3 Ingredient No Bake Cheesecake
My 3-ingredient no-bake cheesecake is insanely easy, creamy and delicious! The filling for this cheesecake is really just 3 ingredients and it’s made with a premade graham cracker crust. Swoonworthy!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- It’s sweet, creamy and delicious, as a cheesecake should be, but you don’t have to bake it.
- It takes 15 minutes to mix up the ingredients and then chill.
- It tastes every bit as good as a baked cheesecake with eggs in the ingredients, but there are none.
- It’s a quick, easy and delicious dessert when you’re short on time.
I’m not the first person to come up with a no-bake cheesecake. There are some different variations of the 3-ingredient no-bake cheesecake out there, but mine is based off of my no-bake peanut butter pie.
I thought, what if I remove the peanut butter from my peanut butter pie? I bet that would make a darn good no-bake cheesecake. And I was so right. My son couldn’t get enough of this cake. It’s really amazing.
Ingredients
- premade 9 oz graham cracker crust or homemade 9-inch graham cracker crust
- cream cheese, softened
- powdered sugar
- Cool Whip topping or whipped cream
- optional: strawberry sauce, fresh berries and whipped cream
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Step 1: Add softened cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer or to a large mixing bowl to use a hand mixer.
Step 2: Using a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese on medium until creamy and no lumps appear, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
Step 3: Add powdered sugar and beat until combined and creamy.
Step 4: Add Cool Whip topping or whipped cream to the bowl with the cream cheese and powdered sugar.
Step 5: With the paddle attachment, mix on low until completely combined. Scrape down the bowl when needed. (You can also use a silicone or rubber spatula to fold the cream into the mixture.)
Step 6: Pour mixture into graham cracker shell and spread evenly.
Step 7: If using a premade, store-bought pie shell, there is a plastic lid you can invert and use as a lid. Replace lid. If using a homemade graham cracker crust, cover with plastic wrap or place into a cake carrier. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Step 8: Slice and enjoy!
Hint: The cheesecake comes out best when you refrigerate it overnight.
Variations
- Strawberry Cheesecake (as pictured above, with berries): Add about 1/2-3/4 cup of strawberry sauce to the top of the cheesecake and garnish with strawberries. You could also add a large spoonful of strawberry sauce to each piece after slicing instead of adding it to the whole cake.
- Chocolate Chip Cheesecake: Fold in 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips at the end. You can also use a chocolate graham cracker premade crust or a recipe from scratch. I also like to use an Oreo crust.
- Easy Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake: Scoop about 1/4 cup of raspberry jam or seedless raspberry jam into a small bowl and microwave for 10-15 seconds. Stir in 1-2 teaspoons of water or lemon juice. After you spread your cheesecake filling into the crust, add small spoonfuls of the jam over the top. Use a knife to gently swirl together, not mixing too much. Refrigerate as above.
Equipment
- stand mixer or hand mixer with a large mixing bowl
- silicone/rubber spatula
- large spoon
- measuring cups or scale
- offset icing spatula or butter knife
- sharp knife
- cake server
Storage
No-bake cheesecake can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or can be frozen for up to 2 months wrapped in plastic wrap and stored inside an airtight container or sealed freezer bag.
Related
This no-bake cheesecake is very similar to my no-bake peanut butter pie. If you like peanut butter, I highly recommend it!
For other cheesecake recipes, visit my cheesecake page.
3-Ingredient No-Bake Cheesecake
- stand mixer or hand mixer with a large mixing bowl
- silicone/rubber spatula
- large spoon
- measuring cups or scale
- offset icing spatula or butter knife
- sharp knife
- cake server
- 9 oz premade graham cracker crust or homemade 9-inch graham cracker crust
- 16 ounces (452g) cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup (84g) powdered sugar
- 8 oz (226g) Cool Whip topping (defrosted) or whipped cream 3 cups
- optional: strawberry sauce, fresh berries and whipped cream for garnish
- Add softened cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer or to a large mixing bowl to use a hand mixer.
- Using a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese on medium until creamy and no lumps appear, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
- Add powdered sugar and beat until combined and creamy.
- Add Cool Whip topping or whipped cream to the bowl with the cream cheese and powdered sugar.
- With the paddle attachment, mix on low until completely combined. Scrape down the bowl when needed. (You can also use a silicone or rubber spatula to fold the cream into the mixture.)
- Pour mixture into graham cracker shell and spread evenly.
- If using a premade, store-bought pie shell, there is a plastic lid you can invert and use as a lid. Replace lid. If using a homemade graham cracker crust, cover with plastic wrap or place into a cake carrier. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours.
- Slice and enjoy!
This 3-ingredient no-bake cheesecake can be made plain or you can add the strawberry sauce, fresh berries or some whipped cream. I love cheesecake, so I’m just as happy eating it plain but I think it’s so much prettier the way I made it here.
Let me know if you tried this recipe. I love to hear from you!
Sweet regards,
Michele
