Killer Cheesecake
Back in the 1960s, my little sister found a delicious recipe for cheesecake (reproduced below). I’m not sure where it came from or I would credit the source; in fact, I googled it recently and tried to find it online, but I was unable to (my best guess: It was on a can of Eagle brand sweetened condensed milk). If anyone knows for sure, e-mail me, and I’ll post the information.
At any rate, the year that Richard and I were first married, 1974, we were living in a duplex in Little Rock, Arkansas. We decided to have a quiet evening at home one Saturday night and watch old movies on TV. For dessert, I made this cheesecake. Because we were so engrossed in the movies, we weren’t paying attention to how much we were eating. And because it was so delicious (the cornflake crust is a very nice touch), we kept cutting ourselves slivers. So we were rather dismayed when we got ready to go to bed and realized that between the two of us, we had eaten half the cheesecake! We were even more dismayed when our digestive systems began to register what we had done. We ended up with the worst stomachaches of our lives and for a couple of hours thought we might die.
In fact, we made ourselves so miserable that I haven’t made this cheesecake in 35 years. In fact, it’s assumed mythical proportions, the killer cheesecake. Cheesecake that can kill! But I think it might be time. I’d like to know if the cheesecake is really as good as I remember. And if it is, whether I can restrain myself from eating a quarter of it in one evening. Perhaps I should invite over at least six friends for dinner so I won’t be able to eat more than an eighth of it. In the meantime, I’m offering the recipe for any intrepid readers to try themselves. Let me know if you like it. Or if you like it too much. Or if you think I’m a complete jerk for publishing the recipe.
Killer Cheesecake
1 cup corn flakes, crumbled
2 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 cup melted butter
1 8 oz. package cream cheese
1 can (1 1/3 cups) Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tsp. almond or vanilla extract
1 can (1 lb.) sliced cling peaches, well-drained (or substitute your favorite fresh or canned fruit)
Let cream cheese soften at room temperature.
Blend together corn flake crumbs, sugar, cinnamon; add butter and stir until blended.
Set aside 2 Tbs. crumb mixture. Evenly line bottom and sides of pan with remaining crumbs and refrigerate.
Beat cheese until fluffy; gradually stir in condensed milk until blended.
Blend in lemon juice and vanilla or almond extract.
Turn filling into chilled crust.
Arrange peaches on top. Sprinkle with the 2 Tbs. of crumbs.
Refrigerate at least 3 hours.
Bon appetit, mes amis!
Above: So, I realize that it would make sense to have a picture of the cheesecake, but I haven’t actually made the cheesecake, I’m just thinking about making it. Maybe I’m, like, hoping someone else will make it and tell me about it before I move forward. It’s a little scary.
In the meantime, here’s some beautiful fall color from downtown Redding. Have a happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Monday, November 23, 2009