Easy No-Bake Millionaire's Cheesecake Recipe - Scottish Scran (2024)

This Millionaire’s Cheesecake recipe is a delicious take on one of our favourite recipes!

Millionaires Shortbread, also known as Caramel Shortcake or Caramel Slice, has long been a popular treat in Scotland.

Millionaire’s Cheesecake gives you all of the flavour and texture of a Millionaire’s Shortbread but with the addition of a delicious caramel cheesecake layer too.

While shortbread is found all over the UK, it’s arguably associated most closely with Scotland, thanks to Mary Queen of Scots popularising it in the 16th century.

Add caramel and chocolate, and you have Millionaire’s Shortbread. Then add cheesecake, and it’s next level!

Why do we love this Millionaire’s Cheesecake?

It isn’t that we don’t already love Millionaires Shortbread! How can we not with that crumbly shortbread base, the sweet caramel layer, and the delicious chocolate topping? We even have our own recipe for it. But this elevates the basic traybake into a delicious dessert.

We also love making cheesecake, as evidenced by one of our most popular posts, Biscoff Cheesecake, as well as our twists on Scottish classics with Cranachan Cheesecake and Tablet Cheesecake.

What’s so great about Millionaires Shortbread Cheesecake?

We have kept things simple with this recipe by crumbling up shortbread for the base, but you can bake one large shortbread base if you want to as well, like our Petticoat Tails Shortbread. More on that later!

Layering the cheesecake is slightly different, with the caramel being added on top of the shortbread base instead of on top of the cheesecake as you might expect. This is so that the cheesecake holds its identifiable layers when it’s sliced. The main idea of this cheesecake is to get the flavour of the Millionaires Shortbread and visual layers too.

It’s easy to make this show-stopper dessert and one of our favourite cheesecake recipes.

Things you need to make Millionaire’s Cheesecake

• Food processor (or
• Springform cake tin
• Mixing bowls
• Hand mixer or whisk
• Spatula

Ingredients needed to make Millionaire’s Cheesecake

For the base

• 325g shortbread biscuits
• 125g melted unsalted butter (1/2 cup + 1 tbsp)

For the caramel layer

• 200g unsalted butter (3/4 cup + 2 tbsp)
• 3 tbsp caster sugar
• 4 tbsp golden syrup
• 397g tin condensed milk

For the cheesecake layer

• 550g cream cheese (2 ½ cups)
• 100g icing sugar (3/4 cup)
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 75g caramel sauce (eg. Carnation caramel) (4 tbsp) – or use some of the caramel you make, but you’ll need to wait until it fully cools.
• 300ml double cream (1 ¼ cups)

For the ganache:

125ml double cream (1/2 cup)
100g dark chocolate chips (2/3 cup)

To decorate (optional):

• Extra caramel sauce and shortbread crumbs

Why a ganache?

Millionaire’s Shortbread usually has a layer of solid chocolate on the topping, but we’ve gone with a ganache for this cheesecake since it’s harder to cut through hard chocolate with a soft layer underneath, and we don’t want the cheesecake to collapse!

How to Make Millionaires Cheesecake – Step-by-step Method

Make the cheesecake base

Add the shortbread biscuits to the bowl of a food processor and blitz into fine crumbs.

Transfer to a mixing bowl and pour in the melted butter. Stir to combine.

Spoon the mixture into a 20cm springform cake tin and push it into the base in an even layer, using the back of a spoon to compact it down. Place this in the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Make the caramel

Add the butter, sugar, golden syrup and condensed milk to a large saucepan. Place over a
medium heat and stir until dissolved.

Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring it to a boil. Stir constantly for 6-8 minutes until the mixture thickens and becomes amber in colour. Remove from the heat and leave to cool for about 5 minutes.

Once the base has finished chilling, pour the caramel on top. Return to the fridge and chill for another hour or until set.

Make the cheesecake layer

Add the cream cheese, icing sugar and vanilla extract to the bowl of an electric mixer and
beat on medium speed using the whisk attachment until combined. You can also do this
with an electric hand whisk if preferred.

Add the caramel sauce and beat again to combine.

Add the double cream and beat until thickened. The mixture should hold its shape and when scooped out with a spoon, you should need to give the spoon a firm tap against the side of the bowl to make the mixture drop off.

Spoon about half of the cheesecake mixture on top of the chilled caramel layer and smooth out with the back of a spoon. Give the tin a few firm taps on the work surface to help remove any air bubbles. Then spoon the rest of the mixture on top. Smooth out and tap once again.

Chill the cheesecake filling in the fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Remove the cheesecake from the springform tin by running a sharp knife around the edge of the tin, then gently unclipping the side and lifting it away. Use a cake lifter or two spatulas to lift the cheesecake away from the base of the tin and transfer it to a plate or cake stand.

Make the ganache

Add the chocolate chips to a mixing bowl.

Add the cream to a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir until it begins to boil.

Immediately pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and let it sit for about a minute.

Whisk together the cream and now melted chocolate until you have a smooth, shiny ganache. Let this cool for about 5 minutes.

Pour the ganache on top of the cheesecake and spread it out to the edges with a knife or spatula. Pop the cheesecake back in the fridge for 30 minutes to allow the chocolate ganache topping to set.

Decorate

If desired, decorate the cheesecake by drizzling some extra caramel sauce over the top and
scattering some extra shortbread crushed biscuits around the edge. If your caramel sauce is too thick to drizzle, pop it in the microwave for about 20 seconds and give it a good stir.

Decorating your Millionaires Cheesecake

We have stuck with a simple lattice design of caramel and crumbled-up shortbread crumbs to put around the edges of the cheesecake, but you can do what you want.

There’s the option to keep it simple and leave off any decoration so it looks like a classic Millionaire’s Shortbread.

You could use a white chocolate drizzle or swirl it into the chocolate ganache as well.

Variations to try

Use different chocolate

We have used dark chocolate in this recipe because the caramel sauce is very sweet and the dark chocolate balances the flavours. But if you do have a sweet tooth, then you could use milk chocolate instead or even try white chocolate.

Bake the base

We have kept things simple by using shortbread biscuits for the base, but you can have a go at making your own shortbread base using our Petticoat Tails Shortbread recipe without the top decorations.

This may have a slightly thicker base than a normal cheesecake base, or you can use a larger tin for a thinner base.

FAQs

How do I store Millionaire’s Cheesecake?

This cheesecake is best stored in the fridge. You will need to cover it or add the cheesecake to a large airtight container. It will last in the fridge for up to three days. However, it certainly didn’t in our house!

Why didn’t my cheesecake set?

This is usually because you might not have whipped the cream for long enough. You need to make sure that the cream forms stiff peaks before moving on to the next step.

Another thing to consider is not leaving it to chill for long enough. If you are worried, put it back in the fridge for longer and see how it works out.

Failed cheesecakes make great milkshakes!

Can I freeze the cheesecake?

Sure! This is a great recipe to make ahead of time. Freeze as a whole or in slices. Just allow it to come to room temperature by leaving it out on the counter for 3-4 hours, and then enjoy it.

This is also good if you don’t finish your cheesecake, as you can freeze slices and get that sweet fix whenever you want it.

Other cheesecakes to try:

• No-Bake Lotus Biscoff Cheesecake Recipe
• Easy No-Bake Mint Aero Cheesecake Recipe
• Scottish Cranachan Cheesecake Recipe

Pin for later!

Other Cheesecake Recipes

• Biscoff Cheesecake
• Mint Aero Cheesecake
• Cranachan Cheesecake – Oats, Raspberries, Honey & Whisky!
• Scottish Tablet Cheesecake