Cream Cheese Pie

I cannot deny that I love a good slice of cheesecake, but when it comes down to it, I actually much prefer this "spin-off" alternative-- the cheesecake's cousin, shall we say? It's called Cream Cheese Pie, and I've been eating this version since I was in diapers. Literally. There's a picture of me SOMEwhere in my half-naked glory, sporting nothing but a diaper, cream cheese pie crumbs, and a giant smile. It's been in my family as long as I can remember (the recipe, not the picture), and although I'm sure we weren't the ones who created the recipe, I've yet to find one person who has tasted it for the first time in my presence and then commented, "Oh yeah. I've totally had that before." I've loved this pie for so long that I can remember requesting it for almost EVERY birthday when I was a young girl. And I think my mom was always secretly thrilled because she may be the only person who loves it even more than I do.

There's so much to love about this pie (though I've been known to lick my plate anytime there's a graham cracker crust involved....) and I think the reason I prefer it over Cousin Cheesecake is that it's a little less dense, and therefore a little less rich. It's creamy and a bit tart (thanks to the sour cream top layer...which reminds me, did I mention the two layers?) and buttery and even better when you throw some berries on it. Also, I don't know of a SIMPLER recipe that produces such an amazing final product. Time to get baking! (Alicia, that means you!)

Cream Cheese Pie
Crust:
16-18 graham crackers
1/3 c. sugar
1/2 stick melted butter (+ more if needed)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine graham crackers & sugar in food processor and mix until crackers are crumbly (or alternatively, you could put them in a large ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush). Then slowly add in melted butter. If crust is too dry, add more melted butter, about 1 T. at a time. Crust consistency should be fine, sticky crumbs.  Press crust into bottom & sides of a 9 inch pie dish. Bake at 350 for about 8 min. and allow crust to cool. Turn oven down to 300.

While graham crust is cooling, mix together the ingredients for the bottom layer:
Bottom layer:
8 oz. package of cream cheese, room temperature
2 eggs
1/2 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
Beat until lumps are gone and batter is smooth. Pour into graham pie shell. Bake at 300 for about 20 minutes or until pie is slightly jiggly (NOT soupy). Cool completely, then place in fridge to chill for at least 1 hour.

Top layer:
8 oz. sour cream
2 T. sugar
1 t. vanilla
Mix together, pour on top of chilled pie and spread evenly. Bake at 350 for about 15-20 min., or until set. Cool once again, and refrigerate until set (at least a couple hours). ENJOY!

Cancel All Plans- Stay Home & Make This Instead...

Hello my people. Are you looking for the perfect way to tell someone "I LOVE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING, AND IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME, JUST LOOK WHAT I MADE FOR YOU?", even if that someone is yourself? Then you should by all means make my new favorite dessert tonight: Roasted Balsamic Pears with Cinnamon-Mascarpone. How could you possibly say "no" to this:

I tested this out on the family last night, and oh my heavens. It passed with flying colors. The husband was begging me to renew our wedding vows, the 3 year old was apologizing for his sassy behavior these last few days and requesting to give me a foot rub, and the baby immediately stopped teething. That's how wonderful this dessert is. There may have even been some passionate plate licking when it was all over...immediately followed by frustration that I didn't think to buy at least a dozen more pears from the Farmer's Market this weekend. Note to self: buy a ridiculous amount of pears at Farmer's next Saturday.

A few words before I get on already with the recipe- there are many reasons to love this dessert. For starters, it's pears. They sort of make you feel light and airy and like you're not really doing anything naughty by eating them, especially if you happened to fall victim to the post-Halloween sugar coma backlash. Like me. Secondly, they are so delightfully simple- but very elegant. They take about 5 minutes to prep, but they look fancy enough to serve for the most special of dinner guests (which means, if you are thinking of inviting me over for dinner, these would be totally appropriate to serve for our dessert together). Thirdly, anytime I can throw in a quirky and unexpected ingredient like balsamic vinegar into my dessert I just know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, it's going to be fantastic.And lastly- cinnamon mixed with mascarpone cheese? Do we even need to say more? Those Italians! They really are God's gift to mankind with their invention of the creamiest of all cream cheeses. My lips are instinctively quivering just thinking about it. I've been longing to incorporate more mascarpone into my life for quite some time now, so the timing is perfect.

Alright. I'll shut up now and let you get on with it. You can thank me later- have fun.

Roasted Balsamic Pears with Cinnamon Mascarpone

Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 medium-large ripe pears (we used a variety close to Bosc, but anything similar would work)
Approx. 2 tsp. brown sugar
Approx. 3 tsp. butter
Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling
1/4 cup white grape or apple juice (or...a combination of brandy + juice would also be divine)
6 T. mascarpone cheese (Trader Joe's sells it in a small tub!)
2 tsp. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 T. chopped toasted walnuts (optional)
Kosher salt (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375. Halve pears lengthwise and core with paring knife. (We left ours unpeeled because the peel got so soft in the cooking process that it tasted delicious. But feel free to peel first if you prefer.) Place cored side up in a medium baking dish. Spoon about 1/2 tsp. of butter and 1/2 tsp. of brown sugar into each cavity. Pour grape or apple juice (or BRANDY!) into baking dish. Lightly drizzle balsamic vinegar over all pears, allowing some to drizzle into grape/apple juice as well. Bake 20-25 min., or until pear halves are tender and lightly browned.

2. Meanwhile....stir together mascarpone cheese, granulated sugar, cinnamon and toasted walnuts (if using, and I highly recommend you do!).

3. To serve, arrange one pear half per plate. Top with cinnamon-mascarpone mixture, and then drizzle with the hot apple juice/balsamic juice that's collected in the baking dish. Sprinkle with a dash of kosher salt on top (trust me on this). Enjoy!