Since becoming a mum I have found my desire to entertain has dwindled to nothing. When hubby and I first got married we would have people over a couple of times a month. We would always have large gatherings at our house and invite all our friends over for coffee and dessert nights. It was an era of being carefree and having the time and energy to pull these nights off. Plus we were all kid free and didn't have the responsibilities of being parents. As the years have rolled by bringing a new addition to each family these carefree evenings dwindled away.

When I do have the desire to invite people around I end up feeling stressed and overwhelmed trying to juggle dealing with a toddler, preparing a meal and keeping up conversation. The toddler usually has a hissy fit at the dinner table and I'm left feeling frazzled trying to calm the screaming toddler down so the guests can enjoy their dinner. Anyone else been in this situation??

I think I need to become a little more savvy in my menu planning for evenings such as these. It might help me get my entertaining groove back on? I had a tub of mascarpone cheese and a packet of butternut biscuits leftover after a recipe development project and I didn't want them to go to waste. I thought I would try and come up with a fuss free dessert recipe that could be made ahead of time and assembled within minutes and these easy Cheats Mini Lime & Strawberry Cheesecakes come about. Since spring is in the air I wanted something light and delicious using ingredients that were on hand at this time of year. Strawberries are in abundance and at their peak flavour right now. Plus the fact they are at their cheapest also helps. The limes in this recipe come straight from my orchard. I have limes dripping of my tree at the moment and feel so guilty watching them fall to the ground and rot. I just don't know what to do with them all. I love limes for the punch of flavour they add to dishes. They really add a nice zing to the mascarpone filling in these mini cheesecakes.

These are really a cheats version of a cheesecake. It's a serious no fuss, easy recipe to make. Perfect for the frazzled mum. I have used the humble Butternut Biscuit as the "base" of the cheesecake and smeared it with a sweetened and lime zested mascarpone cheese filling and topped with a macerated strawberry topping. You could serve these in two layers like I have pictured below or simply one layer depending on what you want. Or if you are feeling particularly lazy line up all the components and get your guests to put their own cheesecake together. Hubby gave these thumbs up and said they tasted just like a real deal cheesecake - except this wife just didn't slave for hours making a base, filling and waiting for it to set.

I will definitely be adding this to my no fuss repertoire of desserts for future entertaining. All mum's need recipes like these up their sleeves especially if they are short on time and energy. Which feels like most of the time??? You could have fun and play around with the flavours in these mini cheesecakes. Swap the biscuit base to a something chocolate and pimp up the filling with a swirl of peanut butter and drizzle the top with caramel. YUM. The possibilities are endless. Have fun playing around or just keep it simple and follow my recipe! On another note who wants to come round for dessert? I've got a fridge full of these to eat!

Cheats Mini Lime & Strawberry Cheesecake

Prep Time: 15 min

Cook Time: nil

Servess: 6-8

Ingredients

Filling

250g tub mascarpone cheese
zest of 2 x lime
juice of 1/2 lime
2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Base

250g packet Butternut Snap Biscuits (Or anything similar)

Topping

250g punnet strawberries, sliced finely into quarters
2-3 teaspoon sugar
Mint - to garnish

Instructions:

Filling

In a medium size mixing bowl place the mascarpone cheese, zest and juice of lime, sugar and vanilla. Mix together until thoroughly combined. Place back into the fridge until required.

Topping

Place the sliced strawberries into a small bowl and sprinkle with sugar. The amount of sugar is depending on the ripeness of the fruit. Gently mix the sugar into the strawberries and place into the fridge for 15-20 minutes to macerate. You will notice the strawberries will have formed a lovely juice at the bottom of the bowl after this time.

Assemble

Smear one of the butternut biscuits with about a tablespoon of the mascapone filling. You can either place the strawberry topping over this and drizzle with a little of the juice or finish it off with another layer of biscuit and mascapone filling to create a double layered cheesecake. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Cooks Notes

These can be made an hour or two in advance and the strawberry topping placed on top just before serving.

Alternatively you can get your guests to make their own.