This 3 ingredient no bake cheesecake has a creamy and silky smooth texture and is made with a store-bought graham cracker crust.
This simple recipe uses just cream cheese, heavy cream, and powdered sugar to create a creamy and delicious treat that requires minimal effort.
By using a store-bought graham cracker crust, you save time on preparation without sacrificing flavor.
The beauty of this cheesecake lies in its simplicity, it’s easy enough for anyone to make, yet impressive enough to serve at any gathering.
Just mix the ingredients until smooth, pour them into the crust, chill it in the fridge for a few hours, and you’re ready to enjoy a slice of heaven with your friends and family.
Check out my mini version of this recipe that is perfect for parties, my no bake mini cheesecakes.
For more delicious cheesecake recipes, check out my creamy vanilla cheesecake, pistachio cheesecake, cinnamon roll cheesecake, and Oreo cheesecake.
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Why this recipe works
- 3 ingredient- with only three simple ingredients: cream cheese, heavy cream, and powdered sugar you can create a delicious filling without any fuss.
- Texture- thanks to the combination of cream cheese and heavy cream, the filling is smooth and rich, providing a melt-in-your-mouth texture with every bite. It's goes perfectly with the crumbly graham cracker crust, offering a delish contrast that elevates each slice.
- No bake- one of my favorite parts about this recipe is that this is a no bake recipe! So there is no need to turn on the oven for this.
- Time- this whole recipe takes 10 minutes to prep from start to finish! It is so easy and quick, you are going to love it!
- Versatile- you can easily customize it with your favorite toppings or fillings like fresh fruits, lemon zest, chocolate shavings, or a spread like biscoff butter, Nutella, or caramel sauce.
Ingredients
Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
For the crust: (optional, you can use a store-bought crust instead)
Graham crackers/ tea biscuits- we like to use tea biscuits or digestive biscuits, but graham crackers will work as well.
Melted butter– melt the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds pulses, to make sure that the butter doesn’t boil up and explode in the microwave (been there done that), or melt it on the stovetop.
For the filling
Heavy cream- make sure that your heavy cream is cold from the fridge.
Cream cheese- make sure that you place your cream cheese at room temperature an hour or two before making this cheesecake to allow it to reach room temperature. Use full-fat cream cheese.
Powder sugar- you don’t have to buy powdered sugar, you can simply make it at home by blending granulated sugar in a blender or food processor. super easy!
Vanilla extract (optional)- adds extra flavor. You can use vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract.
Instructions
Make the graham cracker crust (optional, if you are not using store-bought crust)
Pulse graham crackers or digestive biscuits in a food processor until fine crumbs form. If you don’t have a food processor on hand, place the crackers in a Ziplock bag and smash them with a cup until fine crumbs form.
Into a small to medium mixing bowl, add the crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Mix with a spoon until the crumbs are coated with butter.
Transfer the crumbs into a prepared 9-inch cake pan, pressing evenly and firmly into the pan.
Transfer the pan to the freezer and let the crust firm up while you make the filling.
Make the 3 ingredient cheesecake filling
Into a large mixing bowl, add the softened cream cheese, vanilla extract (optional), and sifted powdered sugar, and whip it with an electric hand mixer until well combined (for about 2-3 minutes).
Add the cold heavy cream and whip the mixture for another 3-5 minutes until the mixture thickens up.
Pour the cheesecake batter over the crust, smooth the top with an offset spatula, and let it set in the fridge for at least 5 hours to set.
Top with your favorite toppings or decorate it with whipped cream around the edges of the cheesecake as I did! Serve and enjoy.
Expert Tips
- Make sure that you are using room-temperature cream cheese in this recipe, this step makes it easier to mix the cream cheese with no unnecessary lumps, we don’t want that.
- Use COLD heavy cream for this. Cold heavy cream whips faster and holds its shape beautifully. Room temperature cream will whip as well, but will take way longer!
- Use a nonstick springform pan. We use nonstick pans for all of our cheesecake recipes. This makes sure that your cheesecake will be easy to release from the pan.
- Do not overmix the cream! If you overmix this cream, it will curdle and will ruin the creaminess of this cheesecake.
- In order to speed up this process and make the cream whip quicker, place the bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes before whipping the mixture.
- Use high-fat cream cheese or the well-known Philadelphia cream cheese. Using full-fat cream cheese ensures that your cheesecake will be stable and set properly.
- Let your cheesecake set in the fridge for at least 5 hours. We know it’s very hard to resist eating this delicious cheesecake right away, but you have to let the cheesecake chill and set it in the pan. We like to let the cheesecake sit in the fridge overnight.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl frequently to ensure that you have a homogeneous mixture that has no cream cheese lumps.
Faq's
This can happen if you used room-temperature heavy cream and you need to whip the mixture for longer.
Using cold heavy cream is essential since cold heavy cream whips faster than warm or room-temperature cream. Just whip the mixture for longer until you get the right consistency.
This cheesecake needs to be set in the fridge for at least 4 hours. We let it set overnight for the best results.
This can happen for various reasons. The most common reason is that you didn't let your cheesecake chill for long enough or you didn't whip your batter until it was thick enough.
No-bake cheesecake filling is a simple, delicious mix of cream cheese, powdered sugar, and heavy cream. The cream cheese offers a rich, tangy base.
Powdered sugar adds sweetness without graininess. Heavy cream is whipped in for a light texture, ideal for an easy dessert without oven time.
Storing
Store this cheesecake in the fridge covered tightly with plastic wrap for up to 4 days.
Freezing
After preparing your cheesecake according to the recipe, allow it to set in the refrigerator for at least 4-6 hours or overnight.
Once it's fully set, wrap the entire cheesecake, still in its pan, tightly with plastic wrap, ensuring there are no air pockets. For added protection, you can wrap it again with aluminum foil.
Label the package with the date and contents, then place it in the freezer. This cheesecake can be frozen for up to 3 months without significant loss of quality.
When you're ready to enjoy it, simply transfer the cheesecake to the refrigerator and let it thaw overnight before serving.
Make it ahead of time
Make this in advance by making the cheesecake according to the instructions. Letting it chill in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Top the cheesecake with the topping of your choice and serve when you are ready to serve!
Substitutions
Gluten-free - if you want to make this recipe gluten-free, simply use a store-bought gluten-free graham cracker crust or swap the graham crackers with gluten-free graham crackers if you are making a homemade crust.
Store-bought graham cracker crust- to make this recipe easier, use store-bought chocolate crust instead of making a homemade crust.
Variations
Toppings- this cheesecake can be topped with various types of toppings like, jam, fruit compote, strawberry topping, fresh fruit, etc. Check out my post for the best cheesecake toppings.
Zest- we added lemon zest for these but you can swap it with orange zest as well!
Sweet sauces- top this cheesecake with hot fudge, caramel sauce, lemon curd, etc.
Whipped cream- top these with freshly made whipped cream! Or top these with chocolate whipped cream, or Oreo whipped cream.
Crust- you can make this crust into a chocolate crust by swapping the graham crackers with Oreo cookies. You can use the same recipe from my Baileys cheesecake recipe.
Equipment
- You will need a 9-inch springform pan for this cheesecake. I love this set from Amazon.
- You will also need a food processor to make the crust (if you are not using a store-bought crust).
- I also recommend using an electric hand mixer to make sure your cheesecake mixture is smooth and perfect. You can also use a stand mixer for this with a balloon attachment.
- Offset spatula for smoothing out the cheesecake in the pan.
- Rubber spatula to fold the mixture and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
More cheesecake recipes
Caramel pecan cheesecake- This caramel pecan cheesecake is made with a cinnamon crust, creamy cinnamon cheesecake filling, and a caramel pecan topping.
Baileys Cheesecake- This Baileys cheesecake is made with an Oreo crust, creamy, boozy cheesecake filling that is full of Baileys flavor, topped with Baileys chocolate ganache and whipped cream.
No Bake Cheesecake- This no bake cheesecake is made with a thick buttery graham cracker crust and filled with velvety and creamy cheesecake filling.
If you tried this recipe, don’t forget to leave a rating and a comment below. We love hearing from you.
If you liked this recipe
📖 Recipe
3 Ingredient No Bake Cheesecake (Easiest Cheesecake In The World)
Ingredients
For the crust (optional)
- 2 cups Graham crackers
- ½ cup Butter unsalted, melted
- 1 teaspoon Granulated sugar
For the filling
- 15.8 oz Cream cheese softened
- 1 ⅔ cups Heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract optional
- 1 cup Powdered sugar
Instructions
Make the graham cracker crust (optional, if you are not using store-bought crust):
- Pulse graham crackers or digestive biscuits in a food processor until fine crumbs form. If you don’t have a food processor on hand, place the crackers in a Ziplock bag and smash them with a cup until fine crumbs form.
- Into a small to medium mixing bowl, add the crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Mix with a spoon until the crumbs are coated with butter.
- Transfer the crumbs into a prepared 9-inch cake pan, pressing evenly and firmly into the pan.
- Transfer the pan to the freezer and let the crust firm up while you make the filling.
Make the 3 ingredient cheesecake filling:
- Into a large mixing bowl, add the softened cream cheese, vanilla extract (optional), and sifted powdered sugar, and whip it with an electric hand mixer until well combined (for about 2-3 minutes).
- Add the cold heavy cream and whip the mixture for another 3-5 minutes until the mixture thickens up.
- Pour the cheesecake batter over the crust, smooth the top with an offset spatula, and let it set in the fridge for at least 5 hours to set.
- Top with your favorite toppings or decorate it with whipped cream around the edges of the cheesecake as I did! Serve and enjoy.
Notes
- Make sure that you are using room-temperature cream cheese in this recipe, this step makes it easier to mix the cream cheese with no unnecessary lumps, we don’t want that.
- Use COLD heavy cream for this. Cold heavy cream whips faster and holds its shape beautifully. Room temperature cream will whip as well, but will take way longer!
- Use a nonstick springform pan. We use nonstick pans for all of our cheesecake recipes. This makes sure that your cheesecake will be easy to release from the pan.
- Do not overmix the cream! If you overmix this cream, it will curdle and will ruin the creaminess of this cheesecake.
- In order to speed up this process and make the cream whip quicker, place the bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes before whipping the mixture.
- Use high-fat cream cheese or the well-known Philadelphia cream cheese. Using full-fat cream cheese ensures that your cheesecake will be stable and set properly.
- Let your cheesecake set in the fridge for at least 5 hours. We know it’s very hard to resist eating this delicious cheesecake right away, but you have to let the cheesecake chill and set it in the pan. We like to let the cheesecake sit in the fridge overnight.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl frequently to ensure that you have a homogeneous mixture that has no cream cheese lumps.
Patty
Do I have to use a spring pan!!?...can't wait to try these 🙂thank you!
RichandDelish
Hi! I love using a springform pan the most as it makes it easy to release the cheesecake from the pan, but any pan like a pie pan will work!