Cooking with a Ranger: 30-Minute Cheesecake

Since I live in the Big Sandy Unit of Big Thicket National Preserve, I'm located about half an hour from the nearest grocery store. This curbs impulse purchases. It's also frustrating if I forget something during a shopping trip. Early this week, I had the impulse to have a slice of cheesecake for dessert. All the recipes I found online were too long and used too many ingredients. So, I decided to make my own recipe based on what I already had. Obviously, this will not taste exactly like the cheesecake you would buy at a store or spend nine hours preparing. However, the goals of this cheesecake were to be fast, cheap, and tasty. I think I managed pretty well by those three options. Here's how to make the 30-Minute Cheesecake.

30-Minute Cheesecake

Ingredients for 30-Minute Cheesecake

Ingredients:

  • 2 Saltine Crackers
  • 1 1/2 tbsp. Brown Sugar
  • 1 tbsp. Margarine
  • 2 1/2 - 3 tbsp. Cream Cheese
  • 1/2 tbsp. Sour Cream (Optional)
A freezer for chilling the cheesecake.

Materials:

  • Single Serving Bowl
  • Microwave
  • Freezer
  • Spoon

Total Time: 30 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Freeze Time: 25 minutes

Directions:

  1. Pulverize 2 Saltine Crackers to the Single Serving Bowl.
  2. Add 1 tbsp. Brown Sugar to the Single Serving Bowl.
  3. Add 1 tbsp. Margarine to the Single Serving Bowl.
  4. Microwave for 15 seconds.
  5. Stir ingredients until combined.
  6. Place Single Serving Bowl in the Freezer for 15 minutes to solidify the crust.
  7. Remove Single Serving Bowl from the Freezer, and add Cream Cheese, Sour Cream (Optional), and remaining Brown Sugar onto the crust, mixing to combine.
  8. Return Single Serving Bowl to the Freezer for an additional 10 minutes
Ingredients in a Single Serving Bowl