All the flavors of classic pumpkin cheesecake but with none of the baking. These individual pumpkin pie jars are complete with a graham cracker crust layer, pumpkin cheesecake mousse and topped with whipped cream. These are perfect for a party or after dinner dessert!
Why This Recipe is Great
- There’s no baking involved : the holidays are already a busy time in the kitchen, and there’s no reason to complicate dessert too. These no bake cheesecakes are very quick to make and make for a very light, mess-free dessert!
- Double or Triple it! You can easily scale this recipe based on how many people you’re trying to feed.
- The ingredients are basic : you won’t need to go out of your way to find special ingredients for this recipe. They’re basics in most grocery stores!
Make it Ahead
This is a great make-ahead dessert recipe and can be made up to 2 days ahead. Once you assemble the graham cracker crumble and the cheesecake mousse, just pop them in the fridge. Top with whipped cream and sprinkles on the day of cause whipped cream deflates over time!
Taking Shortcuts
When it comes to taking shortcuts in the kitchen… I’m all for it. You could make your own whipped cream, but I just use cool whip. And you could make actual cheesecake but I’d rather not turn on the oven.
Tips to make no bake cheesecake
- Make sure your cream cheese is room temperature or at least softened before making the pumpkin cheesecake mousse. A solid & hard block can create lumps so softened cream cheese is key for a smoother mousse.
- Once you make the pumpkin cheesecake cups, you could eat this right away but I would give it at least an hour or two to firm up in the fridge.
Make it Vegan
- Replace the cream cheese with vegan cream cheese
- Replace the melted butter with melted coconut oil
- Replace the Cool Whip with CocoWhip
No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Jars
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 18–20 mini cups 1x
Description
These individual pumpkin pie jars are complete with a graham cracker crust layer, pumpkin cheesecake mousse and topped with whipped cream.
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cheesecake Mousse
- 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2–3 tsp pumpkin pie spice (add this to taste)
- 16 ounces cool whip
The Graham Cracker Crust
- 35 Graham crackers
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger, optional
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg, optional
- 1 tsp cinnamon, optional
- 4 tbsp Melted butter
Instructions
- To a mixing bowl, add your softened cream cheese, brown sugar, white sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla extract and pumpkin pie spice. Use a spatula to mix really well and make it into a smooth mixture.
- Add the cool whip to this bowl and fold in gently. The goal is the incorporate the cool whip completely but not mix so vigorously the cool whip deflates. Once mixed, place in the fridge.
- To a ziploc bag, add the graham crackers, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon. Use a rolling mix (or place in a for processor) to beat until you get fine crumbs like sand. Pour the crumbles in a bowl and add the melted butter. Use a fork or your hands to wet all the crumbles. It should resemble slightly wet sand once it’s all mixed up.
Assembly
- Grab 18-20 mini individual cups to put the desserts in. These can be found at any dollar store or alternatively, you can make it one big cheesecake in a pie dish. First, place a spoonful of the wet graham cracker crumbles in each cup (or the pie dish) and press down to pack it in.
- If you are using individual cups, you can place the cheesecake mousse into a ziploc bag and cup the rip off to pipe the mixture into the cups. Or if you’re making it into once large no bake cheesecake you can just spread it on. Refrigerate individual cups for at least 1-2 hours before serving and top with whipped cream and sprinkles! (for whole cheesecake, refrigerate for 4-6 hours). You can refrigerate up to 48 hours.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dessert
SO SO GOOD!!! This recipe is beyond easy and it taste delicious!!!! It was by far the easiest thing I made for thanksgiving and it still tasted like it spent hours in the kitchen. It’s so good, and so easy, I highly recommended!!!!
★★★★★
This dessert is so easy and so yummy! I made the pie version and it was decadent and easy!!! I live and travel full time in a camper so I need easy to prepare meals and not a lot of cleanup. This is it and honestly the texture and flavor is so wonderful! This will be a new Thanksgiving staple and I’m making it for the rest of the holidays!
★★★★★