Cooking With Carlee: No Bake Lemon Cheesecake

This super creamy no bake lemon cheesecake has the perfect balance of sweet and tart. The bright lemon sings and you never have to turn on your oven, making it the perfect summer treat!

This post is sponsored in conjunction with #summerdessertweek. As always, all opinions are honest and my own.

first slice being removed from lemon no bake cheesecake with swirls of cream cheese whipped cream and cherries

When life gives you lemons, make lemon curd. Then turn that lemon curd into cheesecake! I am pretty sure that's how the old saying goes. Whether or not that's the old adage is really irrelevant because no bake lemon cheesecake is good regardless!

Get ready to rock your senses with goodness. No bake lemon cheesecake may just become your new summer dessert go to.

graham cracker crust in analon springform pan

The base is a classic graham cracker crust. Though you could easily switch that up with gingersnaps, golden Oreos, nilla wafers or anything that you like.

The filling is where you want to really start paying attention. It is light and fluffy without any cool whip or whipped topping.

mixer bowl of no bake cheesecake with lemon curd

It gets just enough sweetness from a can of sweetened condensed milk and a generous helping of sweet and tart lemon curd. I used my homemade microwave lemon curd because it is so cheap and easy to make. You could definitely sub in a store bought lemon curd if you'd rather.

The resulting texture is smooth and creamy. It is solid enough to be cut into nice slices and soft enough to almost melt in your mouth.

beater full of no bake lemon cheesecake filling

Between the tang of the cream cheese and the sweet and sour lemon curd, you'll find the sweetness is far from overwhelming. Instead the flavors just dance over your tongue.

Now it would be good just like that, but a little extra lemon curd on top really dives home the lemon flavor. It gives it a little extra punch.

running a knife around the outside of the cheesecake to release it from the pan

Again, you could easily stop there. However if you've come this far you might as well go all the way!

So whip up a batch of vanilla cream cheese whipped cream and pipe it on top. Do swirls, rosettes, shells or whatever strikes your fancy!

piping swirls of cream cheese whipped cream on top of lemon curd topped no bake cheesecake

Then top the whole thing with some fresh fruit. I had some beautiful and delicious cherries, so I went with those.

Raspberries, blueberries or strawberries would be delicious options as well. You could always do some of each and consider it a fruit salad! 😉

lemon no bake cheesecake topped with whipped cream swirls and fresh cherries

Tips and tricks for making a no bake lemon cheesecake

Make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature. It will beat smooth more quickly.

Make sure you get your cream cheese completely smooth before you add any other ingredients. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater a couple of times. If the cream cheese isn't smooth before you add everything else, it will be nearly impossible to get it there later.

Make sure your lemon curd is completely cooled before you add it. Make it a day or two ahead and chill it if you can.

Fork going in for first bite of lemon no bake cheesecake slice

Give the cheesecake quite a long time to set before serving. 4 hours is a minimum, overnight is better.

If you absolutely can't wait, you can place it in the freezer for an hour or two.

Save the fresh fruit garnish for closer to serving time of you can. That way it won't macerate and bleed down your pretty piping.

fork of lemon no bake cheesecake ready to eat

More fun no bake cheesecake ideas

Be sure to enter the giveaway and check out the other yummy recipes below!

no bake lemon cheesecake, lemon cheesecake, lemon cheesecake with cherries, no cook lemon cheesecake

cheesecake, desserts

American

Yield: 16 servings

Author: Cooking With Carlee

No Bake Lemon Cheesecake

This super creamy no bake lemon cheesecake has the perfect balance of sweet and tart. The bright lemon sings and you never have to turn on your oven, making it the perfect summer treat!

prep time: 4 H & 20 Mcook time: total time: 4 H & 20 M

ingredients:

Crust

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 Tablespoons sugar
7 Tablespoons melted butter

No Bake Lemon Cheesecake Filling

24 ounces cream cheese, softened
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
1 cup lemon curd
1 teaspoon lemon extract
optional garnishes: additional lemon curd, cream cheese whipped cream and fresh fruit

instructions:

How to cook No Bake Lemon Cheesecake

In a 9 inch springform pan, mix together graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter. Use your fingers or the bottom of a measuring cup to press the crumbs firmly into an even layer of crust. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Beat cream cheese until completely smooth, scraping sides of bowl and beaters several times during the process.
Once there are no lumps, slowly drizzle in the sweetened condensed milk while still beating the cream cheese.
Fold in the lemon curd.
Smooth over graham cracker crust.
Spread a layer of lemon curd over the cheesecake if desired.
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
Run a plastic knife around the edge of the cheesecake before releasing the outside of the springform pan.
Pipe cream cheese whipped cream around the border and top with fresh fruit if desired.