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Fresh raspberries and bright lemon are folded into this No-Bake Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake for an easy dessert everyone will love.
Are you guys loving no-bake desserts as much as I am right now?
Basically, if it’s not no-bake, or a s’more, I’m not making it right because it’s freaking hot and I’m basically doing whatever I can to not turn on my oven.
In fact, I’ve been using our Breville Smart Oven more than ever because it doesn’t heat up my kitchen like our regular oven does. If you’re looking into a countertop oven, I can’t recommend the Breville enough! It’s pricy, but totally worth the investment. And it make a perfect slice of toast, just in case you’re a toast kind of person.
Okay, countertop appliances aside, let’s talk no-bake cheesecake.
LIGHT AND FLUFFY NO-BAKE CHEESECAKE
I have made so many no-bake cheesecakes over the years – No-Bake Nutella Cheesecake, No-Bake Strawberry Lemonade Cheesecakes, and No-Bake Frozen Cheesecake, just to name a few – that it might come as a surprise that there was a time before I had ever made a no-bake cheesecake.
That’s right. A girl doesn’t forget her first no-bake cheesecake recipe, and this No-Bake Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake was mine.
I whipped up the recipe after encountering a sale on Cool Whip while meandering the aisles of the grocery store and deciding to come up with some recipes to use it.
I keep frozen whipped topping on hand all the time now for everything from Eclair Cake to Banana Cream Pie Fluff, but that was one of my first times using it in a recipe. I just had a feeling it would be perfect for making a super light and fluffy cheesecake filling.
What can I say? I was right. Whipped topping gets a lot of haters, but it’s pretty hard to beat when it comes to adding a light, fluffy texture to desserts.
HOW TO MAKE NO-BAKE RASPBERRY LEMON CHEESECAKE
Start by making the graham cracker crust and pressing it into the bottom of individual ramekins. You can use whatever size serving dishes you like for these cheesecakes.
If you want to make this into one big cheesecake, you totally can! Just use a 9-inch graham cracker crust.
To make the filling, start by mixing the sugar and lemon zest together until the sugar becomes super fragrant. This will make sure that lemon flavor and fragrance gets evenly distributed throughout the cheesecake.
Add the softened cream cheese and mix until smooth, then fold in the thawed whipped topping, followed by the slightly mashed raspberries.
Add the filling to your serving dishes – either the individual ramekins or the 9-inch crust – and chill!
Before serving, I like to garnish my cheesecakes with fresh raspberries and a sprig of mint, but you could also top them with more whipped topping or lemon zest.
CAN I USE WHIPPED CREAM INSTEAD OF WHIPPED TOPPING?
Whenever I share a no-bake cheesecake recipe, someone will ask if they can use homemade whipped cream instead of frozen whipped topping.
Whipped topping has stabilizers in it that help it hold up when folded into recipes like this one. Since homemade whipped cream does not have these same stabilizers, I can’t promise that it will hold up as well in the recipe.There are some methods for making stabilized whipped cream (or copycat Cool Whip) at home. I have not used the homemade stuff in any of my no-bake cheesecake recipes, so I don’t know how well it would work here.
No-Bake Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake
Equipment
Ingredients
For the crust
- ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
For the filling
- ⅔ cup sugar
- zest of 2 lemons
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 8 ounces frozen whipped topping thawed
- 1 cup fresh raspberries slightly mashed with a fork
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs and 1 tablespoon of sugar and melted butter.
- Evenly divide the crumbs between your individual serving dishes and press into the bottoms of the dishes to form a crust layer.
- In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and lemon zest until the sugar becomes moist and fragrant.
- Add cream cheese and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add lemon juice and vanilla mixing to combine.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in the whipped topping until well blended, then fold in the raspberries.
- Evenly pipe or spoon the filling into individual serving dishes.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
- If desired, garnish with fresh raspberries and a sprig of fresh mint.
Notes
- If you make this into one pie, simply use pour the cream cheese mixture into a 9-inch graham cracker crust and chill for 3 hours before serving.
- This recipe tastes really delicious with blueberries and strawberries as well. Play around with different fruit combinations to create a wide range of flavors.
- I have not tried this recipe using fresh whipped cream, so I cannot attest to the results.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made this today after seeing it posted on facebook. I used light cream cheese and light Cool Whip, along with raspberries I had frozen from last summer. it was light, delicious and full of yummy flavor! I will definitely be making this one again!
Is the the bowl you’re referring to??
http://www.pier1.com/Mini-Dessert-Bowls—Set-of-24/2469556,default,pd.html#q=dessert-bowls&start=1
Yes, those are the bowls.
-Jamie
love this recipe! I featured it on my new blog because i love it so much. it’s in the baby stages but so far so good! come check it out sometime!! http://sugarandspicemakeslifenice.blogspot.com/2014/01/25-sweet-treats-that-wont-break-bank.html
Ashley-
Thank you so much! Have a great day and good luck! It looks great so far!
-Jamie
Love your desserts! And I was wondering where you got these dessert bowls from. I have something similar but it’s pretty small.
Roks,
They are pretty small. They’re from Pier 1.
– Jamie
Hi Jamie,
I just wanted to say hi! I just came across your site when I was trying to find out more about toasting nuts and I absolutely love it! The recipes, the how-to’s, the photo’s… it’s all amazing!
A few months ago, I started a food blog of my own and it is sites like yours that both inspire and intimidate me!
xoxo
Nila
It looks delicious! But about the sugar, it is normal sugar or what kind of sugar did you use?
Anna-
Normal “White granulated sugar” for the recipe. Thanks for stopping in! Have a great day and thank you for following MBA!
-Jamie
I love this dessert, I’ve made it several times and my boyfriend LOVES it and constantly asks for it ;-) Just wondering why I can never get it to be firm… or does it even get firm enough to be a pie? I usually just put it in individual servings topped with raspberries and a small sliver or lemon, looks great, but was thinking to maybe make this for Thanksgiving and a pie might be best. Thanks!
I just made these for my sister’s baby shower. I used short plastic wine glasses for the indivdual cheesecakes. I got about 8 servings out of it. It was a very easy recipe and they are delicious!
That’s so nice to hear! I’m thrilled that you enjoyed the cheesecakes! Thank you so much for coming back to share and have a wonderful day!
Jamie
Those look amazing. Where did you get those serving bowls? I’ve been looking for something like them online , but have had no success.
Hi Tessa,
Those are from Pier 1.
-Jamie
Wow… made these for a baby shower this weekend and everyone loved them! I put them in an 8 oz half-pint wide mouth mason jar. Very pretty & delicious!
I have a party for my name day in two days and I loved your recipe so much that I decided to try it in three variations: with raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. Thank you so much!
I am making these for my sister’s baby shower also! How many servings were you able to make from the recipe?