Dubai Chocolate Strawberry Cups (Printable View)

Layers of chocolate biscuit, creamy filling, and fresh strawberries create a luscious chilled delight.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Base

01 - 5.3 oz chocolate digestive biscuits or chocolate graham crackers, crushed
02 - 1.8 oz unsalted butter, melted

→ Cheesecake Filling

03 - 8.8 oz cream cheese, softened
04 - 2.8 oz powdered sugar
05 - 6.8 fl oz heavy cream, cold
06 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ Strawberry Layer

07 - 7 oz fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
08 - 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, optional for macerating

→ Chocolate Ganache

09 - 2.8 oz dark chocolate, chopped
10 - 2.7 fl oz heavy cream

→ Garnish

11 - 6 whole fresh strawberries
12 - Dark chocolate shavings, optional
13 - Crushed pistachios, optional

# How To Make It:

01 - Combine crushed chocolate biscuits with melted butter in a mixing bowl until evenly incorporated. Distribute mixture equally among six serving cups, pressing gently to form a compact base layer.
02 - Beat softened cream cheese with powdered sugar until smooth and uniform. In a separate bowl, whip cold heavy cream with vanilla extract to soft peaks. Fold whipped cream gently into cream cheese mixture until fully combined and creamy throughout.
03 - Spoon or pipe cheesecake filling evenly over biscuit bases in each cup. Smooth the surface with a spatula to create uniform layers.
04 - Toss sliced strawberries with 1 tablespoon sugar if desired. Allow to rest for 10 minutes to release natural juices and develop flavor.
05 - Layer macerated strawberries evenly over the cheesecake filling in each cup, distributing evenly across all servings.
06 - Heat heavy cream until just simmering. Pour over chopped dark chocolate and allow to sit undisturbed for 1 minute. Stir until smooth and glossy. Cool slightly, then spoon a thin layer over strawberries in each cup.
07 - Refrigerate assembled cups for a minimum of 2 hours until ganache and cheesecake layers are completely set.
08 - Top each cup with a whole strawberry, dark chocolate shavings, and crushed pistachios as desired before serving.

# Best Practices:

01 -
  • No oven required, which means your kitchen stays cool and you can make these while doing literally anything else.
  • Each layer tastes distinct but somehow comes together like they were always meant to be together.
  • They look fancy enough to serve at dinner parties but casual enough to eat straight from the fridge on a Tuesday night.
02 -
  • Fold, don't stir, when combining the whipped cream into the cheese mixture or you'll deflate all your air and end up with something dense instead of cloud-like.
  • The ganache must cool slightly before going on top or it will melt the cheesecake layer underneath and compromise your beautiful structure.
03 -
  • Room temperature cream cheese is non-negotiable; cold cheese means lumps, and lumps mean frustration.
  • Whipping cream to soft peaks instead of stiff peaks gives you that cloud-like texture that folds seamlessly into the cheese without deflating.
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