Sometimes the internet can be very misleading. Even though Al Gore invent…wait…what? Al Gore didn’t invent the internet? Ugh, even its origins are sooo confusing.
When I browse Pinterest, of course I am attracted to recipes that show me a picture I simply cannot ignore. People on Pinterest are especially good at convincing me that I am a crazy person if I don’t try certain recipes, so I accept the “sucker” stamp on my forehead and pin away recipes I may never revisit
Upon scouring my boards for something fun, beautiful, and different (not like that’s hard to do), I came across a pin for NY Cheesecake Cookies. Sunday night is when I like to jot down recipe ideas for the week, and Sunday night I happened to be in the mood to bust out some cookies within the forseeable future. The picture for the NY Cheesecake Cookies convinced me that they won the roulette of Pinterest dessert picks for the week, so I cheerily jotted them into my weekly planner and moved along.
Monday morning rolled around, and with fresh coffee in hand, I logged back onto my computer to print the recipe for these little slices of heaven. Upon further review, I found that everyone was very disgruntled by the fact that the picture was NOTHING like the real recipe. The photo
clearly depicted crunchy graham cracker cookies with gorgeous cheesecake set atop their crusty little centers! The recipe calls for wrapping some stuff in crescent rolls…?! Come on now, pinning people, don’t do that to your girl.
I promise to never lead you astray, friends. Even when my photos look like my six-year-old cousin took them as she was pogo-sticking with five American Girl Dolls strapped to her back during a rainstorm, I will post that shit or I will pretend that recipe never happened.
Needless to say, I was ready to make this dream of open-faced NY Cheesecake Cookies come true. Luckily, I was able to scrounge up a couple of recipes that were somewhat similar to what I wanted to do, so I printed those babies off and headed to the kitchen.
This recipe still needs revamped, but seeing as the current point of this blog is to journal my experiences, this situation is pretty fitting. My revised, personalized recipe actually turned out well, but there are of course a few things I am going to tweak for next time.
[my additional tips!]:
Actual Prep / cook time: about 2.5 hours
Clean-up difficulty: 4 [a few bowls and a mixer … and oven pan.]
Overall difficulty to make: 5 [this gets a little involved with the fruit topping.]
Overall satisfaction: 7.5 [I know this can be a little better.]
Price range? This dish is under $5 for the entire recipe.
What I would change next time? More filling for the cookies – my second batch turned out better than the first by doing this. Also, don’t add the fruit reduction to all the cookies immediately; store it separately in the refrigerator until you’re ready to place it directly onto a cookie you’re about to eat. Third! I am going to alter the crust just a little … maybe 3/4 cup graham crackers instead!
For your own version, I recommend:
- Using cherry topping or none if that is your preference! Store bought is just fine.
- Make the bottom part of the cookie as thin as possible – this way, the cookie doesn’t overwhelm the filling. Equal ratios are key!
- You can store these for up to four days in an airtight container, or refrigerate them!
© 2015 : a flavor journal : by sara alvord
cheesecake cookies.
Ingredients
for filling
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 1 tsp. lemon zest
- 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp. vanilla
for crust
- 1 cup crushed graham crackers
- 1 stick butter very softened
- 1 egg white
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp. salt
Instructions
for filling
- Combine cream cheese, white sugar and powdered sugar into medium mixing bowl and beat on medium until creamy (about 1 minute).
- Add egg yolk, vanilla and lemon zest and beat again just fully combined (about 1 minute).
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours.
for crust
- Combine graham crackers, salt, egg white and softened butter to large mixing bowl and stir until combined. Add flour gradually, stirring as you add it in.
- Once dough is formed, mold all dough into one giant ball. Place dough ball back into mixing bowl, cover mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
for cookies
- From dough ball, remove amount the size of a golf ball and roll into a ball in your hands. Place it onto a greased baking sheet, and slowly work a well into the middle of the dough. Make the bottom of the cookie relatively thin, and stretch the cookie so it is about three inches in diameter.
- Fill the well in the middle with one large spoonful of filling, and smooth filling so it coats entire inside of cookie but has a smooth, flat top equal with top of cookie sides.
- Repeat for remainder of dough, and put into oven at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes until filling is set in the middle.
- Remove, let cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to cooling rack for five minutes.
- Top with fruit topping and serve!
Notes
Tried this recipe?
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