Strawberries and Vegetable Peeler

You saw them listed in the “Month o’ Meals” at the bottom of my last post and I couldn’t wait to share them with you any longer.  So, even though these are not for the freezer, they will be the first recipe in my list of recipes for our Freezer Cooking series.  (Actually, I suppose you could freeze them, but the texture of the strawberries would not be as good after thawing.  Maybe if I am ever able to salvage even one, I will test it in the freezer for you.)

"Cored" Strawberries

These are so delicious, you’ll have to fight for them to make it to your table.  Your family is going to want to gobble them up as fast as you make them.  They make me feel like spring is here and like I’m having a party, even when I’m not. – lol-  They look pretty and they taste even better, plus you can whip them up in minutes, if you want to impress unexpected guests.

The original of this recipe came from my favorite recipe site, Recipezaar.  As you will

The "Close-up"

see, I have altered it a little, (but only slightly this time.  It’s hardly noticeable. – lol )  The original recipe calls for nuts and since we have those in our family who prefer not to associate with nuts (which I will never understand), I decided to try something different.  The logical choice for cheesecake was graham cracker crumbs.  It was a smash hit!  You’re going to love them!

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

• 24 large strawberries, hulls removed
• 12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
• 1 graham cracker, crushed for crumbs

1. 

   A delectable tray of deliciousness!

   Place cream cheese in a bowl, and microwave for 15-30 seconds, so that it’s soft.

2. Whip together the cream cheese, vanilla, and sugar.
3. In the center of each strawberry, using a sharp knife, make a hole in each one, as deep as you can without going out the bottom.  For this I just used the tip of a vegetable peeler.  With its curved sides, it “cored” the strawberries fairly easily.
4. Spoon or pipe the filling into each hole.  My handy-dandy decorator from Pampered Chef made filling these very simple.  You could also put the filling in a plastic sandwich bag and snip off one of the bottom corners to create your own decorator bag for filling them.
5. Sprinkle the cheesecake end of each strawberry with graham cracker crumbs.
6. Chill, and serve.

The most difficult part of this recipe was trying to decide how to “stand” these up on the tray.  I basically wedged them, one against another, to hold them up.  But, I have been thinking about it and I think that a thick layer of graham cracker crumbs, sugar or some other granular product in the bottom of the tray, would allow me to settle the tips of the strawberries into the granules and help them to balance.  I will try it next time and see how it works.

It also occurred to me, since making these, wouldn’t they be pretty dipped in or if the sides of the berries were drizzled with white or dark chocolate?  Next time we make these, and there will definitely be a next time, I may try that.  Do you have ideas for some variations?  I’d love to hear them!  Leave a comment about how you would “change them up”, or if you just want to eat some right this very minute, you can leave that in a comment!, too  – lol -  Enjoy!

This post is linked to The Grocery Cart Challenge, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday and Beauty and Bedlam’s Lower Your Grocery Budget by Tracking Your Food Expenses.