To be completely honest I’ve never made a cheesecake at home.  I’ve baked a lot of things; cakes, pies, cookies, creme brulee even, but not cheesecake.  It always seemed so intimidating. So when I was introduced to The Cheesecake Factory At Home’s premium Cheesecake Mixes I was completely game. A bit skeptical, but game nonetheless.

Why skeptical you ask? Because The Cheesecake Factory At Home promised their premium Cheesecake Mixes to be two things I never associated with homemade cheesecake; easy and that the cheesecake itself will “come out perfect every time.” Not to mention taste like The Cheesecake Factory’s cheesecake which as we all know is the cheesecake of cheesecakes! It didn’t seem possible. So with just a bit of skepticism in mind, I set out to see if both the above were true.  Spoiler alert, they were.

First the easy part. The directions were easy to follow, and the steps were few. Aside from the mix itself I only needed four additional ingredients: butter, cream cheese, milk, eggs and fresh strawberries (if you like) because you can never have too many strawberries.

Now the perfect part. This my friends is where I was like, “no way.” No way will my cheesecake come out perfect the first time. Sure, after you’ve mastered the tricks of cheesecake I could see it coming out perfect, but not the first time.

Well, I’m thrilled to say I made two cheesecakes from two mixes, at the same time, and both came out perfect in BOTH look and taste.  And the craziest part is I didn’t even use a springform baking pan, just a standard cake tin. I was shocked, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t do a happy dance and sigh a huge sigh of relief when the cake hit the cake stand.

Lastly, in my title, I mentioned Cheesecake two ways. Because I love entertaining I decided to not only make the strawberry cheesecake the classic way, but I also put a new spin on the mix creating what I’m calling Strawberry Cheesecake Pudding.

Being just the right bite, these little cuties are perfect for any party or holiday dessert table. To recreate them yourself all you have to do is make The Cheesecake Factory At Home premium Cheesecake Mixes as directed. After the cheesecake has completely cooled and set you put the whole cheesecake into a large mixing bowl and mix it all up (by hand not with an electric mixer) until the crust turns into little bits that runs through the entire mixture, almost like a banana pudding.  

After you’ve got it all mixed well (you don’t want it too creamy, just combined well enough), add the mixture to a piping bag and pipe the combination into these little individual dessert glasses and top with the strawberry topping. It’s that easy, and sure to be a crowd pleaser.

So that’s it my friends.  An easy cheesecake mix, that really does come out perfect every time, and just in time for the holiday season. And while I’m partial to strawberry it does come in a few other flavors which you can check out here. Happy baking friends! Truly, MKR

P.S. I won’t judge if when you try this out for yourself that you don’t actually tell anyone that this gorgeous cheesecake came from a mix rather than being “homemade.” wink, wink. 

Pound cake has always been a favorite of mine; I grew up eating my mother’s, my grandmother’s and I’ll even enjoy a slice of pound cake from Whole Foods now and then too.  A classic dessert, I’ve always had a soft spot for pound cake and all the traditional treats (read: my homemade hand pies).  And now with berry season in full swing, I’m eager to indulge in all sorts of fresh pound cake toppings. 

Pound cake originally got its name because the cake is traditionally made with a pound of flour, a pound of sugar, a pound of eggs, and—you guessed it—a pound of butter (butter makes everything better). With all of those good ingredients, what’s not to love?!  Of course, proper pound cake is one that’s tangy, moist yet dense, and anything but generic…and while I’ve tested a lot of pound cake recipes over the years the one I keep coming back to time and time again actually belonged to Mr. Elvis Presley.

While pound cake can easily be enjoyed by itself (which I will always love), it’s really the perfect base for any type of topping your heart desires if you’re wanting a little something extra. And if you’re like me, it’s hard to narrow down your pound cake toppings to just a few…so why not pull them all out for everyone to enjoy and make a sundae-esq bar our of all the toppings?  Think fresh berries or bananas, fruit preserves, decadent chocolate sauce, Nutella, gourmet whipped cream, honey, nuts, shaved chocolate; the list goes on and on.  And a good rule of thumb: mix a cream/liquid with your berry or nut topping. You really can’t go wrong. Tell me, what are your go-to pound cake toppings?  Truly, MKR

 
Click Here for the Recipe