If you were lucky enough to be a kid when Woolworth\u2019s still had a lunch counter, you might remember their famous cheesecake \u2014 a fluffy, lightly lemon-flavored dessert with a graham cracker crust. It seems to have pre-dated my own Woolworth\u2019s shopping days, but I love hearing stories from people whose mothers treated them to a meal at the counter, finished off with a slice of this nostalgic icebox cake style cheesecake.<\/p>\n The original recipe comes from a woman named Mary, who worked at Woolworth\u2019s and loved their cheesecake so much she came up with her own version at home. Her recipe, often called \u201cMary\u2019s Woolworth\u2019s Cheesecake,\u201d used whipped evaporated milk and a simple graham cracker crust. It’s more of an icebox cake than a traditional cheesecake, and very tasty. In this version, I\u2019m switching things up a little by using Cool Whip and a gingersnap cookie crust for extra flavor. <\/p>\n A little about the crust. The original graham crust is probably softer, but I just couldn’t resist making a thick no-bake gingersnap crust. I used powdered sugar since it binds well with butter and crumbs, and homemade gingersnaps ground into a fine powder in my Vitamix. It was very firm at first, but after sitting under that cream topping for a while it was just right. It’s definitely good for creamy icebox cakes because it won’t get soggy. <\/p>\n For the filling, I stayed pretty true to the original but used the quick set method for preparing the lemon gelatin. Once it thickened a little, I beat together the cream cheese and sugar, stirred in the gelatin, and added some fresh lemon juice and vanilla. The creamy mixture was thick enough to accomodate the whipped topping, so I folded it in right away and poured it over the ginger crust.<\/p>\n The recipe fits a 9×13 inch pan, but since his was for the two of us I halved it and used an 8-inch square dish, which was more than enough. You could probably even make a quarter size version using a small casserole dish of some kind. Just weigh out the gelatin and scale everything accordingly. <\/p>\n This should stay fresh in the refrigerator for 3 days, but if you want to freeze the rest just slide the pieces on to some plastic wrap, freeze until sold, then wrap tightly and put the frozen slices in a heavy duty freezer bag.<\/p>\n![\"Mary's](\"https:\/\/www.cookiemadness.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/woolworths-cheesecke-slice.jpg)
Mary’s Woolworth’s Cheesecake<\/h2>\n
Gingersnaps Crust vs. Graham Cracker Crust<\/h2>\n
![\"Gingersnap](\"https:\/\/www.cookiemadness.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/gingersnap-crust.jpg)
Lemon Filling<\/h2>\n
![\"Cool](\"https:\/\/www.cookiemadness.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/cool-whip-filling.jpg)
Pan Size<\/h2>\n
Freezing Woolworth’s Cheesecake<\/h2>\n
Recipe<\/h2>\n
![\"Creamy](\"https:\/\/www.cookiemadness.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/woolworths-cheesecake-dessert-300x300.jpg)
Woolworth\u2019s Cheesecake Dessert<\/h2>\n