Description
A delightful and colorful no-bake cheesecake that captures the essence of cotton candy in a creamy dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (or vanilla wafer crumbs)
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 450 g (16 oz) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream (cold)
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cotton candy flavoring (or extract)
- Food coloring (pink, blue, and optional lavender or yellow)
- 1 cup heavy cream (for topping)
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar (for topping)
- ½ tsp vanilla extract (for topping)
Instructions
- Make the crust: Combine graham crumbs, melted butter, and sugar until evenly coated. Press firmly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes while you prepare the filling.
- Make the cheesecake filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and cotton candy flavoring — mix until creamy. In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until light and airy.
- Create the colorful layers: Divide the filling evenly into three or four bowls. Tint each with a drop of pastel food coloring — pink, blue, purple, or yellow. Spoon each color one at a time over the crust, gently spreading without mixing the colors too much to keep clean layers. Smooth the top with an offset spatula.
- Chill: Refrigerate for at least 6 hours (or overnight) until fully set. For a firmer texture, freeze for 1–2 hours before serving.
- Add the topping: Whip the cream with powdered sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Pipe or spread generously over the cheesecake. Optionally, decorate with mini cotton candy pieces, sprinkles, or pastel sugar dust.
Notes
- For best results, use cold heavy cream for whipping.
- Feel free to customize the colors to your preference.
- This cheesecake can be made a day in advance for convenience.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: No-Bake
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 350
- Sugar: 25g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 25g
- Saturated Fat: 15g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 70mg