I have a long-standing love of cheesecakes. They’re one of my favorite desserts to make and, of course, to eat. As much as I enjoy baking traditional cheesecakes, I have a bit of a soft spot for the no-bake variety. Maybe it’s their simplicity, or maybe it’s their soft, fluffy texture. Either way, I love to whip up one whenever I need a simple dessert to share or just when I’ve got a craving for one.
I’ve made many different kinds of cheesecakes over the years with various flavor twists and such, but this beauty is a reminder that sometimes the simple things are all you need. And it doesn’t get much simpler in the dessert world than vanilla and chocolate.
By simple, I certainly don’t mean to imply a lack of flavor. On the contrary, vanilla is a fantastic flavor all on its own! While vanilla extract is a must in my pantry for just about everything I bake, this cheesecake utilizes vanilla in a bigger way with vanilla beans. The flavor is fantastic, and those little specks are just so pretty!
You’ll need the seeds of one to two vanilla beans for this cheesecake. As an alternative, I highly recommend vanilla bean paste. It is a thick liquid with vanilla beans suspended in it. It’s a great option to keep in your pantry for using in place of vanilla beans. If you don’t have access to either beans or the paste, then vanilla extract will work, too, for the flavor if not for the flecked appearance.
If you like, all that vanilla cheesecake filling is perfectly delicious all on its own in a cookie crumb pie crust. But I think I love it best with a layer of simple dark chocolate ganache between the crust and the filling. It adds a bit more flavor while still keeping this cheesecake super simple.
The no-bake in the title of the recipe comes with an asterisk. The cookie crumb crust doesn’t have to be baked, but I find that it holds up a bit better if it has just a little oven time. For a truly no-bake experience, chill the pie crust for about half an hour before filling it to help it become firmer.
I just love this simple cheesecake. The wonderful flavor, the ease of preparation, that little chocolate surprise inside…. They all make it irresistible!
No-Bake Black Bottom Vanilla Bean Cheesecake
Black Bottom Vanilla Bean Cheesecake is a celebration of vanilla with a little chocolate surprise!
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 & 3/4 cups (175g) graham cracker crumbs
- 5 tablespoons (70g) unsalted butter, melted
For the ganache:
- 3 ounces (85g) dark chocolate (about 70% cacao), roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup (59ml) heavy cream
For the cheesecake filling:
- 16 ounces (454g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- seeds from 1 to 2 vanilla beans, OR 1 & 1/2 tablespoons vanilla bean paste, OR 1 & 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (236ml) heavy cream
Instructions
To make the crust:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.* Lightly grease a 9-inch pie or tart pan.
- Combine the cookie crumbs and butter until thoroughly mixed. Press into the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pan.
- Bake 12 minutes. Set aside to cool.
To make the ganache:
- Place the chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave at half power in 30-second increments until the chocolate melts when stirred. Stir until smooth.
- Spread the ganache evenly in the bottom of the crust.
- Chill for about an hour.
To make the cheesecake filling:
- Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla seeds (or paste or extract) until thoroughly combined and smooth.
- In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer with a whisk attachment to whip the cream on high until soft peaks form.
- Fold about 1/3 of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Then gently fold in the remaining whipped cream.
- Spread the filling evenly in the pie pan. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.
Notes
*I prefer to bake cookie crusts briefly to make them a bit firmer and sturdier. If you want to skip the oven time, simply chill the crust in the pie pan for about half an hour before filling.
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20 Comments on “No-Bake Black Bottom Vanilla Bean Cheesecake”
I❤️seeing those little specks of vanilla bean in that cheesecake! This sounds absolutely amazing…I’ll just have to find someone to share it with since my husband doesn’t eat cheesecake!
It looks soooo good and delicious! Great recipe I really must try soon.
The filling looks so so thick and creamy, especially for a no bake cheesecake. Yum!
Beautiful, sweet, comforting, yummy. I’m in. Thank you and have a pleasant day !
Took me a while to get round to making this one….. but today was the day, Valentines Day.
DELICIOUS. My wife loved it, I even used a heart shaped mould.
Didn’t bake the crust, but it held together fine whilst spreading the ganache.
I whipped the cream then mix whipped together the cheese and sugar to avoid cleaning the whisk between mixes. I did it by hand, I don’t have a mixer. No problem at all and it is easily made by hand.
Thanks for sharing.
I’m glad to hear it was a hit!
Sounds great! However, I’m new to baking and was unsure about the “folding” part of the instructions with the cream mixture?
Folding is a gentle way of mixing that you’ll usually see when adding something delicate like whipped cream. Too much mixing will cause the whipped cream to deflate. I like to add a bit of the whipped cream (maybe 1/4 of it) to the other batter and mix it fairly well. Then add the remaining whipped cream and use more of a folding motion than stirring to incorporate it. You should be able to do that with just a handful of turns.
Made this last night and took it to a friend’s house for tea tonight.
We don’t have Graham Crackers in NZ, so my go to are Digestive Biscuits, and I don’t bake the base. Love the idea of the ganache layer on the base. I would add more vanilla – maybe another teaspoon of paste – when I make it again. It went down well!
Thanks for a simple and delicious cheesecake recipe.
I’m glad you liked it, Karyn!
I made this but my only 2 changes would be powdered sugar instead of granulated when mixing with semi cold products and also a bit more vanilla but otherwise great. I will just tweak it a little next time. Thanks for recipe
Glad you liked it, Beth!
I was planning to make this using a cookie crust made out of crunchy store-bought butter cookies rather than graham crackers (as they are difficult to find where I live). Do you think that would be ok?
Hi, Rebecca. Any crunchy cookie should work. Just substitute the same amount by volume.
This was freaking amazing! I made it for my husband’s birthday last week, and am making it again this weekend:)
That’s so great to hear, Susanna!
I plan to try this for a birthday this Sunday. I am no baker, not even a no baker. I read that it’s not necessary to use an electric mixer, so should I use a whisk for everything but folding? And when it comes to cheesecake, it runs through my veins. My absolute favorite is NY style, rich and a bit more dense than most. This one isn’t too moist and creamy is it? And last but not least, what do you recommend for cookie crust? Maybe vanilla wafers? Thanks so much!
Hi, Rochelle. I definitely recommend a mixer for the filling. Otherwise, it’s tough to get it thoroughly mixed and smooth. Cheesecake is pretty much always rich to some degree, but this one should be less rich and dense than a New York style. A no-bake cheesecake is generally a fluffier version. Any kind of crunchy cookie should work. I usually make this one with graham crackers, but vanilla wafers will be just fine.
Hello, I would love to make this for Christmas but I was wondering if you could use the ganache but also do it as a baked cheesecake?
Hi, Alyssa. This cheesecake can’t be baked. If you’d like to make a baked vanilla cheesecake, try this one: Vanilla Bean Cheesecake. I would add the ganache on top of the cheesecake.