Strawberry-Strawberry Cheesecake

This is one of the greatest looking desserts I have seen, that being said...I am going to totally make this in a couple of days! It could be dangerous, I may very well eat the whole thing!

Ingredients:

Crust- one 10-ounce package shortbread cookies (such as Lorna Doone) 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling-10 ounces frozen unsweetened strawberries (about 2 3/4 cups), thawed, juices reserved3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature1 cup sugar2 tablespoons all purpose flour3 large eggs1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice1 teaspoon vanilla extract1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Topping-1/3 cup strawberry or currant jelly3 1-pint baskets fresh strawberries, hulled, halved lengthwise

Preparation For crust: Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Grind cookies in processor to coarse crumbs. Add butter and blend until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture over bottom and 1 inch up sides of prepared pan. Bake crust until just golden, about 8 minutes. Set aside while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.

For filling: Puree thawed strawberries and juices in processor until smooth. Measure 3/4 cup puree (reserve any remaining puree for another use); do not wash bowl. Add cream cheese and sugar to processor. Blend until smooth. Using on/off turns, blend in flour. Add eggs; process until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Add 3/4 cup strawberry puree, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and almond extract; process until well blended. Transfer filling to prepared crust.

Bake cake until center is softly set and edges begin to color, puff and crack, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Place hot cheesecake on rack. Refrigerate uncovered on rack until cold, at least 4 hours. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated.)
For topping: Using small knife, cut around pan sides to loosen cake; remove pan sides. Stir jelly in heavy saucepan over low heat until melted. Arrange berry halves atop cheesecake in concentric circles; brush with warm jelly to glaze. Chill at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.

Fun at Feist!!

I saw Feist at Starlight last night and it was INCREDIBLE!! As soon as she started playing my little lady started spinning around in my belly like a mad woman! She must love Feist like I do, smart girl! It was a great night, perfect weather and Bobi and I had so much fun. One of the perks of being pregnant at a concert...not having to spend $7 on a tiny margarita. The drawback...having to climb the hill to go to the bathroom a MILLION times! I am waiting for Jackson to come back home from his mini-vacation with Nona and Poppy. It was heaven to have a couple days off. I love the boy more than the earth, but man can he be demanding!! Absence does make the heart grow fonder though, I am so ready to give him some hugs and kisses right about now!

In love with my girl

Sleeping is a notion from my past. This little lady inside me seems to think that the middle of the night is the best time to get some exercises done. She is active during the day, but from about 11pm to 4am it's party time in Macy's uterus! I just look at it as Mother Nature's way of getting my body and mind used to the no sleep that will happen once she is here. It wouldn't be so bad if Jackson still took a nap during the afternoon, but NOOOOO! Naps are for little babies and as he reminds me all the time, "Mommy, I'm your BIG boy now!!" Oh well, it just makes me appreciate the few sacred naps that I DO get to have. When he is at Nona's or when I wrap my giant bellied body around him and force him to sleep with me (which he secretly likes because then he gets a couple of hours of mommy snuggles as he calls it!) Well I am off to make some berry smoothies for breakfast, you know, because it's what the baby wants!!