Cheesecake Love

     I have been in search of the perfect romantic dessert. Valentines Day is just around the corner and I wanted to find a dessert that not only entices a couple’s sweet tooth but create an erotic moment. Now traditionally couples romance each other with hearts, flowers, chocolate, strawberries and champaign but I wanted something familiar but different.

    Then I realized that the perfect couple dessert is Cheesecake. We all love cheesecake. It is a thick and creamy dessert that can incorporate all of the traditional romantic taste and be sensual at the same time. Even though a basic cheesecake recipe is made up cream cheese, sugar, eggs, milk and butter you can add your favorite ingredients to change its texture, its thickness, and its sweetness.

   There are a plethora ways of fixing cheesecake and whether you choose the bake or no-bake method find a recipe that allows you to express your feelings, engage your sweet tooth and becomes a great tipping point for a romantic evening.

   For my romantic evening I chose to make a White Chocolate New York Cheesecake in which I combined two recipes from the folks at Kraft with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. I chose to do this because it incorporates a little traditional romance but with a twist.

    Happy Valentines Day everyone!

            White Chocolate New York Cheesecake

            Ingredients

            1 cup crushed Honey Maid Honey Grahams Crackers

            3 Tbsp. Sugar

            3 Tbsp. Butter or margarine, melted

            1 Tbsp. Vanilla

            1 cup Sour Cream

            1-cup all-purpose flour

            5 pkg. (8 oz. Each) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

            2 pkg. (6 squares each) Baker’s Premium White Baking Chocolate

            4 eggs

            1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling

            Directions

            Preheat oven to 325° F. Mix crumbs, 3 Tbsp. Sugar an butter; press firmly onto bottom of 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake 10 minutes.

            Beat cream cheese, 1-cup sugar, flour and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add the melted chocolate. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over crust.

            Bake 55 minutes to 1 hour or until center is almost set. Cool complete. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. Top with pie filling before serving. Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator.

                                                                                Kraft Philadelphia (2008)