No-bake pumpkin cheesecake in individual cups! They are great to please a crowd and you can prepare them beforehand to chill in the fridge until ready to serve. 

No-Bake pumpkin cheesecake in individual cups! They are great to please a crowd and you can prepare them beforehand to chill in the fridge.

When I sat down at the dining table surrounded by family and friends in my new apartment at Domain Northside in Austin, TX, we raised our glasses to toast the special moment. I couldn’t help thinking, what brought us all together?

My memory flashed back to four years ago when I landed in San Francisco, CA on April 15, 2013.

Fresh off the boat from Shanghai, China, life was full of excitement at the time. Needless to say, I neglected to even think about what was ahead of me.

Friendsgiving gathering

While I was waiting for the immigration paperwork to come through so I could be allowed to work legally in the States, I desperately needed something to do — starting a food blog to document my mom’s recipes came into mind.

Without knowing half of the produce in Whole Foods Market, I started writing down the names of the ingredients that I had never before seen in my life, Googling them, searching for recipes to cook them, and trying to understand the flavors and what to pair with them. I also spent hours on the phone daily with my mom to learn her recipes and practice cooking in the kitchen over and over again. The first recipe I made for the blog, which I still remember distinctly to this day, was a stupidly simple spinach recipe, but it took me five pounds of spinach to get it right. That’s a lot of spinach.

No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

The truth is that I dived deeply into cooking. Learning it and practicing every day made me forget about all my worries and anxiety regarding my future. It was like a life-saving block of wood appeared right before I drowned. I held on tight and never let go. Quickly, I didn’t feel useless anymore, I didn’t feel lonely anymore, and I didn’t feel that the Pacific Ocean was in the way between my mother and me anymore.

Fast forward to today, even though life had taken me from San Francisco, CA, and Jacksonville, FL, and then to Austin, TX, I cook for a change. It’s a change that has presented so many opportunities that I never knew existed. Most importantly, it’s a change that will always bring family and friends together, no matter where I am.

No-Bake pumpkin cheesecake in individual cups! They are great to please a crowd and you can prepare them beforehand to chill in the fridge.

Photo by Kaylin from Enticing Healthy Eating

So this holiday season, I had the privilege to host a small Friendsgiving party at my place. Most of the recipes I cooked for the gathering are already shared on this blog, such as Slow Cooker Beef Burgundy, Garlic Pull-Apart Bread, and Kale Salad with Oregano Lemon Vinaigrette. As for the dessert, I came up with these No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups that brought the entire meal to an ultimately satisfying conclusion.

I used Simply Organic cinnamon and pumpkin spice for the recipe. The individual cheesecake cups turned out amazing. The best part is that you don’t even have to turn on the oven. You can find the recipe below.

No-Bake pumpkin cheesecake in individual cups! They are great to please a crowd and you can prepare them beforehand to chill in the fridge.

Before we wrap up, I wanted to share with you my biggest lesson from self-taught cooking in the past four years. Nothing is impossible, my friend. If I can learn to cook western food, you can learn anything that you put your mind to. Whether it’s learning a new language, learning to play an instrument, or learning to dance, as long as you put in the effort and are persistent, you can do anything.

Now, I would like to hear from you. How has cooking changed your life, in small and big ways? Leave a comment below. I’d love to hear your story.

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No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

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  • Author: Sharon Chen
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 4.5 hours
  • Yield: 12 muffin cups 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Mix
  • Cuisine: American
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Description

No-Bake pumpkin cheesecake in individual cups! They are great to please a crowd and you can prepare them beforehand to chill in the fridge until ready to serve.


Ingredients

Scale

For the crust:

  • 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (or 9 whole crackers)
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 teaspoon Simply Organic Cinnamon
  • A pinch of salt
  • 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the pumpkin cheesecake cup filling:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup canned pumpkin
  • 1/4 teaspoon Simply Organic Pumpkin Spice
  • 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

  1. If using whole graham crackers, place them in a Ziploc bag and roll with a rolling pin until the crackers turn into crumbs.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add graham crumbs, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt together. Mix well. Stir in melted butter until well combined.
  3. Line a 12-cup muffin tray with cupcake liners. Add ¼ cup of the crust mixture into each muffin cup. Use the back of a spoon to press the crust mixture tightly to the bottom of the muffin cups. Freeze for 10 minutes.
  4. In the meantime, prepare the pumpkin cheesecake filling. In a clean, large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and granulated sugar with an electronic hand mixer on medium speed for about 30 seconds until smooth and creamy. Beat in pumpkin and pumpkin spice on slow speed until well combined.
  5. Wash the mixer and dry completely. In a separate medium bowl, beat heavy whipping cream on high speed for about a minute or until stiff peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the cheese mixture with a spoon until just combined. (Do not beat.)
  6. Take the muffin tray out of the freezer. Spoon ¼ cup cheese mixture into each muffin cup on top of the crust. Use the back of a spoon to smooth the surface of each cheesecake cup. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or until the filling is set.
  7. Before serving, garnish with more cinnamon. Enjoy!


Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 278
  • Sugar: 12.7g
  • Sodium: 174.9mg
  • Fat: 22.3g
  • Saturated Fat: 12.7g
  • Trans Fat: 0.3g
  • Carbohydrates: 18.9g
  • Fiber: 0.6g
  • Protein: 2.6g
  • Cholesterol: 68.6mg

About the Author

Sharon Chen, StreetSmart Kitchen

Sharon Chen is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and author of the Complete Sous Vide Cookbook. She believes food not only brings healing but also connection. As the creator of StreetSmart Kitchen, she aims to make meal prep easier than ever and help you find balance, ease, joy, and simplicity in the kitchen as you improve your well-being.