Let this no-bake Strawberry Lemonade Cheesecake add some sunshine to your day with layers of buttery biscuit crumbs, strawberry cheesecake & eggless lemon curd. The combination of citrus and berries is a classic for a reason!
My brother was visiting us over the Dusshera holidays and insisted on a strawberry cake that he had bookmarked on Instagram. I told him strawberries are not in season and also the baked New York style Cheesecake he had over summers had the beautiful strawberry sauce, so would he like to try something else? He was persistent and I thought why not experiment with the no-bake cheesecake in a glass/jar!
He was happy, my family & friends were super happy (they got a jar each) – mission accomplished! The combination of strawberries in the cheesecake with the lemon curd layer is a party in your mouth for sure! A strawberry lemonade that you can eat with a spoon 🙂
Let’s talk about all the layers.
Since there were no eggs at home due to festival season, it also gave a chance to experiment a recipe for eggless lemon curd. I was sceptical at first, but this curd hit all the right notes – tangy and luscious. It goes straight into my repertoire 🙂 You should try it too.
Another achievement in this recipe was using the readily available low-fat dairy cream pack (Amul blue packet with 25% fat) and whipping it up to soft peaks for the cheesecake. I am not a fan of the non-dairy whip toppings and try to avoid them as much as possible. They are definitely a saviour when frosting a cake that can stand Indian weather, but they taste artificial. Hence I use the dairy cream for my cheesecakes, mousse and ice creams. I stored the dairy cream overnight in the fridge, cut open the packet and removed only the thick part on top which had separated from the liquid overnight. I also chilled my bowl and beater before whipping. When I saw the soft peak I did my little happy dance!
The no-bake cheesecake contains no eggs and is light and airy thanks to the whipped cream. Your cream cheese should be softened at room temperature but not too soft that its almost melting. I added a touch of pink food colour to my strawberry puree (which I made using frozen strawberries). You can also adjust the sugar depending on how sweet your puree is.
The buttery biscuit crumb adds another layer of texture to the smooth and creamy cheesecake. Just use the store-bought graham crackers or digestive biscuits (homemade graham crackers are on my to-do list), crush them, add melted butter till you reach a consistency where when you press some crumbs together in your palm, the shape stays. That’s when you know it has enough butter.
Enough talk, let’s get to the recipe 🙂 This recipe makes 6 servings of glasses/jars. You have to make the strawberry puree and lemon curd in advance since they need time to cool down.
Strawberry Lemonade Cheesecake
Ingredients
Strawberry puree
- 100 g strawberries - fresh or frozen
- 50 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 30 ml water
- 2 tsp cornflour
Eggless Lemon Curd
- 45 ml fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon zest
- 75 g caster sugar
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 1/2 tbsp water
- 40 g condensed milk
- pinch salt
- 50 g unsalted butter
Biscuit Crumb Layer
- 140 g graham crackers or digestive biscuits - crushed
- 57 g unsalted butter - melted
Strawberry Cheesecake Layer
- 150 g whipping cream - chilled
- 100 g cream cheese - slightly softened at room temperature
- 40 g caster sugar
- 100 g fresh strawberries roughly chopped - optional for adding as a layer
Instructions
Strawberry Puree
- In a medium saucepan, add the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice. Cook at a low heat for few minutes.
- In a bowl, add the cornstarch and water and mix till you get a smooth paste and no lumps. Add the mixture to the saucepan and mix until combined. Let it cook for another 2-3 minutes till the mixture thickens to desired consistency.
- Switch off the heat and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Cover it and let it cool completely.
Eggless Lemon Curd
- In a small bowl, dissolve the cornflour in water to make a slurry. Keep aside.
- In a saucepan, add the lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar and mix well. Over low medium heat, cook the mixture for about a minute till the sugar dissolves. Add the cornflour slurry gradually and cook for another 2-3 minutes till the mixture thickens. Keep stirring to avoid any lumps. Switch off the heat and let the mixture cool down for about 5 minutes. Whisk in the condensed milk.
- Strain the mixture into a separate bowl so that no lumps remain. Add the butter little at a time and using an immersion blender (or whisk strongly) mix in the butter till it emulsifies till you reach a smooth homogenous consistency.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap/cling such that it’s touching the top to avoid skin to form as it cools. Refrigerate the curd for at least 1 hour before using. The curd will continue to thicken as it cools.
Biscuit Crumb Layer
- Crush your graham crackers/digestive biscuits into fine crumbs - I put them in a ziplock bag and bash them with a rolling pin. You can also use a food processor.
- Add the melted butter and mix well till its evenly moistened and you get a wet sand-like texture. A tip - take some crumbs in your hand and try squeezing it. If the shape stays, you're set. If it crumbles, you might need to add some more melted butter.
- Cover the bowl and keep it aside for later.
Strawberry Cheesecake
- With a stand mixer with paddle attachment or a hand mixer and a large bowl, beat the cream cheese on low speed for about a minute till it softens.
- Add the sugar and beat for couple minutes until smooth.
- Add the cooled strawberry puree and mix till its well combined. Add a drop of pink food colour (optional).
- Whip up your cream in a separate bowl - using a chilled beater, chilled bowl and chilled cream helps reach peaks and whips up easily.
- Gradually fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Do not mix for too long else you’ll deflate the mixture.
- Transfer the cheesecake mixture to a piping bag for easy assembly.
Assembling the cheesecake
- Add some biscuit crumbs to the bottom of your glass.
- Pipe in a layer of cheesecake over the crumbs.
- Drizzle in some lemon curd over the cheesecake. You can add chopped fresh strawberries here if you like.
- Repeat the layers - biscuit crumb, cheesecake, lemon curd.
- Decorate with some fresh strawberries and your strawberry lemonade cheesecake is ready to serve.
- These glasses/jars should be kept refrigerated and consumed within 3-4 days.
Notes
- Make the strawberry puree and lemon curd in advance since they need time to cool down.
- Your cream cheese should be softened at room temperature but not too soft that its almost melting.
- Make sure you chill your bowl, beater and cream before whipping to get best results.
