We all love a classic mug of hot cocoa. What if you could enjoy that same delicious flavor in a super simple, no-bake treat? These mini cheesecakes taste just like hot chocolate, complete with little mini marshmallow sprinkles.
How to Make a No-Bake Cheesecake
Classic cheesecake recipes are notoriously long, complicated and tricky. They are typically baked for hours in a water bath and then left to cool to reduce the risk of cracking. Cut out the complex steps without sacrificing the flavor. These cheesecake bites are eggless, and are ready to eat in under an hour.
Chilling is the name of the game with no-bake cheesecakes. After prepping your crust, simply freeze the cookie base in the prepared pan to ready them for topping. The filling is a simple combination of whipped cream cheese, melted chocolate and cream. The melted chocolate firms up once chilled, leaving you with a light, fluffy texture. These bites are topped with mini marshmallow bits, but chopped peppermint candy would work great as well. Get creative and experiment with different flavors and toppings.
When making these, the most important step is preparing the pan. If you use a silicone pan, these bites should pop right out. If not, try freezing them for 5 to 10 minutes. In a traditional metal pan, the paper liners will do the trick. You can remove the liners before serving, or not. These mini cheesecakes are bite-sized
How to Make Cheesecake in a Muffin Pan
Ditch the water bath and complicated preparation of traditional cheesecake. Making cheesecake in a muffin pan is as simple as could be. All you’re doing is scaling down a no-bake cheesecake to fit in a mini muffin pan. This recipe should work in a regular-sized muffin pan, just adjust the amount of crust and filling put into each cup. The beauty of baking mini-cheesecakes is it takes a quarter of the time to prepare as traditional cheesecake. Make them before dinner and they’ll be ready just in time for dessert!
Hot Chocolate No-Bake Cheesecake Bites with Marshmallows
Makes 24
Active Time: 20 Minutes
Total Time: 40 Minutes
- 12 Full Circle Market Organic Chocolate Sandwich Cookie (6 oz)
- 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 Tbsp Full Circle Market Organic Sweet Cream Butter (Unsalted), melted
- 1 cup Stater Bros Cream Cheese (8 oz), room temperature
- 3 Tbsp Full Circle Market Organic pure cane sugar
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2/3 cups Stater Bros Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, melted and cooled slightly
- 1/3 cup Stater Bros Heavy Cream
- 1/2 cup white marshmallow bits
Prepare a silicone mini muffin pan OR line a metal mini muffin pan with mini cupcake paper liners. In a food processor, pulse sandwich cookies to fine crumbs, add 1 Tbsp cocoa powder and melted butter and pulse to combine. Press about 1 heaping teaspoon of the crumb mixture into the bottom of each liner. Freeze until filling is ready.
In a large bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese, sugar, remaining 1 Tbsp cocoa powder and vanilla for 3 to 4 minutes, until fluffy and combined. Add melted chocolate and mix until combined. Pour in cream and beat to stiff peaks. Divide mixture evenly over prepared crust and smooth the tops. Chill for at least one hour, then top with mini marshmallows. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.