Even though the summer is my favorite season, I am looking forward to the upcoming festivities surrounding Thanksgiving and Christmas.  

I love to entertain friends and family (and to be honest, I need to have frequent events at my home in order to motivate me to clean my house, otherwise my house would be endlessly in disarray).   

Since I do have a lot of cleaning to do before my guests arrive, I do not have as much time to prepare a meal and a dessert on the same day.  This year my life will be much easier now that I have The Smart Cookie to help out, I will be able to prepare dessert ahead of time and store it in the freezer for later use. 

The Smart Cookie is not just for cookies, below is a recipe for no bake cheesecake that will wow your dinner guests and also give you a small hit of creamy, rich cheesecake in bite size portions whenever the mood hits. 

Mini cheesecakes, no baking required!

Makes: 24 cheesecakes    Prep Time: 15 min   Baking Time: 0 min

1 1/2 cup finely ground graham cracker crumbs 

4 tablespoons butter 

3 tablespoons brown sugar 

8 ounces cream cheese 

1/3 cup white sugar 

2 tablespoons lemon juice 

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped

1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and brown sugar, set aside.
2. In another bowl, beat cream cheese, white sugar, lemon juice and vanilla.
3. Whip the cream in a separate bowl, and mix into cream cheese mixture only until fully incorporated.
4. Divide the mixture in two and spread into the bottom tray of your Smart Cookies, making sure to spread evenly and not to fill the tray past the top. 
5. Divide the graham crumb mixture and sprinkle evenly over the top of the filled Smart Cookie trays.
6. Place the lid onto the tray and seal on all sides. 
7. Store in the freezer for at least 2 hours. 
8. Before serving, carefully transfer desired number of pieces from The Smart Cookie onto plates.  Make sure to defrost for at least 30 minutes before serving.
9. Garnish with sliced strawberries and leftover whipped cream.

Serve the cheesecakes with the graham cracker on top, if you prefer more of a crunch you can use the graham cracker crumb mixture on the top and the bottom.  You can easily make this dessert more fancy shmansy - try topping each piece with chocolate sauce and garnish with raspberries and mint.  Enjoy!