Friday, May 21, 2010

Strawberry Cheesecake (Light)


So after I made the triple chocolate cheesecake the other day, and I wanted to make something a little lighter. The triple chocolate one is very rich, and the friend I was baking for is a health conscience eater. I really just tweaked the chocolate recipe and made a strawberry cheesecake, but with less fat and with fresh fruit. Although there is less fat, there is still a good bit of sugar due to the condensed milk. You will have a lot of batter for this recipe. I ended up making several individual cheesecakes in a muffin pan as well as a full size cheesecake. This recipe was very delicious, less fattening than my previous cheesecake, and a real winner for summertime. Try it, and use different fruits - be creative! Happy eating!

Ingredients:
Filling:
  • 1 1/3 packs of plain grahams crackers
  • 4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
  • 4 (8 ounce) packages low fat Neufchâtel cheese
  • 1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1/3 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 4/5 a small container of strawberries, stem taken off and pureed

White Chocolate Glaze:

  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 (1 ounce) squares premium white chocolate
  • 1/4 small container of strawberries, cut as you see fit.
Note: The glaze is a little thinner than a chocolate ganache, but chills to be thicker.

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine cookie crumbs and butter; press firmly on bottom of 9-inch springform pan.
  • In large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk until smooth. Add eggs, flour and vanilla; mix well. Divide batter in half. Add
  • Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until center is set Cool. Top with white chocolate glaze and add left over strawberries to the top. (be creative) Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
  • White Chocolate Glaze: In small saucepan over low heat, melt 2 (1-ounce) squares semi-sweet chocolate with 1/4 cup whipping cream. Cook and stir until thickened and smooth. Remove from heat; spread over cheesecake. Makes about 1/3 cup

I never add my own pic... But just so you can see. (I took this with my iphone, just as my colleagues were about to devour the cheesecake!)


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