Lemon Cheesecake!!!! YUM-O!

Several years ago my friend, Kristi, kept talking about this lemon cheesecake she made. Typically for our anniversary, Scott & I share will eat cheesecake. It's a flash back to our wedding when we ordered a strawberry cheesecake for his grooms cake, however he got to eat NONE of it. Nada, zip, zilch. So I thought long ago that I'd try to make up for that. I order a cake from Kristi (she's a professional baker :) and OH MY!!! This was THE best cheesecake we had ever eaten in our life! Kristi has made us some pretty awesome cheesecakes, chocolate chip cookie dough, white chocolate/macadamia nut, peanut butter and jelly...but the lemon is the BEST. A few years back Kristi shared the recipe with some of her friends...and I happened to be on the list of lucky recipients. So here's the lemon cheesecake recipe...

Sunsational Cheesecake

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Combine all the above 3 ingredients; press into the bottom of your springform pan. Bake 325 degrees for 10 minutes.

Then...

3 - 8 oz packages cream cheese

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

4 eggs (1 seperated)

Combine all ingredients (except for the eggs), mixing at medium speed until well blended. Add three eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in remaining egg white; reserve yolk for glaze. Pour over crust. Bake at 450 degrees, 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees; continue baking 3o minutes. (for a moist cheesecake, put a small ovensafe dish of water on the bottom rack of your oven).

Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool before removing spring form rim.











The Glaze...


3/4 cups sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water
1/4 lemon juice


Combine sugar and cornstarch in saucepan; stir in water and juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until clear and thickened. Beat reserved egg yolk in small bowl.







Add small amount of hot mixture to yolk. Return to mixture in saucepan; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Cool slightly. Spoon over cheesecake; chill. Garnish with lemon slices, lime slices, or fresh mint, if desired.


10-12 servings

I took pictures for you while I made the cheesecake...now go get busy and tell me how much you like it! :)

Kayla :)

I love my job!

I love getting to be a photographer. This is a cute R&C. They are getting married this summer and this was their engagement shoot. So cute. And the best part was we just totally stumbled (thanks God) onto this really old plant warehouse. The texture was amazing! Here's one of my favs from their shoot today.

So here's a glimpse of my day...

Get up ...go to church (still feeling distant & confused)

Kade goes to lunch & movies with small group

We go to lunch with N&H (chinese...yummy!)

Come home, nap for 25 minutes.

Photoshoot starts @ 3

Take great shots of R&C for 2.5 hrs.

Come home, fam is in the backyard playing soccer

Work

Kids make nachos for dinner

Eat dinner, visit

play 3 rounds of banangrams & another word game (don't remember the name)

kiss children goodnight

edit photoshoot

kiss husband goodnight

edit photoshoot

check facebook

check twopeas

decide to blog

play 1 game of spider solitaire while the pic uploads

and here we are...

just about time to go to bed.

I had some good time with God this morning. I have been thinking about marriage. I think I married our church but our church didn't marry me. I made a long term commitment to the organization, but the organization didn't make one back. So it kind of makes me think about things from a couple of different angles.

1) people will always let you down, but Jesus won't. Make commitments with Him, have grace & forgiveness for his people.

2) Should I really have made that kind of commitment...is my loyalty causing disobedience?

3) What responsibility do "we" as the "church" have towards members. We spend lots of time "inviting new folks" to come to church with us, but what about the "old folks" with whom we've spent years serving alongside. What responsibility do we have towards them when they are feeling discomfort within our church family. If we really are family, then we can't just let them walk away without wanting to know why and without extending love to them. Yet in the church, we act as if we are a corporate environment sometimes. New "employees" (young new SS class new members) replacing old "employees" (faithful servant old members).

I think that Jesus would want us to be open in our communications and grace-filled with each other. So I am still left wondering about my responsibiilty in all this. I have been wounded, i need to forgive. i was committed, but feel as if i am to move on, which conflicts with my sense of loyalty. I will walk away and others will never know nor admit their own wrong. Is this mine to justify? Do I want to be right or righteous...a question I continue to wrestle with oh Lord. Clarify for me PLEASE!!!

G'night.

K