I had a really fun idea to turn a cheesecake into a sandcastle – behold, the no bake sandcastle cheesecake, it’s incredibly simple to make and would be great for a Birthday! So it’s a little tricky to give you the exact measurements for what you’ll need, but the amounts I went for in the end gave me enough crumb for the sandcastle crust but too much cheesecake filling, so i’ve tweaked them below. Essentially you’ll need to play it by ear if you have a large sandcastle bucket, but hey too much is ok, just make normal cheesecakes!
So start off by making the cheesecake filling first so it can start chilling whilst you build the bucket! In a mixing bowl combine the cream cheese and icing sugar, mix together until just combined, try not to over stir the cream cheese, keep it as thick as you can.
Then pour in the vanilla extract and the cream and stir through steadily, it will be thin at first but keep mixing until the mixture is thick and smooth. Put in the fridge for the time being to give it a head start when cooling.
For the crumb, bash the biscuits in a zip log bag until nice and fine. Add into a large mixing bowl and stir in the butter, make sure you coat all the biscuit crumbs evenly in the butter so it sort of makes them a little darker in colour. Now begin pressing the mixture into the sandcastle bucket a little at a time start with the bottom and press it in firm, then slowly build up the sides until you reach the top, the video shows this pretty well. Remember to leave some to seal it in.
Ok take the cheesecake filling from the fridge and spoon into the crumb bucket that you have made, once you reach near the top add the remaining crumbs to seal it in, starting on the edge where the crumb is and pressing in firmly until you have got all the top fully covered. Place in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours to firm up. Remove from the fridge and allow to adjust to room temperature, run a knife along the inside and turn out onto a board. It’s best to use quite a cheap and flimsy sandcastle bucket because the plastic will bend easier and it will pop out. You could always line it if you wish with cling film but that would be very tricky to not get some creases on the marks on the outside of a more complex bucket.
Either way have fun with this idea. You can serve it up with extra bashed biscuits and some seaside props like a windmill and shells. Enjoy!