Strawberry Cheesecake

Life is sweet... Exams are over!! Time to celebrate!  : ))

Fresh strawberries from Bernie's Berries, just up the street from Dad's house, made this absolutely divine! [and they don't have to know its low fat   ]

I used a cheesecake recipe from Eat Better America.com.... A fantastic website that that takes classics and "healthifies" them.  Okay, all you skeptics.. dont' knock it 'till you try it.. just give it a try. The texture is a bit "fluffier" or lighter than a regular cheesecake (which is usually very dense). But I assure you the flavor is fantastic and you may even prefer the fluffier version. The recipe didn't call for the strawberry topping - but I like to jazz it up.. you could also add dulce de leche or chocolate, candied pecans, or make a berry crumble. Mmmmm... So much for a "healthified" cheesecake 

 Strawberry Cheesecake  

6 2	sheets of chocolate graham crackers (or chocolate waffer cookies) packages (8 oz each) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel), softened (I used one fat free and one 1/3 less fat)
2/3	cup granulated sugar
3	egg whites or 1/2 cup fat-free egg product (I used egg whites)
2	teaspoons vanilla extract
1.75	cups fat free/low fat vanilla yogurt (I combined vanilla and lemon yogurt)
2	tablespoons all-purpose flour

1.	Heat oven to 300°F. Spray springform pan, 9x3 inches, with cooking spray. Sprinkle cookie crumbs over bottom of pan and pat down.
2.	Beat cream cheese in medium bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add sugar, egg whites and vanilla. Beat on medium speed about 2 minutes or until smooth. Add yogurt and flour. Beat on low speed until smooth.
3.	Carefully spread batter over cookie crumbs in pan. [I would suggest doing a water bath or  set a brownie pan of warm water on the rack beneath the cake. This way you don't risk water seeping through. This will prevent the top of the cake from cracking. I forgot to do this when making this cake and ended up with a cracked top - good thing I was covering it with strawberries :) But I used it to make a key lime cheesecake and it was absolutely flawless!]  Bake 1 hour. Turn off oven; cool in oven 30 minutes with door closed. Remove from oven; cool 15 minutes. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.
4.	Decorate with strawberry topping as follows. Store covered in the refrigerator. Strawberry Glaze 1 pint fresh strawberries, washed and hulled 1/3 cup water 2 tbs granulated sugar 1 ½ tsp cornstarch Cut 10 to 12 strawberries into slices; and arrange in a single layer onto cooled cheesecake. Cut enough remaining strawberries to make 1/2 cup; put in saucepan. Stir in 1/3 cup water and heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Press through a strainer to make 1/2 cup of juice/puree. Return the 1/2 cup puree to the saucepan. Mix together the sugar and cornstarch and stir into the puree in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Continue cooking and stirring until thickened. At first it will be cloudy and then will become more transparent. It will remain a beautiful red color though. Cool slightly; spoon evenly over strawberries on cheesecake. Cool and store, covered, in refrigerator Nutritional Sats: (1/14th of recipe with strawberry glaze) 184 Calories 8.1g Fat 5.5g Protein 18g Carbs 18.3g sugar