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A cup containing deep magenta frozen berry puree topped with creamy chunks of cheesecake, and a spoon in the background.

Berry Granita with Mint Cheesecake Bites

This berry granita with mint cheesecake bites has a good combo of fruity, refreshing icy bits and creamy, minty cheesecake.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Fusion, Italian
Keyword berries, blueberries, cheesecake, cherries, cream cheese, dessert, egg-free, fruit, graham crackers, granita, herbs, mint, nut-free, peppermint, summer, vegetarian
Prep Time 45 minutes
Freeze Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 15 minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 266 kcal

Ingredients

Mint Cheesecake Bites

  • 7 sheets graham crackers
  • 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter melted
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 4 ounces cream cheese room temperature
  • 3 ½ ounces sweetened condensed milk (or ¼ cup + ½ T)
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
  • 2 tablespoons sliced mint leaves

Berry Granita

  • 3 cups frozen mixed berries
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Assembly

  • mint leaves for garnishing

Instructions

Mint Cheesecake Bites

  1. Empty the graham crackers into a food processor, and pulse until very fine crumbs form. Eyeball ½ of the crumbs into a medium bowl.
  2. Stir the sugar, then the butter into the crumb until well combined.
  3. Press half of the crumbs into the bottom and up an inch of a greased 8x8” pan. Don’t worry if it seems like a thin layer. Freeze for at least 10 minutes.
  4. Beat the cream cheese in a large bowl until smooth. Beat in the condensed milk a little at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl, as necessary. Beat in the extracts, mint leaves and a pinch of salt.
  5. Pour the filling into the crust; smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle another ¼ of the graham cracker crumbs on top of the cheesecake, pressing them in gently. Cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until firm, 2 ½ to 3 hours.
  6. Pry the cheesecake out of the pan, using a fork or offset spatula to loosen the bottom and sides. Don't worry if you chip off some of the graham cracker crumbs; you'll coat the cheesecake bites in the crumb again later. Invert onto a cutting board.
  7. Transfer the rest of the graham cracker crumbs to a shallow bowl or plate.
  8. Using a sharp chef's knife, cut the cheesecake into mini cubes about ½" x ½", then place in the bowl of crumbs and roll to coat them. Freeze until ready to use.

Berry Granita

  1. In the food processor, place the berries and lemon juice with a pinch of salt and a big splash of water. Blend until a smooth puree forms.
  2. Pour the puree into a 9x13" pan and freeze for 2-3 hours. Depending on the size of your pan, the granita will freeze at a different speed (ie a bigger pan means the puree will freeze faster). Every 20-30 minutes, using a fork, scrape the ice (all of it, not just the top layer), to make sure that the juice doesn't freeze into one block.

Assembly

  1. Take the cheesecake bites out of the freezer 5 minutes before serving to let them warm up slightly.

  2. Divide half of the puree between 6 serving glasses, then add a few cheesecake bites to each glass. Repeat layering once more. Top with extra mint, then serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Cheesecake bites slightly adapted from Martha Stewart.

Feel free to make this ahead; note that if you do, the granita will be harder to break into smaller pieces and be a little coarser. Still delicious this way!