Some of the best desserts don’t require any cooking. This is one of them.

These are adorable little cheesecake parfaits. It is layers of graham crumbs, a creamy yogurt filling and fresh strawberries. It is a lighter, but equally delicious, version of a classic cheesecake. And since these are no-bake, it is much quicker to prepare (not including chilling time).

I love cheesecake but it can be a little finnicky to bake and it is also usually quite unhealthy because of the high fat content in cream cheese. I have solved both of those problems with this dessert. For one, you don’t have to worry about this cheesecake cracking in the oven (because you don’t need an oven here). And for two, I have lightened up the cream cheese with some nonfat plain greek yogurt. You get the same creamy factor with a fraction of the calories!

I made these parfaits in cute little jars (2oz size), but you could double/triple the recipe and use larger jars. Larger sized jars make assembly easier because the mouth of the jar will be wider. If using small jars like me, it may be helpful to use a piping bag for the filling. While it may take a few extra minutes to put these together, it is worth it because they are the cutest little treats!

Once your parfaits are assembled, you CAN eat them right away, BUT they will be much better after chilling in the fridge for a couple of hours. This will give a chance for the dairy to firm up and get really cold.

This will be your new favourite summer dessert. You can switch this up by using any other berry or even mango. You can also add a chocolatey twist by mixing in 1 tbsp cocoa powder into the yogurt mixture and using chocolate cookie crumbs. Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt (DF/vegan: use DF yogurt)
• 1/2 cup cream cheese (1/2 bar), softened (DF/vegan: use DF cream cheese)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup graham crumbs (DF/vegan: ensure they do not contain any honey or dairy) (GF: use gluten free graham crackers)
• 1/2 cup strawberries, finely diced

Directions:

1. In medium bowl, cream together the greek yogurt and cream cheese until smooth. This can be done easily using a wooden spoon. Stir in sugar and vanilla. (Optional: at this point you can transfer yogurt mixture to piping bag).
2. Spoon (or pipe) 2 tbsp yogurt mixture into the bottom of your jars, followed by 2 tsp graham crumbs and 1 tbsp chopped strawberries. Then put another 2 tbsp yogurt mixture, 2 more tsp graham crumbs and a couple more strawberries on top.*
3. Cover jars with plastic and chill in fridge for 2-3 hours.

*Amounts of each ingredient can be adjusted depending on size of jar used. All that matters is that you can see the individual layer in the jar