4 Ingredient, No Bake, No Crust Cheesecake (Or Wontons!)

This is my super simple cheesecake recipe. I shouldn't have carbs, so I do not use a crust, however, you could very easily use a premade or homemade crust if you wanted.

For the cheesecake, you'll need:
- Two 8 oz packages of cream cheese. I prefer to use organic, but definitely use what you like :-)
- Splash or two of lemon juice - depends on how tart you want it :-)
- Heavy Whipping Cream - 1 pint AKA 2 cups
- Sweetener to taste. I use 100% grade B dark amber Maple Syrup, and I also like to have mine on the not so sweet side, so I simply drizzle it and taste until it tastes right to me. I recommend doing this with any sweetener that you plan to use, because often, you don't need as much as recipes call for. :-)

Directions:
Allow cream cheese to soften and then unwrap and place it in a mixing bowl - at least medium size or larger. I like to mess up the blocks with a fork so they don't stick to the beaters and clump up quite as much. Add the splash or two (or three, lol) of lemon juice and beat until smooth. This is important if you don't want lumps in your cheesecake. Then add the cream and beat some more.

When it seems to have mixed but is still rather runny, add your sweetener and mix some more before tasting and adding more sweetener if necessary. When you think you have enough, continue to beat the mix until it is thick and well mixed. If you were too impatient to wait to put the cream in - like I usually am - you might have lumps in your batter, and that's okay.

Pour your batter into whatever pan you like. You can even leave it in the bowl if you want, lol! I like a medium sized (probably 8"X5") rectangular pan, but I have also used smaller circular dessert pans and also 8" round pie pans. (All made out of glass, so pan sounds like a misnomer, shrugs.)

Once smoothed out nicely, place the cheesecake pan into the fridge to chill for a while before eating or adding a topping. If you wanted to, after it's chilled until firm, you could cut it into bites and freeze in the freezer for a bit before tossing in a ziplock bag and eating frozen :-D

As I have mentioned in the past, I am diabetic, so I tend to avoid grains and carbs. That's why my cheesecake is crustless. It's also why it's fairly plain as described so far. However, if I am going to have it as a special treat, I like to add toppings. The easiest and simplest topping is to spread organic jam such as strawberry or blueberry over it. If you are like me, you can find a jam - such as St. Dalfour - that has no added sugar in it :-) I have found that an 8 oz jar is just about perfect, but it can be a bit thin, have more on hand in case you want it thicker.

Other topping suggestions are:

- Freshly sliced or pureed frozen strawberries (I suggest allowing the strawberries to drain just a little before putting them on the cheesecake, and if you do not need to worry about sugar content, you could always sprinkle a little sugar on them as they sit :-)
- Fresh or frozen blueberries
- Apple compote or Apple Butter
- Raspberries crushed with pretzel sticks (Again, if you don't need to worry about grain. This is really tasty! The salt in the pretzel sticks makes it worth adding to any cheesecake. You could even crush up a bunch and press it to the bottom of the pan with melted butter to form a crust if you wanted.)
- A cinnamon flavored sugar crumble (Softened butter whipped with cinnamon and sugar until it forms crumbles. You could also add oatmeal :-) )
- Lime gelatin with pears
- Anything your heart desires! Cheesecake pairs well with damn near anything :-)

Or - if you are in the mood for something truly special and happen to have an ice cream maker - try cutting the cheesecake into tiny chunks and then adding them to a strawberry or blueberry ice cream mix just before pouring into the maker. Sheer heaven!

Lastly, this base mix is absolutely PERFECT for making Wontons. All you need is 2-3 packages of wonton wraps, then scoop a spoonful or so of this cheesecake mix (before it has set) into each wrap, seal shut with a dab of water, and then fry in a deep fat frier. I recommend using lard or tallow to fry it in, but sunflower or peanut oil works well too :-)

Good luck and have a happy day :-)