Strawberry Vanilla Cheesecake (Fruit Filled Cheesecake)

Ingredients

• 2 cups graham crackers, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted

• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 3 cups strawberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup sugar (omit if using sweetened, frozen berries)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2-3 drops red food coloring
• 1 cup berries (fresh or individually frozen, cleaned and hulled use whole or if preferred, cut into smaller pieces)

Directions

1. 1

   Crush the graham crackers. Mix the crumbs with the cinnamon, sugar, and melted butter in a nine or ten-inch springform pan. Press the mixture into a crust across the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Put the crust in the refrigerator to set up while you prepare the filling and the topping.

2. 2

   Make the topping. Puree the strawberries in a blender with the lemon juice. You should have about 1 1/2 cups of purée. If you would like to remove the seeds, run the puree through a sieve. Place the puree in a small saucepan. Add the sugar, food coloring, and cornstarch. Cook over medium heart, stirring often, until thickened and bubbly. Set aside to cool.

3. 3

   Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Mix the cream cheese with the paddle attachment of your stand-type mixer set at medium speed until smooth and creamy, about five minutes. Add the eggs, granulated sugar, flour, salt, vanilla, and whipping cream, and gently cream together until smooth. Do not over beat.

4. 4

   Pour one half of the cream cheese filling into the crust. Spoon about 2/3’s of the strawberry sauce onto the filling then spoon the remaining cream cheese over the strawberry sauce. Refrigerate the remaining sauce.

5. 5

   Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until almost set (the top just starts to turn golden and the center of the cake is just barely jiggly.)

6. 6

   Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for ten minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen. Remove the ring and let the cheesecake cool completely. Refrigerate for several hours.

7. 7

   To serve, stir the berries into the remaining sauce and spoon over the cheesecake.