No-Bake Mango Lime Cheesecake

 

To kick off the summer season (and the opening of his backyard swimming pool) my brother hosted a Memorial Day weekend barbecue for the family.  We normally divide and conquer when it comes to the menu and I was tasked with bringing dessert, comme d'habitude.  I wanted to make something light and fruity that didn't require too much effort.  Enter this No-Bake Mango Lime Cheesecake, which I'd initially seen on the NY Times Cooking Instagram account and immediately saved.  

 

 

Cheesecake itself can be quite heavy, especially the New York variety, but thankfully this one isn't since there are no eggs in the recipe.  The mango flavor comes from the use of canned, unsweetened purée, an ingredient not normally found in my pantry, but I was able to easily source some from Amazon.  I've heard you can also find it at Indian supermarkets. The citrus tones coming from the fresh lime juice and lime zest compliments the mango and cream cheese flavors beautifully.

 

The original recipe calls for a no-bake graham cracker crust but I decided to swap that out for one that you bake since I prefer a toasty texture instead.  Gelatin is used to set up the filling and glaze which makes it really nice to slice.  Often times I've found that when you use mangoes in desserts the fruit flavor gets lost in the shuffle; not with this cheesecake.  Since it wasn't baked the refreshing, tropical fruit flavor stays intact.   Really delicious!

Mackles'mores

 

It's rare for me to stray from my go-to chocolate chip cookie (Jacques Torres's recipe published in the New York Times), but I recently discovered a new take on the all-American classic that had me wondering if it was time to reconsider.  Over the years I've visited the Pacific Northwest many times but never had I been to Hello Robin Cookies.  

 

 

Until a few months ago I'd never even heard of the cookie shop until I was FaceTiming with my friend Evelyn who lives in Seattle.  While we were chatting her family just so happened to come home with a dozen cookies from the aforementioned bakery.  They're favorite cookie being Mackles'mores, chocolate chip dough studded with marshmallows, baked on a graham cracker and finally topped with a chocolate square.  Intrigued, I immediately went online to find out more. 

 

Luckily there were plenty of websites that not only published the Hello Robin recipe but also videos showing how it was made.  The only adjustment I made to the recipe was omitting the cinnamon.  I scooped out the dough into 2 tablespoon size balls and froze them to bake off later.  This method worked liked a dream because I found the frozen dough baked beautifully. 

 

 

After the baked cookies came out of the oven I topped them with a square of Dandelion Chocolate's Gola Rainforest chocolate.  With its hints of brownie, marshmallow and roasted almonds I thought the chocolate would pair beautifully with the Mackles'mores.   The chocolate chip cookie on its own is fantastic, nice and chewy with caramel hints, but the addition of the graham cracker really takes it over the top.  So good! It wants for nothing, except maybe a cold glass of milk.

Freeze-Dried Berry No-Bake Cheesecake

 

I love the idea of no-bake desserts especially when it's hot outside because the last thing I want to do is turn on an oven.  When I saw this post on Serious Eats for a no-bake cheesecake that used freeze-dried fruit I was definitely intrigued.  I've made an icebox cheesecake before but I liked this recipe from Stella Parks because it used the freeze-dried fruits to infuse a fruity flavor, but sans the additional moisture that fresh fruit would bring. 

 

 

Luckily I had a bag of freeze-dried raspberries from Trader Joe's sitting in my pantry along with the other cheesecake ingredients to make half the recipe.  The recipe scaled down easily to fit a 9x5" loaf pan.  Since I'm trying to limit the number of trips I make to the grocery store it's always a plus when I have everything on hand.   

 

 

I had a taste of the filling as I was making the cheesecake and the intense raspberry flavor from the freeze-dried fruit was incredible.  It was literally a berry explosion.  Is it strange that it reminded me of fruit-flavored Starburst candies?  As a self-professed lover of the color pink this cheesecake also appealed to me aesthetically.  I could easily picture this dessert gracing the table at a baby shower or birthday party.  

No-Bake Lime Cheesecake

When the temperature rises even I, as an avid baker, hesitate to turn on the oven.   Call me crazy, but when I was a kid growing up in the sweltering summers of California's San Joaquin Valley I used to bake all the time.  But mind you, I was wearing my bathing suit at the time - it was the only way I could tolerate the crazy hot weather.  These days you definitely won't catch me wearing that particular attire!

So when I was browsing the July/Aug 2017 issue of Martha Stewart Living the recipe for a No-Bake Key Lime Cheesecake immediately jumped out at me.   Even better, I had all the ingredients in my kitchen.  [Note: I used regular organic limes, not key limes.]  Graham cracker crusts are de rigueur for cheesecakes, but the twist with this recipe was it didn't require baking.  Instead you just pop it in the freezer for 15 minutes.  Genius!

The filling is super light, creamy and jam packed with lime flavor.  If you love citrus this cheesecake is right up your alley.  It's the perfect dessert for your next BBQ, but honestly I'd indulge in it for any occasion.   

Foolproof New York Cheesecake with Raspberries

A few of my co-workers ran the San Francisco marathon last month and to celebrate that tremendous accomplishment I offered to bring in a treat for the office.  One of the runners requested New York Cheesecake and I was more than happy to oblige, especially when I had a few blocks of cream cheese already in my fridge.   

I turned to my friends at Cook's Illustrated for their foolproof recipe and, as usual, it worked like a dream.  Unlike most cheesecake recipes, this one guarantees that you won't have any unsightly cracks on the surface of the baked cake.  I decided to top my cheesecake with fresh fruit, but trust me when I say that underneath those spirals of juicy raspberries there is not a fissure to be found.    

Raspberry Pistachio Cheesecake

I've made cheesecake before but felt compelled to make this particular one for purely superficial reasons.  I just loved how it looked in the picture.  The recipe comes from The SoNo Baking Company Cookbook.  The red raspberries were such a beautiful complement to the verdantly green pistachios.  Plus, pistachios are one of favorite nuts so that pretty much sealed the deal. 

Most cheesecakes are baked in a removable bottom pan - not this one.  Instead you use a regular cake pan so no need for aluminum foil and possibly leakage.  I admit I was a bit skeptical about how "easy" the baked cake would release from the pan but I followed the instructions and didn't have any issues.  Thank goodness!  

I want to wish one of my dearest friends (and mother to my goddaughter) a very Happy Birthday!  Gratulerer med dagen Gullet!!!

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares

Ever since my kitchen was out of commission for a few months last year I've been particularly interested in easy, no-bake recipes.  If the "big one" ever hits and I can't use my oven at least I can make these delicious treats.   Can you tell where my priorities lie...lol?

I asked a co-worker for some baking recommendations and they had fond memories of these No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares.  Chocolate - Peanut Butter - no-bake AND I've never made them before?  Ding, ding, ding...I sense a winner!  If you're like me and love the combo of chocolate and peanut butter these squares are right up your alley.    

S'mores Cupcakes

Did you know August 10 is National S'Mores Day?  I didn't, until now!  To celebrate this all-American camping treat of toasted marshmallows and chocolate sandwiched between graham crackers I made my own rendition, in the form of a cupcake.  Much easier to eat than the traditional s'more.

Break the cupcake down to its three main components and you'll see how easy they are to create: graham cracker crust, chocolate cake and marshmallow meringue frosting.   Oh, and don't forget the blow torch at the very end to achieve the toasty marshmallow effect. 

Chocolate Eclair Cake

I live in constant fear that my gas oven will die on me.  It's happened before and for a baking fanatic like me it was my worst nightmare realized.  If you saw my oven for yourself you'd sympathize.  So can you blame me for always being on the lookout for no-bake desserts? 

My sister sent me this recipe for a chocolate eclair cake from Cook's Country a while back.   I'd never heard of it before but apparently it was quite well-known.   The no-fuss version is to layer a mixture of instant vanilla pudding and Cool-Whip between graham crackers, top the whole thing with ready-made chocolate frosting and refrigerate for a few hours.  Cook's Country amped it up big time by making everything, but the graham crackers, from scratch.

The flavors of the cake were great but I wish the graham crackers had held up their shape more, especially when it came time to slice.  Not sure how the folks at Cook's Country were able to get such nice, clean cuts because my crackers were kind of mushy.  Maybe next time I won't let the cake chill overnight; perhaps a few hours will suffice.