Mini No Bake Orange Cheesecakes (Printable Version)
Zesty individual orange cheesecakes with creamy citrus filling and a crunchy biscuit base. No oven needed.
# Ingredient List:
→ Crust
01 - 4.2 oz digestive biscuits or graham crackers
02 - 2 oz unsalted butter, melted
→ Cheesecake Filling
03 - 8.8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
04 - 2.1 oz powdered sugar
05 - 1/2 cup heavy cream, cold
06 - 2 tsp orange zest (from 1 large orange)
07 - 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
08 - 1 tsp vanilla extract
→ Topping
09 - Segments from 1 orange
10 - Zest of 1/2 orange
11 - Fresh mint leaves
# How to Make:
01 - Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners or use silicone molds.
02 - Pulse the biscuits or graham crackers in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Drizzle in the melted butter and pulse until the mixture is evenly moistened.
03 - Divide the crumb mixture evenly among the prepared liners, pressing down firmly with the back of a spoon or a small glass to create a compact, even base. Refrigerate while preparing the filling.
04 - In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar together using a hand mixer or stand mixer until smooth and creamy.
05 - In a separate chilled bowl, whip the cold heavy cream to stiff peaks.
06 - Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Add the orange zest, fresh orange juice, and vanilla extract, folding until smooth and uniformly combined.
07 - Spoon or pipe the filling over the chilled bases, dividing it evenly. Smooth the tops with a spatula.
08 - Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or until the cheesecakes are fully set and firm to the touch.
09 - Before serving, top each mini cheesecake with orange segments, a sprinkle of orange zest, and fresh mint leaves as desired.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- No oven required, which means you can make dessert without turning your kitchen into a sauna.
- The orange zest perfumes the whole filling and makes people think you did something far more complicated than stirring things together.
02 -
- Underwhipped cream will make the filling dense and heavy rather than light so stop just past soft peaks and push to stiff.
- If your cream cheese is even slightly cold you will chase lumps through the filling for the next ten minutes and lose.
03 -
- Press the crust mixture in firmly because a loose base will crumble the moment someone tries to pick it up.
- Pipe the filling with a ziplock bag snipped at the corner if you want perfectly smooth tops without any streaks.