Everyone knows that some things are harder than others. Breakups, getting fired, loss of a loved one – these are all things that are widely accepted as difficult to deal with. Trying to figure out what to wear on a first date, finding an affordable apartment that allows dogs and getting through traffic at LAX – these are things I have personally found to be stressful in the last couple of years. Life is hard. And everyday brings new challenges. But I am a firm believer that making cheesecake should not be one of them.
You always hear people complaining about how difficult it is to make cheesecake. Tops cracking, sinking middles, over baking, under baking – the list goes on and on. And then, once you bake it, it has to sit in the oven to “cool” for an hour and a half before being transferred to the fridge for another 5 hours. I get it, a traditional cheesecake requires a LOT of time and patience – two things that I do not have a lot of these days. But I am here to tell you, this does NOT have to be the case.
This Raspberry Vanilla Cheesecake is truly something special – practically impossible to mess up. There is no baking required and the whole thing takes about 45 minutes to complete. Then, all you do is throw it in the freezer and carry on with your life as normal. How amazing is that?
The last time I made this, one of my friends told me it was the best cheesecake she ever tasted. And this is coming from a girl who doesn’t just go around handing out compliments for no reason. Her compliments have to be EARNED – so you know it’s good.
Now let’s talk about the freezing part for a second. You don’t HAVE to freeze it, but I do highly recommend it (especially if you are serving it on a warm day). Plus, freezing it allows you to make is up to TWO MONTHS in advance! So it is great if you are trying to bake or cook a lot of things for one event. Just make sure you cover it with plastic wrap, and wait to do the topping until right before you serve it. I like to take it out of the freezer and let it sit out while I prepare the whipped cream topping. This gives it the perfect consistency when served!
NO BAKE RASPBERRY VANILLA CHEESECAKE
Ingredients
CRUST
- 1 3/4 cups (175g) graham cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter, melted
RASPBERRY VANILLA FILLING
- 16 oz (452g) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup (125g) powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream
- 3/4 cup (180ml) heavy cream
- 6 oz raspberries, puréed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pink food coloring (optional)
TOPPING
- 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 6 oz raspberries

Instructions
FOR THE CRUST
- Prepare a 9x13" baking pan with non-stick spray.
- In a medium bowl, add melted butter to graham cracker crumbs. Mix until combined.
- Place mixture into the pan and pat down until it makes one even layer.
- Place in the freezer for 10 minutes before adding filling.
FOR THE FILLING
- In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, mix cream cheese until light a fluffy.
- Add powdered sugar. Mix until combined
- Add sour cream, heavy cream and vanilla extract. Mix until thick and creamy (about 5 minutes)
- Divide filling evenly into two separate bowls.
- Add about 5 tablespoons of purée to one bowl. Mix until combined. (If you want a brighter pink color, you can also add a few drops of pink food coloring).
- Pour half of the white filling into the pan. Spread evenly over the crust.
- Add a few spoonfuls of raspberry purée on top of the filling. Add the other half of the white filling and spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Add more purée and pour half of the pink raspberry filling into the pan. Spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Add one more layer of purée and pour the last part of the pink filling into the pan. Spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Cover the top of the pan with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for at least 2 hours.
TOPPING
- In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine heavy cream and powdered sugar.
- On high speed, whip until cream becomes light and fluffy.
- Remove cheesecake from pan and add whipped cream to the middle of the cheesecake. Spread the cream out evenly. (I do not spread the cream all the way to the edge. I leave about 1/2" of the pink filling showing)
- Add raspberries on top of the cream.