The cheesecake with pineapple cream is a fresh and delicious fridge cake that requires no baking. It’s the ideal dessert when it’s too hot or when we don’t want to use the oven or stove. We can prepare it for an important occasion, as a dessert for Sunday lunch, or for a buffet. To enjoy it at its best, the cheesecake with pineapple cream should be prepared at least one day in advance.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 14/16 slices
- Cooking methods: No-bake
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer, Spring
Ingredients
- 10.5 oz Digestive biscuits
- 6.5 oz Melted butter
- to taste Grated zest of one lemon
- 7 oz Cream cheese
- 0.8 cups Heavy cream
- 3 tbsps Powdered sugar
- 2 Cans of pineapple slices
- to taste Grated lemon zest
Preparation
1) Drain the pineapple slices from the first can, blend them until you get a puree, which should be drained in a colander for at least 3 hours. It’s important for the pineapple to lose all its liquid to avoid ruining the cream.
2) Cut a circle of parchment paper slightly larger than the base of the pan, moisten it, squeeze it, and make it adhere perfectly. Also, cut a strip for the sides of the pan, moisten, squeeze, and make it adhere well. This way the cheesecake will hold its shape without issues.
3) Crush the biscuits until completely crumbled and place them in a large bowl.
4) Melt the butter and pour it while still hot over the biscuits. Add the lemon zest (which helps to reduce the taste and smell of butter) and mix until the butter is fully absorbed. Transfer the biscuit mixture into the pan and, using your fingers, create the edge and base of the cheesecake, a shell that will contain our delicious pineapple cream.
5) Level both the base and the edges of the cheesecake with the back of a spoon to make them smooth and uniform in thickness. Cover the pan and place it in the fridge for about 1 hour; this way, the butter will solidify, making the shell of the cake firm.
6) After an hour, start whipping the cream. Add the cream cheese, grated lemon zest, powdered sugar, and the pineapple puree. Continue whipping the mixture until you get a firm cream. Pour it inside the biscuit shell, level it with the back of a spoon, and put it back in the fridge until serving.
In the meantime, drain the pineapple slices from the second can.
For decoration. Remove the cake from the fridge, open the cake pan and gently remove the parchment paper around the cheesecake; this operation should be done only when the biscuit shell is perfectly firm. You can leave the base of the pan and the parchment paper covering it, if desired; otherwise, very carefully and delicately, remove them as well, place the cake on a serving plate, and move on to the decoration.
When the slices are well-drained, cut them in half to create decorative arrangements to decorate the cheesecake. To add a touch of color, you can add strawberries and mint leaves.
