in chocolate.

Below, I have explained how I covered my strawberries in chocolate.

Cover a large plate with a piece of parchment paper and grab 1 spoon and 2 toothpicks.

Drop 1 strawberry into the chocolate mixture and using the spoon, roll the strawberry around until it is completely covered.

Using the two toothpicks, stick them into each side of the strawberry to pick the it up out of the chocolate and transfer it to the parchment covered plate.

Repeat this step until all the strawberries have been covered in chocolate.

Once complete, place the strawberries into the fridge until they have hardened - about 30-60 minutes.

Step 4 - Make the Crust

In whatever technique you like (rolling pin, your hands, or food processor), crush your 4 ounces of cookies until super crumbly.

Melt the 4 tablespoons of butter and pour it over the crushed cookie and also add the 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Mix until all the crumbs are wet.

Step 5 - Fill the Muffin Tin

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (170 degrees F).

I know, I said no-bake, but we do need to bake the crust for a moment.

Place paper liners into a muffin pan and spoon 2 teaspoons of the crust into each of the muffin liners.

Using a flat bottomed small item or glass, press the crust tightly down.

The crusts should be flat and compact.

If your flat bottomed item keeps sticking to the crusts, use a paper towel to wipe down the bottom after you press one crust liner down.

Pop the crusts into the oven for about 15 minutes.

Once baked, pull the crusts out, turn off the oven, and place the crusts in an area where they can cool completely inside the muffin tin.

Step 6 - Cream the Cream Cheese

In a large bowl, add 12 ounce if softened cream cheese, 1/3 cup of granulated sugar, and 1/4 cup of greek yogurt.

And the mix on low/medium speed until light and fluffy - about 3-5 minutes.

Step 7 - Whip the Whipping Cream

In a separate medium bowl, whip the 1/2 cup of whipping cream until it reaches stiff peeks - about 3-5 minutes.

Step 8 - Fold Together In Filling

Spoon the whipped whipping cream into the bowl with the cream cheese and then add the 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Using a spatula, carefully fold the ingredients together until everything is well combined.

Step 9 - Prepare the Muffin Tin to be Filled

Take the chocolate covered strawberries out of the fridge and confirm that they are firm.

If they are not firm, place them back into the fridge until they are.

Check also that the muffin tin is completely cooled. If not, wait until it is.

Once firm, place one chocolate covered strawberry into each muffin paper.

The reason we want to use small strawberries, is so they don't peak over the muffin tin too much and can be well covered by our cheesecake filling.

Step 10 - Fill in the Cheesecake

Using a piping bag or a small spoon, spoon the cheesecake batter between the strawberry and paper liner, filling in to the best of your ability.

Once all of the cheesecakes are filled, tap the tin on the counter to knock the filling down into all the cracks.

Using the remaining cheesecake, fill in any holes that had been created and make sure the tops of your chocolate covered strawberries are covered.

Step 11 - Refrigerate and Wait

Once the cheesecakes are filled, place them in the fridge for 5+ hours or over night.

Step 12 - Enjoy!

After all the wait and the cheesecakes have set (they will still be slightly soft) pull them out of the tins and slowly unwrap them from the wrappers and place them on a plate, so you can sit down and enjoy each and every one of them!

Make sure to eat the cheesecakes within a few days of making them.