Easy Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe

Follow these steps for a tasty and easy strawberry cheesecake dessert!

With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, I decided to scrounge up one of my favorite desserts for the occasion –strawberry cheesecake! In my post, I’ll break down how to make this scrumptious dessert along with a few simple techniques I used back in my cake decorating days to create a gorgeous and easy strawberry cheesecake for your special night in. Now, let’s get to it!

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Strawberry Cheesecake Ingredients

To start off, you’ll want to make a classic vanilla cheesecake. This is broken down into two components: the crust and the filling.

For the crust, you’ll need:

• Graham crackers
• Melted butter
• Sugar
• Dash of cinnamon or nutmeg (totally optional)

For the filling, you’ll need:

• Cream cheese
• Eggs
• Sugar
• Vanilla

JUMP TO RECIPE 👇

How to Make Your Crust

• Begin by preheating your oven to 325° F

• Crush about 21 graham crackers into a bowl (or use 1 ½ c. of graham crumbs)

• Combine graham crumbs, sugar, melted butter, and cinnamon (if desired)

• Press mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan

How to Make Your Filling

• Beat your cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with a hand mixer until well blended

• Add your eggs, 1 at a time and mix on low until light and fluffy; do not over blend

• Pour over crust and bake for 55 minutes to an hour, just as the center is about to set

• Loosen edges of cheesecake with a knife; allow to cool fully, then refrigerate for about 4 hours

And of course, you can’t have a strawberry cheesecake without the strawberries (and homemade whipped cream, if you ask me)! I like to decorate the strawberry cheesecake with whipped cream and fresh strawberries ahead of time and prepare a simple strawberry sauce to spoon over once it’s served. This is because I don’t want the cheesecake to get soggy before we have a change to eat it –plus, it gives you the option to add more if you want it!

For the strawberry sauce, you’ll need:

• Strawberries
• Sugar
• Vanilla

For the homemade whipped cream, you’ll need:

• Heavy cream
• Powdered sugar
• Vanilla

How to Make Strawberry Sauce

• To prepare your strawberry sauce, rinse and quarter the strawberries and place into a saucepan. Be sure to rinse and reserve 6-8 whole strawberries for decorating

• Add sugar and vanilla into the saucepan and turn on low; stir and simmer for about 10 minutes

• You’ll notice the strawberries begin to break down and liquify; turn off burner once nearly all strawberries are broken down (I like to leave a few chunks!)

• Allow sauce to cool; transfer into small bowl and refrigerate until needed

How to Make Homemade Whipped Cream

• Now for the whipped cream. Begin by pouring the heavy cream into a medium-sized mixing bowl; beat with a mixer, gradually increasing speed until fluffy peaks begin to form. Do not overbeat!

• Add in powdered sugar and vanilla and fold into your whipped cream. Taste it to make sure it’s sweetened to your liking!

Finally! Time to decorate your strawberry cheesecake. This happens to be my favorite part –well besides eating it, of course! You can decorate your cheesecake any way you like, but here’s a few simple techniques I recommend you try!

Suggested tools:

• 1 large decorating bag (TIP: try a large Ziplock bag if you’re in a pinch!)
• 1 large open star tip
• 1 large coupler (optional; just to ensure your tip doesn’t burst out of bag mid-rosette!)
• A paring knife

How to Decorate a Strawberry Cheesecake

• Gather your reserved strawberries and put the biggest/best one aside; remove the stems from the rest of the strawberries and slice all in half

• Cut a small slit at tip of your pastry bag. Place the star tip over the coupler and carefully drop it nose-first into the bag until the tip pokes out of the bag. Twist the coupler screw over the tip until secure (if using).

• Fill your pastry bag with fresh whipped cream; squeeze some whipped cream into a bowl until air bubbles are gone

• Begin by making small dollops or “rosettes” around the edges of your cheesecake; create a larger dollop in the center

• Go ahead and place your strawberry halves on or in between each dollop, whatever looks pretty to you!

• Take a paring knife and your final strawberry and slice approximately 10 slits in the strawberry from tip to stem; fan out the strawberry and gently place in the center of your cheesecake –so fancy!

• Release the springform pan (if you haven’t already) and place the cake on a platter or plate; refrigerate until ready to eat!

Slice and serve your strawberry cheesecake with the reserved strawberry sauce and voila –a delightful and tasty dessert for your special dinner for two! Enjoy!

Pssst! Check out the full recipe below:

P.S. Want to refer to this easy strawberry cheesecake recipe later on? Then be sure to pin it below! For other tasty recipes, click here.