What a strawberry cream cheese layered dessert is
This is a chilled dessert built in a baking dish: a buttery base, a sweet cream cheese layer, and a strawberry layer on top. It is sometimes called strawberry delight, and it overlaps with strawberry pretzel salad and jello cream cheese desserts. It is popular at potlucks because it is made ahead, serves a group, and needs little oven time, or none.
Two common styles
Recipes online tend to fall into two camps.
- Strawberry delight. A graham cracker crust, a fluffy cream cheese and whipped topping filling, fresh sliced strawberries, and a strawberry gel or sauce layer. Many versions are completely no-bake.
- Jello cream cheese dessert. A shortbread-style crust, a cream cheese layer that is set with gelatin, and a strawberry gelatin layer on top. This style sits between a pretzel salad and a cheesecake. One popular version uses a walnut shortbread crust, which gets baked briefly before the layers are added.
If you want a more gelatin-forward approach with a graham crust and pie shape, see our strawberry jello dessert with graham cracker crust.
Ingredients
Exact amounts depend on your recipe and pan size, so use these as a shopping guide:
- Crust: crushed graham crackers (or shortbread-style crumbs) with melted butter and a little sugar
- Cream cheese layer: softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and whipped topping or whipped cream
- Strawberry layer: fresh strawberries, plus either strawberry gelatin or a strawberry glaze or pie filling
- Topping: whipped topping and a few fresh berries for garnish
Let the cream cheese soften fully at room temperature before mixing. Cold cream cheese tends to leave lumps. For more ways to use it, see our 3-ingredient cream cheese desserts and easy mini strawberry cheesecakes.
Layer by layer
- Crust. Mix crumbs with melted butter, press firmly into a 9x13-inch dish, and chill or bake as your recipe directs. Let it cool completely before adding anything creamy.
- Cream cheese layer. Beat the cream cheese until smooth, add sugar and vanilla, and then fold in whipped topping or whipped cream. Spread gently to the edges so the crust is sealed.
- Strawberry layer. Spoon on sliced strawberries and the gel or glaze. If using gelatin, let it cool to lukewarm before pouring so it does not melt the layer below.
- Chill. Refrigerate until set. Many recipes recommend several hours, and some recommend overnight for the cleanest slices.
Tips
- Seal the edges. A tight seal between the cream layer and the pan edge helps keep a gelatin or glaze layer from seeping down.
- Dry the berries. Pat sliced strawberries with paper towels so they do not release extra liquid.
- Wait before cutting. Cutting too early gives soft, messy slices. A well-chilled dessert cuts more cleanly with a warm, wiped knife.
Variations
- Swap strawberries for raspberries, blueberries, or cherries.
- Try a different gelatin flavor in the jello cream cheese style.
- Replace graham crackers with crushed pretzels for a sweet-and-salty base, closer to a pretzel salad.
- Use pecans or other nuts in a shortbread crust if you prefer.
Make ahead and storage
These desserts are well suited to making a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Some recipe sources say a no-bake strawberry delight keeps for around three days refrigerated, but fruit softens over time, so the first day or two is usually best. If it will travel, carry it in the dish with a lid and keep it cold.
Serving for a crowd
A 9x13-inch pan usually yields roughly 12 to 18 portions depending on how it is cut. For a gelatin-based dessert that travels well in a different format, see the jello and whipped cream layered dessert.