The best type of friends are the ones that you might think you'll never see too much of again, save an occasional email or visit every couple of years, and yet when you re-enter each other's lives you instantly pick back up where you left off. You might not have all the same things in common anymore. You both have children now. Your life directions are taking you down very different paths. You might have the same beliefs you always held, for that is what makes us who we are, but you no longer express them in the same manner you once did, the thing that brought you together as friends in the first place. But your friendship itself is strong enough that you just see your friend, and appreciate them.
We have recently moved from Waukewhat, Midwest, back "home" to Nowheresville, Southeast. We live 45 minutes from all the friends we had left behind three years ago, and are reconnecting, catching up, and appreciating these people more than we did before. I've driven this 45-minute-each-way drive four times this week simply because I'm discovering the aforementioned: I appreciate all these people more than ever before. They get me. They don't mind that I was gone for three years, they are just happy to see me again.
Tonight we were invited to a family's house. They served hamburgers. We took cheesecake. We played a card game. Our daughters played together very well. We left fat and happy, wishing our 45-minute drive was a four-and-a-half-minute drive across town like it used to be. Not only because it was getting way past our daughter's bed time, but because that would mean we could see our friends more often.
On to the cheesecake... Since I'm pregnant and tired and currently hate cooking, and can't stand the SIGHT of an egg, let alone the possibility of smelling it as I crack open it's shell, my husband made the cheesecake tonight. His first time. He was the hands, I was the brains =) This is super easy, and I dare say you will never go back to putting lemon in your cheesecake batter again! (It's called CHEESEcake for a reason! Who wants lemon FLUFFcake anyway??)
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| Thanks, Amazon.com, I stole your pic of Cajeta |
**I'm going to say right off the bat that this recipe is mine, ALL MINE, and don't you dare repost/make this for profit... Unless I get in on the action! (In that case, feel free to contact me, I could use some extra cash!) That includes small variances like chocolate for white chocolate substitutes, caramel for cajeta, etc, and -especially- baking methods. THANKS!!**
WHAT YOU NEED:
1 graham cracker pie shell
1 8-oz. package cream cheese
1 can sweetened condensed milk*
1/2 bag Ghirardelli white chocolate chips
1 egg + 1 yolk
1 cup sugar
1 overflowing teaspoon vanilla extract (oh please, NOT imitation!!!)
Cajeta -- which is, Mexican caramel made from goat's milk. You can find it at any good tienda. And most the time at a Super Wal-Mart.
HOW TO:
Set cream cheese out on your counter top to warn up to room temperature, about an hour before you're going to bake.
Turn oven on to 350.
Break out the blender. Everything's going in- cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, sugar, white chocolate chips, and vanilla.
Pour batter in graham cracker crust, all the way up to the rim! You'll probably have a tad bit left over. I tend to pour that into a muffin pan or small bread pan, and bake at another time.
Ok, now this is important, and what really makes a GREAT cheesecake!!! Put the pie in the oven, preferably with a baking stone that's already pre-heated with the oven, and don't look back - okay??? You bake the cheesecake at 350 for 12 minutes, and WITHOUT opening the oven door, turn it down to 250 for one hour. After that, take it out of the oven, let cool for one hour, then refrigerate (loosely covered) for at least three hours before scarfing. Oops I mean, serving.
Top with cajeta and you've got yourself one fabulous dessert!
Variation: You can cut the sugar out completely and replace with 1/2 cup cajeta. In that case, a bit of melted white chocolate on top when served is even better than cajeta.
SERVES: 8... or 4 if you're diggin' it =)
COST: $8.50 ($1.06/slice)
*There are very few items you'll ever catch me saying this about, but the cheaper the better with sweetened condensed milk! I really don't like many of Target's Market Pantry items, but this sweetened condensed milk is better than most others I've tried... Even though the best is still Trader Joe's!
Made it? Love it? Hate it or have a suggestion? Leave me a comment =)
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