Food and Recipes Recipes Strawberry Cheesecake Bites 5.0 (1) 1 Review Strawberry cheesecake with a fraction of the effort. By Southern Living Test Kitchen Southern Living Test Kitchen The Southern Living Test Kitchen has been publishing recipes since 1970, four years after the first issue of Southern Living Magazine appeared on newsstands. The Southern Living Test Kitchen team includes a team of professionals with deep expertise in recipe development, from pastry chefs and grilling experts to nutritionists and dietitians. Together, the team tests and retests, produces, styles, and photographs thousands of recipes each year in the state-of-the-art test kitchen facility located in Birmingham, Alabama. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on April 28, 2023 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Photographer: Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn Active Time: 30 mins Total Time: 1 hrs 30 mins Servings: 12 These cream-filled strawberries have a secret: They're filled with a subtly sweet mixture that tastes just like cheesecake, but are way quicker and easier to make than a traditional strawberry cheesecake. These bites are a clever way to enjoy those gorgeous, giant strawberries that appear in our markets each spring. No baking is required, and there's just a little thinking ahead needed since the cream cheese needs to be softened for it to be easy to work with. Why You'll Love These No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Bites This dessert takes advantage of fresh strawberries and couldn't be easier to make. There's no baking required, and minimal clean-up is involved. Most ingredients are probably already in your pantry or fridge, and the only sort of "fancy" part is optional. The strawberry cheesecake bites are a showstopper with or without the optional white chocolate dip. Just don't forget the graham cracker crumbs! They add texture, crunch, and a nice color contrast to the red strawberries and pale white filling. What's in Strawberry Cheesecake Bites? Strawberry cheesecake bites are not only delicious, they're also easy to make. The recipe requires minimal prep and few ingredients, many of which you may already have on hand. First things first: You'll need fresh strawberries, about about 1 1/2 pounds, which ends up being roughly 24 whole strawberries from two standard strawberry containers. The filling consists of one package of cream cheese (softened in advance) mixed with a couple tablespoons of sour cream—though if you happen to have creme fraiche or mascarpone cheese lying around, either of those can be substituted to great effect—plus, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla. When Is Strawberry Season? Hulled out strawberries are then filled with the sweet, luscious cream cheese mixture using either a pastry bag (a star tip makes it extra pretty but is not necessary) or a repurposed plastic freezer bag. Simply spoon the filling into a zip-top plastic freezer bag, and without sealing it, snip a hole in one of the corners. Dip the strawberries in melted white chocolate if you're feeling fancy and want to add a little more oomph, and don't forget the crushed graham cracker finish, an essential component regardless of what you decide about the optional chocolate dip. Note that these Strawberry Cheesecake Bites need about an hour to set. How To Prepare Strawberries When it comes to cleaning strawberries, there are just a couple of things to keep in mind. Using a colander, gently place whole strawberries in the base, and rinse with cold water from the tap for a few minutes. If you notice any dirt that's not coming loose from the cold water rinse, use your fingers to rub dirt specks gently until they loosen. Remove strawberries from the colander—a paper-towel lined baking sheet works well—and pat dry. When To Clean Strawberries Whatever method you choose, wash the strawberries just before coring and hollowing them out for the Strawberry Cheesecake Bites. Why? Cleaning porous fruit like strawberries ahead of time can make them mushy and even moldy. It's the excess water on the surface of the berry that causes it to break down quickly. How To Freeze Strawberries How To Store Strawberry Cheesecake Bites Similar to the way excess water can impact the texture and quality of the strawberries if you wash the fruit several days (or even hours) before you plan to make the Strawberry Cheesecake Bites (or other strawberry-starring recipes), the soft filling can make the berries soggy. Preparing the tray of bites one night before you plan to serve them is OK, but these are best eaten the day they're made. And if you do decide to prepare the cheesecake bites in advance, don't add the crushed graham cracker crumbs until just before serving if you want to avoid soggy cracker pieces. More Ways to Use Cream Cheese: Strawberry Cheesecake Salad Editorial contributions by Stacey Lastoe. Ingredients 24 strawberries (about 1½ pounds, from 2 [1-pound] containers) 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened 2 tablespoons sour cream 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon) 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 8 ounces white chocolate, chopped (about 1 cup), optional 2 whole graham crackers Directions Cut off tops (stem ends) of strawberries, and trim bottoms into flat bases. Using a melon baller or small paring knife, remove strawberry cores and hollow out insides of strawberries. Combine cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a star tip (such as Ateco 823). Pipe cheesecake mixture into strawberries. Optional: Place chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at 50% power for 30 seconds. Stir and repeat procedure, microwaving 30 seconds at a time, until chocolate is melted and only a few small lumps remain. Remove from microwave and stir until fully melted. Dip strawberries halfway into melted chocolate, letting any excess drip off. Refrigerate filled strawberries until filling is firm, at least 1 hour. Place graham crackers in a zip-top plastic bag, and crush with your hands until a fine crumb forms. Sprinkle crumbs over filled strawberries. Transfer to a platter, and serve immediately. Rate it Print Additional reporting by Stacey Lastoe Stacey Lastoe Stacey Lastoe is a former senior editor for CNN Travel with an Emmy for her work. Now a freelancer, her work can be found in Allrecipes, Refinery29, American Way, The Kitchn, Fodor's, and Wine Enthusiast. Stacey lives with her husband and dog in New York. learn more