Lemon Meringue Cheesecake

How was your Easter? Did you have enough delicious food and family to satisfy you for awhile?

We spent Easter dinner at my In-laws. The meal was very nice; the company even better. I wasn't asked to bring anything, but I like to contribute. I had also wanted an excuse to make this dessert!

I found this recipe on Betty Crocker and was instantly drooling. I followed the directions exactly, but the cake turned out differently then I thought it would. It wasn't really cheesecake texture. It was more like a lemon meringue with a cheesecake crust. That didn't stop it from being mouthwatering good though! It is very rich, so thin slices served with
milk or water are best! We had a large amount of strawberries at dinner as well, and those went with the lemon perfectly!

Lemon Meringue Cheesecake

Prep time: 30 min.
Total Time: 7 hours!!

Crust:
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teas grated lemon peel (if you don't have fresh lemon, this can be omitted)

Filling:
2 packages (8oz each) cream cheese, softened- and at room temp. to prevent cracking.
3/4 cup sugar
3 packages (3.5 oz each) lemon pudding (You know... this might be why the texture was different! I used instant pudding mix. But reading this again...and looking at reviews- they mean the pre-made puddings in a cup! The original wording was "from a 4-pack container". If you try it that way, let me know!)
1/2 cup sour cream
3 eggs
2 cups frozen (thawed) whipped topping

Heat oven to 300°F. Spray bottom and side of 10-inch springform pan with baking spray with flour. Wrap foil around outside of pan to catch drips.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the cake mix; set aside. In large bowl, beat remaining cake mix, butter and lemon peel with electric mixer on low speed until crumbly. Press in bottom and 1 1/2 inches up side of pan.

In same large bowl, beat reserved cake mix, the cream cheese, sugar, pudding and sour cream on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until mixed. Pour over crust. (Mine was a big glob of meringue, so I just smoothed it out the best I could)

Bake 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 35 minutes or until edges are set but center of cheesecake jiggles slightly when moved. Turn oven off; open oven door at least 4 inches. Leave cheesecake in oven 30 minutes longer.

Remove cheesecake from oven; place on cooling rack. Without releasing side of pan, run knife around edge of pan to loosen cheesecake. Cool in pan on cooling rack 30 minutes.

Cover loosely; refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Remove side of pan before serving. Pipe or spoon whipped topping around outside edge of cheesecake. This is excellent with fresh strawberries on top as well! Store in refrigerator.

** This cake won everyone's vote, although I might try it with pre-made pudding next time!

Enjoy!

Easter Eats

With Easter just a few days away, you might still be finalizing your meal plans. Why not add some of these goodies to your menu?



Spinach Dip.................... Orange Rolls


Punch Bowl Trifle............. Rosemary Focaccia Bread


Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips............ Carrot Cake

Have a Happy Easter!

Strawberry Scones

I love scones, but have never attempted to make them before. They always seemed intimidating. Then, I found this recipe. It's not hard at all! Plus, the addition of fresh strawberries makes them moist and full of flavor.

The whole family enjoyed these for breakfast, and for desert, and for a snack! I think these would make a fantastic Easter breakfast!

Strawberry Scones

Adapted from FamilyFun.com

Ingredients
1 cup hulled and finely diced fresh strawberries
2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar, plus a little for sprinkling
1 TB baking powder
1/2 teas salt
1/4 teas ground nutmeg
A lemon, for zest
6 TB cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 cup plus 1 TB light cream
1 teas vanilla extract

Instructions
1. Heat your oven to 425ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, using a few spots of butter or cooking oil to stick it in place. Set the baking sheet aside.

2. Place the diced strawberries on several sheets of paper towel to absorb their juice. Meanwhile, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Zest half of the lemon into the ingredients, taking care to remove just the outermost skin and not the white pith.

3. Cut in the butter with two butter knives or a pastry blender until the flour-coated pieces are the size of peas. Add the strawberries, tossing them gently with a fork to coat them.

4. Make a well in the mixture. Blend the 1/2 cup of light cream and the vanilla extract in a measuring cup and pour them into the well. Using as few strokes as possible, gently stir the dough until it forms a ball. Let the dough sit for 1 minute.

5. Clean and flour your hands and dust your work surface with flour. Place the dough on the floured surface and knead it gently three or four times. Transfer it to the large baking sheet and pat it into an 8-inch circle. Using a lightly oiled pizza cutter or a serrated knife, cut the dough into 8 wedges, as you would a pizza. Use a small spatula or pie server to carefully separate the pieces, leaving at least an inch between them.

6. Brush the tops of the scones with the remaining TB of light cream, then sprinkle the surfaces with sugar. Bake the scones until the outsides are crusty and starting to brown, about 18 minutes. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then slide the parchment and the scones onto a wire rack to cool for another 20 minutes before serving.

When serving the leftovers, if there are any, warm for 30-45 seconds in the microwave.