No-Bake Frosted Circus Animal Cookie Cheesecake

Now I’m not the biggest fan in the world of cheesecake (I know, I know, I’m crazy). So I wanted to challenge myself to make a cheesecake that I actually enjoyed, and what better way to please a sugar-fanatic than with a frosted circus animal cookie cheesecake?! And I’m not joking when I say that this cheesecake definitely hits the spot for me while still staying true enough to a traditional cheesecake. I used to LOVE frosted animal cookies when I was a kid, and I’m proud to announce that they are still as delicious as ever, so when I came up with the idea to make a cheesecake crust out of these adorable cookies, I knew I had to try it ASAP. And for all of you out there that are maybe not so confident in your baking skills, this baby is a NO-BAKE cheesecake so don’t worry! Keep the sugar coming!!

20 oz frosted circus animal cookies
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pink food coloring
Your favorite vanilla frosting

1. Put the circus animal cookies in a food processor and chop them up until they are crumbs. Add the butter to the crumbs and mix until well combined.

2. Press the crust into the bottom and around the edges of a 9″ springform pan. Chill the crust for 10 minutes.

3. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add in the condensed milk until it is all combined. Add in lemon juice and vanilla.

4. Section off about 1/4 of the cheesecake mixture and color it pink. Pour the mixture over your crust, alternating between pink and the normal cheesecake color. Marble the top of the cheesecake by swirling the colors together with a toothpick.

5. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 3 hours or until firm. Using more frosted circus animal crackers, cover the top of the cheesecake.

6. Pipe frosting along the edges and cover with sprinkles. Enjoy!

Be right back, going to go get myself a slice of this cheesecake! And if you want some frosted circus animal ice cream to go along with your cheesecake, we’ve got just the thing right here!