Sweet and Satisfying
Strawberry Chiffon Cheesecake Parfaits begin with a light and fluffy cheesecake mouse on top of a graham cracker crust, and topped with fresh strawberries. This easy dessert requires only stove top cooking and they are so pretty!
Graham Cracker Crust lays the foundation for a bed of fluffy pink cheesecake bursting with strawberry flavor. And for the finishing touch, top it off with freshly diced strawberries. Perhaps you would like to add a little chocolate to this dessert. Consider swapping out the graham cracker crust for a layer of Chocolate Sand.
The Cream Cheese
My original recipe called for Neufchatel Cheese which is a 1/3 lower in fat than original cream cheese. Even with this lower fat version, the chiffon cheesecake was still higher in calories than I wanted it to be. My goal was to produce a sweet satisfying dessert without giving up flavor or texture. Ultimately, I was able to achieve this by making my own non-fat cream cheese. I simply place two containers of Trader Joe’s Icelandic Nonfat Plain Yogurt in a strainer lined with cheesecloth. Twenty-four hours later you will be left with a smooth, creamy cheese which is the perfect stand-in for cream cheese. Experiment with your favorite yogurt to produce your own nonfat version of cream cheese or replace with a store bought version of fat-free cream cheese.
The Pretty Pink Flavor of Strawberry
To impart the flavor of strawberries into the cream cheese, I opted to use freeze dried strawberries ground into a powder, in a food processor. The use of this powder provides plenty of strawberry flavor without breaking down the chiffon, as well as, creating a beautiful pink-strawberry color. You can find freeze dried strawberries at health food stores, Trader Joe’s and here:
If you don’t want to take the time to grind it into a powder, it is also available in powder form. However, it is almost double in price.
The Crust
Traditionally, the crust would go into the bottom of the parfait as pictured above. However, if you are preparing this parfait to be served later, I recommend sprinkling the graham cracker crust on top just before serving. It has been my experience that the crust becomes soggy over a long period of time.
Additionally if you would like to change the flavor profile of this parfait by adding chocolate, consider swapping out the Graham Cracker Crust for my recipe for Chocolate Sand.
Weight Watchers and Waist Watchers
This recipe produces three cups of filling. Divide the filling into 6 equal servings of a 1/2 cup each. Each serving is 3 WW Smart Points. Top it with 1 Tablespoon of Graham Cracker Crust for an additional 2 points. A 1/2 cups serving of chiffon cheesecake plus 1 tablespoon of Graham Cracker Crust is 5 WW Smart Points. If you would like to shave off the extra points, simply omit the crust and top with fresh strawberries.
- 1/2 Cup Serving of Filling is 3 WW Smart Points
- 1 Tablespoon of Graham Cracker Crust is 2 WW Smart Points
- One serving of Strawberry Chiffon Cheesecake 5 WW Smart Points
Buon Appetito!
