A no-bake pie (or is it cheesecake?) that starts with a simple graham cracker crust filled with silky white chocolate filling and a finale of homemade sweet cherry topping. The perfect showstopping dessert for summer!
Depending on where you live, baking in the summer can sound rather unappealing. This is especially true when you’re experiencing a 95+ degree heat wave WITHOUT air conditioning. (It’s like living in the Stone Age, people.) Unless if you want to turn your house into a huge sauna, turning the oven on is probably not the best idea. Thus the reason why a no-bake dessert was the ONLY option this week.
Enter: White Chocolate Cherry Cream Cheese Pie
I couldn’t decide whether this was a cheesecake or a cream pie, so I just went with “cream cheese pie.”
It starts out with a simple graham cracker crust, which is the only crust I enjoy making since they don’t require any baking, rolling, or skill. Just crush, melt, mix, and press!
When making the filling, I really wanted this to be a WHITE CHOCOLATE pie. So, in order to get that lusciously divine white chocolatey flavor, I melted 9 ounces of white chocolate and combined it with cream cheese. To lighten up the filling, I folded in some sweetened freshly whipped cream. Although my chubby girl instincts told me to just grab a spoon and go to town on this silky, rich, heavenly white chocolate filling, I decided to resist temptation and pour it into the crust.
Since it’s cherry season (and I had a TON of cherries from my uncle’s orchard), I went with a cherry topping. This was actually a first for me since I’d always bought the canned cherry pie filling. Let me tell you, homemade cherry topping is definitely the way to go! The flavor of the fresh cherries is so much better than the flavor of the canned filling from the store (Surprise, surprise!), and it really wasn’t that difficult to make! All you need are some fresh, pitted cherries, a little sugar and cornstarch, a splash of lemon juice and a few drops of almond extract. The almond extract is what really brings out the wonderful flavor of the cherries, so try not to skip that ingredient.
If you’re feeling extra Martha Stewarty, pipe some extra whipped cream around the border like I did. Otherwise, you can let this showstopper of a dessert set up in the refrigerator until you serve it to your guests.
Or maybe just yourself…
Cherry White Chocolate Cream Cheese Pie
Ingredients
Cherry Topping
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 Tablespoon water
- 2 cups fresh sweet cherries pitted and stemmed
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- ⅛ teaspoon almond extract
Crust
- 8 whole graham crackers
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
White Chocolate Filling
- 9 ounces white chocolate
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- Whipped cream for decoration
Instructions
To make the Cherry Topping
- In a small bowl, stir the cornstarch and water together until combined; set aside.
- Cut pitted cherries in half, then transfer to a saucepan along with the sugar. Cook on medium heat until all of the sugar has dissolved. Add the cornstarch mixture and continue stirring until mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and extract. Set aside to cool completely. Topping will continue to thicken as it cools.
To make the Pie
- In a food processor, crush the graham crackers to fine, even crumbs. Add the sugar and melted butter and continue pulsing until fully incorporated. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan* and refrigerate while you work on the filling.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate in the microwave until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
- In an electric stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream and sugar together until stiff peaks form. Transfer whipped cream to another bowl, then return bowl to mixer.
- Switch whisk attachment with paddle attachment and beat cream cheese until smooth. Add melted chocolate and continue beating until creamy and fluffy, scraping the sides as needed to ensure everything is fully incorporated. Add a quarter of the whipped cream to the bowl and beat once more until combined. Remove bowl from mixer and gently fold in the rest of the whipped cream.
- Pour filling into crust, evening out the top with an offset spatula or knife. Pour cooled cherry topping evenly over the pie and garnish with more whipped cream, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. Slice, serve, and enjoy!
- Pie will stay fresh covered in the refrigerator for up to one week.
2 comments
[…] White Chocolate Cherry Cream Cheese Pie […]
Wow this looks great, pinning for later!