Valentine’s candy doesn’t stand a chance against this scrumptious sweet!
As far as tradition, there may be nothing sweeter on Valentine’s Day that cuddling up to a pile of heartfelt cards and candy from your friends, but you can whip up something sweeter than chalky conversation hearts this Valentine’s Day right in your own kitchen.
I personally stayed far from making cheesecake for years because it sounds really elegant and difficult, but one day, I just had to have cheesecake, and since my fridge is closer than the cheesecake joint, I decided to give it a whirl. This recipe was so heavenly, you can understand why I kept sneaking into the fridge for just “one” more bite. I ended up making this cheesecake twice in 30 days.
You’ll understand what I’m talking about once you try your hand at this recipe. It’s sure to please cheesecake lovers and skeptics, alike and will make your Valentine’s Day just a little more sweet than usual!
Ingredients
• 4 Packages (8 oz.) cream cheese
• 1 1/3 Cups of sugar
• 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoon of vanilla
• 3 Eggs
• 1 Cup of sour cream
• 1 pre-made graham cracker crust
• ½ Cup of sliced strawberries
Directions
1. Microwave the cream cheese for about 35 seconds and stir well. Repeat until it’s completely soft and creamy—like the consistency of sour cream.
2. In large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in sugar, cornstarch and vanilla.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined after each addition.
4. Place crust on baking sheet and pour in the cream cheese mixture. Bake on baking sheet at 325 degrees about 80 minutes or until center is almost set.
5. Cool for one hour. Refrigerate at least three hours or overnight.
6. Garnish with fresh strawberries before eating.
Tips, Tricks and Extras
• It’s super important to make sure the cream cheese is really soft, or it’ll become cold, solid cream cheese chunks floating in a sea of sweet eggs. Ask me how I know this. . . .
• Cheesecake tastes good no matter which way you look at it, but if you can restrain yourself to refrigerating it overnight before you take the first bite, the texture will improve.
• There are multiple methods with which to make a cheesecake look prettier and tasting better by removing the light brown skin that forms on the top of custards. Most of them are super-technical, but my favorite method is . . . the knife. If your cheesecake comes out a little overdone on top, let it cool completely, then just slice the first few centimeters of the top off with a long, serrated knife.
Brittany Perry is busy keeping close to God, cooking, and counting the ways to use up conversation hearts this Valentine’s Day, like decorating cakes and stacking them up in little pyramids!