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Anyone ever heard of Milnot Cheesecake? I hadn't either. It was apparently all the rage back in my Great Grandma Thelma's day, however. It was a cool, lightly lemony dream of a dessert. The no-bake mousse-textured "cheesecake" on a graham cracker crust was served chilled straight from the fridge.

My Great Grandma Thelma passed away a few days before Christmas, and I wanted to bake a Milnot Cheesecake in her honor. She wasn't your average person, though, so I didn't want to make your average dessert. Instead, I put an outrageous twist on the cheesecake, turning it into a Milnot Cheesecake Cheesecake!

I stacked a layer of Milnot Cheesecake on top of a layer of creamy, thick regular cheesecake. This double-layered dessert has a mixture of textures and a light, airy flavor that would make Grandma Thelma proud.

Milnot Cheesecake Cheesecake Recipe by: Willow Bird Baking, using an age-old recipe for Milnot Cheesecake found on Recipes for Laughter Yield: serves 8-10 This recipe is a twist on the classic, no-bake Milnot Cheesecake. A layer of fluffy, delicious Milnot cheesecake sits like a delicate lemon cloud over a rich layer of traditional cheesecake. A cinnamon graham cracker crust encircles the whole shebang. See the note on scheduling below to break this recipe into a few manageable parts. Cheesecake Ingredients: 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature 1 cup granulated sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3 large eggs 2 heaping cups graham cracker crumbs (I use the cinnamon kind) 6 tablespoons butter Milnot Cheesecake Topping Ingredients: 1/2 small package of lemon Jell-o gelatin mix (this will be 3 tablespoons and 1/4 teaspoon of the powder) 1/2 cup boiling water 8 ounces (1 package) of cream cheese, at room temperature 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla a few drops yellow food coloring, optional 1/2 of a 12-ounce can Milnot or evaporated milk, chilled (this will be about 3/4 cup) crumbled graham cracker crumbs for decorationg Directions: Notes: Cheesecakes are simple and super customizable. New to cheesecake making? Watch my 6 minute Cheesecake Video Tutorial for visual assistance! This recipe can be divided up over several days. You can make the cheesecake one day and chill it overnight, make and add the Milnot cheesecake topping the next day, and serve on day 3! Make the cheesecake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a springform cheesecake pan. Combine the cookie crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl. Toss with a fork to moisten all of the crumbs. Using a flat-sided glass, press into an even layer covering the bottom and sides of your cheesecake pan (you want it to be tall — try to get to about 2.5-3 inches high -- and a little thicker than for your usual cheesecake; maybe 1/4 inch thick so it won't crumble). Bake the crust for about 6 minutes and let it cool as you make your cheesecake filling. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Beat in the flour. Add in the vanilla and beat until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between each addition. Pour the filling into your crust. Bake until the top is lightly browned, puffed and cracked at the edges, and the center moves only very slightly when the pan is lightly shaken (about 40 minutes). Check while baking periodically and put a pie shield (or strips of foil) around the top of your pan to protect the crust edges if they’re getting too dark. Just don’t let the shield/foil touch the crust — it’s delicate and might crumble. When you pull the cheesecake out, you can use a sharp knife to score a circle around the top of the cheesecake about an inch inside the crust so that as it cools and chills/sinks, it won't pull the crust in too much. Don't worry if the circle you cut isn't pretty, because you won't be able to see it in the finished product! Let cheesecake cool completely on a wire rack before chilling it in the fridge for at least 3 hours. Make Milnot Cheesecake Topping: Dissolve Jell-o in boiling water and chill in the refrigerator until slightly thickened, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, cream the cream cheese, sugar, food coloring, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat the chilled Jell-o into the cream cheese mixture until completely combined and smooth. In a large chilled bowl, whip the chilled Milnot with a chilled beater until it forms stiff peaks. Stir about 1/3 of the Milnot mixture into the cream cheese mixture to lighten it up. Then gently fold the rest of the whipped Milnot in until the mixture is uniform in color and completely combined. Pour Milnot filling evenly onto your cheesecake (you will use most of it but not quite all -- pour the remainder into a separate dish and cover with graham cracker crumbs. Chill it to make a separate "individual" cheesecake dessert!). Garnish your cheesecake with graham cracker crumbs. Chill the cake for 8 hours. Keep refrigerated and serve chilled.

To read about my outrageous great grandmother, see photos of her throughout her life, and see more photos of the cheesecake cheesecake, please head over to Willow Bird Baking!

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