No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake

A bright food graphic titled "NO-BAKE Strawberry Cheesecake Cups." In the center, a single layered cheesecake jar sits on a light pink surface next to a vintage silver spoon and fresh strawberries. Text on the side reads "Only 20 Minutes Prep!" and the website "yumsjunction.com" is at the bottom.

Hi everyone, I will tell you how to make no-bake strawberry cheesecake cups. Seriously, they are so good!

This recipe yields ten 3.5-ounce tumbler cups, making them the perfect size for parties or just a personal treat. The best part? You don’t even have to turn on the oven.

There are three different steps in order to make this recipe: first, we make our homemade strawberry jam sauce; second, we mix up the creamy cheesecake filling; and lastly, we prep the buttery graham cracker crust.

Why You’ll Love This

  • No Oven Required: Keeps your kitchen cool and your stress level low.
  • Perfectly Portioned: Making them in individual tumblers means no messy slicing later.
  • Customizable: You can adjust the sugar to your taste or swap fresh fruit for frozen.
  • Make-Ahead Friendly: These actually taste better after chilling in the fridge, so they are great for prepping the day before an event.

If you love this no-bake cheesecake vibe, also try my Easy Baklava Cheesecake Recipe for a nutty twist or these Viral Cherry Cheesecake Bars that disappear fast at parties!

What You’ll Need

Special Equipment

  • Electric hand mixer or stand mixer
  • 10 plastic dessert cups or jars (3.5 oz size)
  • Piping bags (or large Ziploc bags with corners snipped)
  • Blender or food processor
  • Small saucepan

The Graham Cracker Crust

  • 8 full sheets graham crackers (approx. 1 cup / 100g crumbs)
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

The Strawberry Jam Sauce

  • 1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries (to make ½ cup puree)
  • 1 tbsp granulated sugar (adjust to taste)
  • 4 drops red food coloring (optional)
  • Slurry1 ½ tsp cornstarch mixed with 3 tsp cold water

The Cheesecake Filling

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream, cold
  • 8 oz block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp sour cream (optional, for extra tang)

Fresh Fruit & Garnish

  • 7 medium strawberries, diced small (for the middle layer)
  • 5 medium strawberries, halved (for garnish)
  • Whipped cream and mint leaves

Let’s Get Mixing!

1. Make the Jam Sauce

Use fresh strawberries, but frozen works too! Blend approx. 1 cup strawberries until smooth (½ cup puree). Pour into a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the sugar and food coloring (if you want them to really pop!).

Lower heat to medium-low and stir in the cornstarch slurry. This secret ingredient helps thicken the sauce so it sits perfectly on top of your filling without bleeding everywhere. Cook 1–2 minutes until thickened, then cool completely.

2. Make the Crust

Blitz graham crackers in a processor until fine crumbs form. Pour in melted butter and pulse until the mixture resembles wet sand. Spoon about 1 tbsp of mixture into the bottom of each cup. Press down firmly to pack it.

3. Whip the Cream

In a cold bowl, whisk heavy cream on medium-high until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

Tip: The “no-bake” magic comes from temperature. Make sure your heavy cream is super cold!

4. Beat the Cheese

In a large bowl, beat the room temperature cream cheese and 1/3 cup sugar until creamy and smooth. You want zero lumps here. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and sour cream. Mix until combined.

5. Fold

Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until just combined.

Important: Don’t overmix at this stage, or you’ll deflate all that lovely air we just whipped in. Transfer the mix to a piping bag for easy assembly.

6. Assemble

This is the fun part! Pipe 2 tbsp cheesecake filling over the crust. Add 1 tsp diced fresh strawberriesDrizzle 2–3 tsp cooled jam sauce over the fruit.

7. Top & Chill

Pipe a final swirl of whipped cream on top. Garnish with a strawberry half and a mint leaf. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

Craving more easy desserts? If you love this, also try my One-Bowl Brownies with Crackly Tops—they’re fudgy, foolproof, and pair perfectly with cheesecake vibes!

FAQs

Can I make these ahead of time?

Yes, absolutely! In fact, they are even better the next day. The crust softens slightly and the filling sets up into a perfect mousse texture. You can make them 1-2 days in advance—just keep them covered in the fridge.

My cheesecake filling is too runny. What happened?

Usually, this happens if the cream cheese wasn’t beaten enough before adding liquids, or if the heavy whipping cream wasn’t whipped to stiff peaks. Make sure your heavy cream is cold when you whip it, and fold it gently into the cheese so you don’t lose that fluffiness!

Can I use store-bought strawberry jam instead of making the sauce?

You sure can! If you want to save time, just warm up some high-quality strawberry preserves in the microwave for 10 seconds to loosen it up, then spoon it in. It makes this recipe even faster.

Do I have to use Party City cups?

Nope! You can use small mason jars, glass tumblers, or even clear plastic shot glasses for mini versions. Just adjust the amount of filling per cup based on the size you use.

Super Easy No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Cups

Recipe by Sana ReiCourse: desertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: easy
Servings

10

cups
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

5

minutes
Calories

280

kcal
Chill time

15

minutes
Total time

50

minutes

Light, mousse-like cheesecake cups layered with homemade strawberry jam and a buttery graham cracker crust. Perfect for parties!

Ingredients

  • Equipment Needed
  • Hand mixer

  • 3.5oz dessert cups or jars

  • piping bags

  • saucepan.

  • Ingredients
  • 8 graham cracker sheets (creates ~1 cup/100g crumbs)

  • 4 tbsp (56g) unsalted butter, melted

  • 1 cup (150g) strawberries (for ½ cup puree)

  • 1 tbsp (12g) granulated sugar

  • 1.5 tsp cornstarch + 3 tsp water (slurry)

  • 8 oz (225g) full-fat cream cheese, room temp

  • 1/3 cup (65g) granulated sugar

  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

  • 1 tsp lemon juice

  • 2 tbsp sour cream (optional)

  • 1 cup (240ml) heavy whipping cream, cold

  • Additional strawberries for dicing and garnish

Directions

  • Make the Jam Sauce: Blend 1 cup strawberries until smooth (½ cup puree). Simmer with 1 tbsp sugar + food coloring (optional). Stir in cornstarch slurry. Cook 1–2 min until thick. Cool completely.
  • Make the Crust: Process graham crackers to crumbs. Add melted butter. 1 tbsp per cup bottom, press firm.
  • Whip the Cream: Cold bowl, medium-high speed to stiff peaks. Set aside.
  • Beat the Cheese: Room temp cream cheese + 1/3 cup sugar until no lumps. Add vanilla/lemon/sour cream.
  • Fold: Gently fold whipped cream into cheese mixture. Pipe into cups.
  • Assemble: ~2 tbsp filling over crust → 1 tsp diced strawberries → 2–3 tsp jam sauce.
  • Top & Chill: Whipped cream swirl, strawberry/mint garnish. Refrigerate until serving.

Notes

  • Chill Time: Best after 4+ hours in fridge for perfect mousse texture.

  • Quick Set: Freeze filling bowl 10 min if serving ASAP.

  • Sauce: Must be completely cold or it melts layers!

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *