Thanksgiving Dessert Recap

I am proud to report my first attempt at making a cheesecake was not a complete disaster. In fact, I dare say it was a success!


For the recipe, see this blog post.

Along the way, I learned a few things:

1) 3 c. of gingersnap cookie crumbles = 1 box.

2) I LOOOOVE gingersnap crust. It's amazing and so unlike any I've ever had before. :)

3) If you want to make the cheesecake slightly less calorie-saturated, use 2 packages of regular cream cheese and 1 package of 33% reduced calorie cream cheese. I stayed away from the "fat free" cream cheese because it had added sugar in it (and sugar is my enemy .... except in ginger snap cookies). ;) The consistency is still good and like a regular cheesecake, but it's not quite so rich .... so even if you get a big slice, you won't fee like you overindulged *too* much. :)

4) "no sugar added" cherry pie filling ain't my favorite.


5) In place of regular or "no sugar added" pie filling, I found a great alternative. I returned home and was thinking "I want to put something on my cheesecake. And in the fridge, I spotted my no sugar added Tree of Life cherry jelly (pictured above). It is the best cheesecake topping EVER (well, without added sugar/sweetener).