American Flag No-Bake Cheesecake Bars

How is June almost over?! I’m in denial that the 4th of July is next week. Although I must not be in too much denial, considering I tested out holiday recipes before the holiday for once. It really is a miracle.

I saw these cheesecake bars on pinterest  and couldn’t resist! I mean, come on. They’re adorable! I liked how simple they were and that they would be different than the usual desserts brought to a BBQ. Kelly the history buff is going to disown me for this next comment, but I’ve never really been a big fan of the 4th. We just never really did much to celebrate, so it was kind of just another summer day. Please don’t hate me for being un-American! I’m getting much more into holidays lately, including this one 🙂

I don’t know about where you guys are, but last 4th of July was H-O-T. Like…100+ degrees and my house doesn’t have central AC hot. Yet somehow my friends loved me enough to come to my sweltering BBQ and we all had a great time! This year however, I knew I did not want to turn on the oven and heat up the house. Which is why I went with a no-bake cheesecake instead.

For ease of cutting and clean up, don’t forget to use a parchment sling. If you’re not sure what that is, simply lay one piece of parchment lengthwise in your baking tray, then lay a second crosswise (so the two pieces are horizontal). Once your bars are set, you can pull the whole thing out and cut with ease! I actually was able to only use one piece of parchment paper in my tray, it was large enough to hang over all the sides. Use your best judgement! This prevents your crust from sticking too.

These were so fun to decorate and were a hit with the lucky few I shared them with, I hope you give them a shot if you need a dessert to bring on the 4th! What are everyones’ plans? I’m on call for work so I have to stay close to home, but I think we’ll do another BBQ and probably eat our weight in cheesecake! 🙂

~Stephanie

American Flag No-Bake Cheesecake Bars (recipe barely adapted from Martha Stewart, design idea from My Recipes)

• 2o graham crackers (2 packages)
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 12 tbsp butter, melted
• 2 8oz packages of cream cheese, room temperature
• 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla
• blueberries for garnish
• seedless strawberry or raspberry jam for garnish

1. Line 9×13 baking pan with a parchment sling.
2. Crush graham crackers into fine crumbs, either in food processor or with rolling pin. Combine with sugar.
3. Pour melted butter into graham cracker crumbs and mix until combined.
4. Press evenly into bottom of baking pan. Place in freezer (at least 10 minutes).
5. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add in condensed milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Continue to beat until well incorporated.
6. Pour filling over crust and smooth with rubber spatula. Refrigerate until filling sets, about 2-3 hours.
7. Remove cheesecake from pan using the parchment sling. Cut into rectangles.
8. Use blueberries in the upper left corner to make the “star” portion of the flag.
9. Place jam in a ziplock bag and cut tip of corner (or use a piping bag) and pipe on the “stripes” portion of the flag.