These New Frozen Philadelphia Cheesecakes Might Replace Your Family Recipe

I’ve been around a surprising number of cheesecakes (store-bought and homemade) in my day. My grandpa absolutely loves cheesecake, so it’s an easy way to score forgiveness for not giving him any great-grandchildren. And many of those cheesecakes were made with Philadelphia cream cheese, so it’s only fitting that they get into the premade cheesecake game themselves. The iconic cream cheesery was kind enough to send over both of their new freezer-aisle cheesecakes for me to check out. Let’s see if these are good enough to get me out of continuing the bloodline.

Philadelphia Cheesecake!

Philadelphia Original Cheesecake

Ralphs

Pros: It’s funny to say, but I love how much crust is in this cheesecake. As we all know, the crust is easily the best part of any cheesecake, so the generous base layer of this cheesecake is a great selling point. Thankfully, the “cheesecake” part of the cheesecake is also good—heavy on that cream cheese flavor. To keep this review focused, I didn’t zhuzh it up with any toppings or garnishes; but I’d recommend adding something to make it visually interesting for your guests.

Cons: While most store-bought cheesecakes are typically found in the cooler section, these are located in the freezer aisle. The instructions say you should thaw this in the fridge for twelve hours before serving…which I did not read until I was already eating a slice. The good news is that it’s soft enough to eat after just a few minutes outside the freezer, but it definitely felt more like ice cream in my mouth than what I was expecting from cheesecake.

Credit: Liv Averett / Ralphs

Rating:

7/10

Sporks

Philadelphia Cheesecake!

Philadelphia Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake

Instacart

Pros: Oh, now we’re talking. Classic cheesecake has a place in the world (underneath whipped cream and assorted fruits), but this flavored variant can absolutely stand alone as a dessert with no extra steps. The strawberry swirl layer is a great addition in both flavor and texture. The crust on this one was even thicker than the classic cheesecake’s; if that’s a factory error, let’s make it intentional moving forward.

Cons: Call me crazy, but isn’t the standard “fruity swirl” for cheesecakes raspberry? I’m not really complaining, I’m just surprised.

Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks