A luscious creamy filling, buttery biscuit base and the distinctive taste of the classic caramel flavoured chocolate bar – what's not to love about this decadent no bake Caramac cheesecake?
Honestly, this is one of the best cheesecake recipes out there! There's something so satisfying about this retro cheesecake.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Indulgent desserts don’t get much better!
- A no bake cheesecake means you don’t have to bake it in the oven
- It’s a straightforward recipe that produces delicious results
- Children love it!
- Once you’ve mastered this recipe, you can make any kind of no bake cheesecake
Equipment Needed To Make This Recipe
There are a few important kitchen items that you’ll need before you make this caramac cheesecake recipe:
- Food processor – a quality food processor is the best way to blitz up your deliciously buttery base
- 9 inch springform cheesecake pan – accept no substitutes! This kind of the pan is tailor made for a caramac cheesecake. Don’t be tempted to use anything else, as it makes it so easy much easier to remove the cheesecake
- Weighing scales – a good quality set of weighing scales will ensure you get your measurements right, giving you the best possible taste and texture
- Stand mixer – use a stand mixer to get a beautifully velvety texture for your cheesecake mixture.
Ingredients needed to make this recipe
How To Make No Bake Caramac Cheesecake
Crush the biscuits.
Tip the crumbs into a lined loose-bottomed cake tin and flatten into an even layer.
Break the Caramac into pieces and melt.
Whisk the cream cheese and vanilla together.
Whisk in the icing sugar.
Whisk the double cream until soft peaks form then fold into the cream cheese mixture.
Transfer contents to cake tin and smooth over. Let it set in fridge overnight and then decorate. Enjoy!
What to Serve with this Cheesecake
This caramac cheesecake recipe goes really well with a crisp dry white wine. I’d recommend something like a New Zealand Pinot Gris, which tastes sensational with caramel flavours.
Another suggestion, for those who prefer something sweeter and richer, is an Amontillado sherry or a similar kind of sherry.
Popular Substitutions For This Recipe
This cheesecake is quite adaptable. Here are a few ideas when it comes to swapping ingredients:
- If you’re not in the UK but in the States, you can swap out the digestive biscuits for Graham crackers. Otherwise, any other plain biscuit will do
- If you don’t have any vanilla paste, you can swap it out for vanilla extract, which can be substituted at an equal ratio
Variations To This Recipe
- Make this a gluten free recipe with gluten free caramel chocolate and gluten free biscuits
- Add chocolate chips or chocolate sprinkles on top of your cheesecake
- For a more solid fudge-like consistency to your cheesecake mixture, add more caramac
- Not a fan of the caramel flavoured retro chocolate? No worries. You can easily substitute caramac for any other chocolate bar of your choice
Top Tips
Here are a few tips to make sure your caramac cheesecake is as good as it can be:
- Only go for full fat cream cheese. When making no bake cheesecakes, reduced fat cream cheese leads to a filling that doesn’t set properly
- Make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature. This will give you a perfectly smooth mixture
- Use the bottom of a large glass or a coffee tamper to pack down the biscuit base. This will help it set properly
- You can remove bubbles in your cheesecake filling by dropping the cheesecake pan onto the countertop 5 to 10 times from a height of about 5 inches
- Give your cheesecake time to set – at least 6 hours in the fridge should do the trick, but preferably overnight
Yes! Caramac bars were big in the '80s and '90s and, although their popularity dipped a bit, they're back! Caramac bars can be bought in most supermarkets. If you want to buy in bulk, you can also get them online.
Caramac was first introduced into the UK in 1959 by the sweet manufacturer Mackintosh's – the name is a blend of 'Mackintosh's' and 'caramel'.
Well, believe it or not, they don't contain chocolate! Instead, caramac contains vegetable fats, Sugar, milk lactose, condensed skimmed milk, skimmed milk powder, butterfat, emulsifier, treacle and salt.
The best way to store your caramac cheesecake is in the fridge. Store it in an airtight container for extra freshness.
You can either store it in a proper full sized cheesecake container or slice it and keep it in a smaller container. Caramac cheesecake will stay fresh in the fridge for up to three days when stored in a proper airtight container.
You can also freeze this recipe. Freezing will affect the taste and texture somewhat, but it’s a good idea if you want to keep your cheesecake for longer.
To freeze your cheesecake, first divide it into individual slices. Then place parchment paper between each slice and store the slices in an airtight freezer safe container.
To thaw this cheesecake, allow your caramac cheesecake defrost in the fridge overnight. This way, the taste and texture won’t be affected too much.
No. The measurements are specific to the size of the cheesecake tin. Although, if you want, you can double the ingredients and make two cheesecakes!
It can be made in advance though. You can make a no bake cheesecake up to 2 days in advance. However, it’s best to leave the decoration stage until just before serving.
A non-stick palette knife is the easiest way to remove it from the springform tin. It's easier if it's hot, so dip in a jar of hot or boiling water, then run it around the rim on the inside of the pan. The cheesecake should come away easily.
Another excellent method is to use a kitchen blowtorch. They are inexpensive and easy to get hold of. Plus, they're so valuable for moments like this, when the last thing you want is for the cheesecake to fall apart at the final stage.
Simply heat the outside of the tin with the blow torch, then carefully remove.
First of all, you need to leave it in the fridge overnight, in order to make sure it sets properly.
If you can't wait that long (who can blame you?) leave it in the fridge for at least 6 hours, otherwise it could end up a sloppy mess.
The way you whisk the mixture is also key. It needs to be whisked enough to become creamy, smooth and thicken properly. For this, I highly recommend using a stand mixer.
Finally, to avoid the mixture becoming grainy and thin, always use full fat cream cheese. Whether it's Philadelphia, mascarpone or a generic brand, make sure it's not reduced fat.
If your biscuit base isn't setting properly, it's probably because your biscuits weren't packed down enough.
Using the bottom of a glass or a coffee tamper really helps to condense the base, making it strong enough to act as a foundation for your caramac cheesecake.
It's not, although you can make it gluten free. Simply use gluten free biscuits for the base and a gluten free caramel chocolate.
Other Cheesecake Recipes You’ll Love
Once you’ve got the hang of this no caramac cheesecake, it’ll be so much easier to try other recipes. Here are some of my favourites:
- No bake pomegranate cheesecake – if you fancy something a little fruitier, this one is perfect. It's bursting with flavour and pomegranate is such an underused fruit that's perfect for a cheesecake. Make this on a summer day or all year round and let the day float away
- No bake dulce de leche cheesecake – amazing flavours with a delicious creamy texture and wonderfully crumbly base
- No bake lemon cheesecake – this is another fruity cheesecake that's perfect for a spring or summer day. Zesty, refreshing and decadent, all in one
- No bake Oreo cheesecake – chocolate heaven! This one is full on decadent and, when it comes to easy desserts that never fail to impress, this chocolate recipe is right up the top of the list. It's simply irresistible!
- No bake mocha cheesecake – this is one for the coffee lovers out there! Coffee and chocolate are a match made in heaven and make for an incredible cheesecake that you’ll go back to again and again
- No bake espresso cheesecake – another one for those coffee fans, here’s another coffee cheesecake that will make you swoon. Creamy, rich and wonderfully satisfying, this no bake is wonderful
- No bake cherry cheesecake – lots of flavour and heaps of charm, this recipe is absolutely delicious. If you love cherries, this is the dessert for you
- Easter egg cheesecake – the perfect Easter dessert (other than Easter eggs!) this is out and out chocolate heaven, with the decadent factor turned up to the max
Don’t forget to come back and let us know how your recipe turned out!
Ingredients
Base
- 4 cups digestive biscuits
- ⅔ cup unsalted butter melted
Filling
- 12 30g bars Caramac chocolate broken into pieces
- 2⅔ cups cream cheese
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- ¾ cup icing sugar
- 1½ cups double cream
To decorate
- ½ cup heavy (double) cream
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 2 30g bars Caramac chocolate melted
Instructions
- To create the base: Crush the biscuits. I used a food processor to achieve a consistent crumb, and the butter and mix through until fully combined.
- Pour into your 9 inch springform tin. I lined the base with greaseproof paper as it makes it so much easier to remove at the end. Spread the crumb evenly and with the base of a glass compact the base and then transfer to the fridge
- For the filling: place the Caramac chocolate in a microwavable bowl and on 30 second blasts, stirring after each blast, until fully melted. Set aside to cool.
- In your mixing bowl, place the cream cheese and the vanilla paste and whisk together. Slowly add the icing sugar a spoonful at a time until fully incorporated and then do the same with the white chocolate. I used a KitchenAid stand mixer.
- In a separate bowl whisk the double cream until you achieve soft peaks and then fold through the cream cheese mixture.
- Remove the base from the refrigerator and pour the filling mixture over the top and with the back of a spoon spread evenly.
- Drop the tin onto the counter top to release any bubbles that may have been trapped, I do this 5-10 times from about 5 inches from the counter top.
- Transfer to the fridge and leave to set for around 6 hours or preferably overnight.
- To Decorate: Place the heavy (double) cream, icing sugar and vanilla paste into a bowl and whisk until you achieve soft peak consistency.
- Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag and decorate as you so desire and drizzle over the melted Caramac chocolate. Use our pictures for inspiration.
Notes
- You can use whatever biscuit you like for the base but I just found the digestive biscuit goes so well and cuts through the richness of the filling.
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