Easy Elegant No-Bake Cheesecake

This no-bake cheesecake is the kind of dessert that looks like you spent all afternoon in the kitchen, but the oven never even turns on. Melted chocolate chips get beaten into fluffy cream cheese, sweetened with condensed milk, and lightened with a fold of whipped cream.

Gelatin holds everything together so it slices clean from the springform pan. The graham cracker crust takes about two minutes to press into the bottom, and then the fridge does all the real work over three hours.

Bring this to a dinner party and watch it vanish before the coffee gets cold.

Chef Tips

• Dissolve the gelatin completely. Any undissolved granules will leave rubbery specks in your otherwise smooth filling. Keep the heat low and stir patiently.
• Let the melted chocolate cool before adding it to the cream cheese. Hot chocolate will melt the cream cheese into a runny mess instead of a fluffy base.
• Run a thin spatula around the edge before releasing the springform ring. This prevents the cheesecake from cracking or sticking to the sides.

Variations

• White chocolate version: Swap the semi-sweet chips for white chocolate and fold in a handful of fresh raspberries for color and tartness.
• Cookie crust: Replace the graham cracker crumbs with crushed Oreo cookies (skip the extra sugar since the cookies are sweet enough).