Well, it is the end of the school year and I decided I wanted to make one last goodie this year to share with my colleagues. As I was looking through my Facebook feed today I came across a recipe from Cooking Panda that caught my eye, Blueberry Cheesecake. But it wasn't actually a cheesecake... instead a pierced cake with blueberry compote and a cream cheese topping. If you have read my recipes before you know that I can't just copy a recipe...I have to bump up the flavor. So here is what I came up with:
When I think of blueberry, the next flavor that comes to mind is lemon. So I decided that I would see if I could lemonize this blueberry cake.
*a sugar-free yellow cake mix
*3 eggs
*1 c. 2% milk
*1/3 c. vegetable oil
*a box of lemon sugar-free gelatin
*1 1/2 c. Fresh or frozen blueberries
*1/2 c. Splenda
*juice of 1/2 lemon
*2 shots of citrus vodka (optional)
*a box of lemon sugar-free pudding mix
*1 1/2 c. 2% milk
*8 oz. reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
*1/2 c. fat-free half and half
*1/2 c. Splenda
Start by mixing up the cake. Follow the package directions, adding the eggs and oil, substituting the milk for the water and adding in the dry gelatin mix to add the lemon flavor to your cake.
Bake in a sprayed 13 x 9 pan. My directions were to bake it at 325° for 35 minutes. It came out perfect.
While the cake was baking, I worked on the blueberry compote. You know...I am becoming a great fan of compote, especially as a topping. You can make one out of almost any fruit or combinations of fruit. In a small skillet, add your fruit, Splenda and lemon juice. Cook on a medium heat. The time depends on your fruit and how much you want your fruit to break down. It really is a personal preference. But even if you like your fruit really soft, it shouldn't take more than about 15 minutes. Just stir from time to time.
If you like the flavor, add a little citrus vodka or maybe some lemoncello, just before you take it off the heat.
Remove the skillet from the hear and set aside allowing it to cool.
In a mixer with whisk attachment or in a medium bowl, add your pudding mix and milk and whisk well. Allow pudding to set up while waiting for your cake to come out of the oven. The pudding will be a little thicker than if you had made it according to package directions.
Once the cake is done, allow it to cool for about 5 minutes. Then take something with a small handle and poke holes all over the cake.
Pour/spoon the pudding on top of the cake and spread it around with a spatula. Spread it evenly making sure the pudding seeps down into the holes you made.
Allow the cake to cool even further. Once the cake and your compote have both cooled, spread the compote on top and place the cake in the fridge while you make the final topping.
Add your softened cream cheese and Splenda into your mixer with a whisk attachment. Turn your mixer on and slowly add the half and half.
(Note: the recipe from Cooking Panda called for heavy whipping cream. I think that would be absolutely wonderful, rich, thick and creamy. But, I didn't have any and so I substituted the half and half. Use what you have and experiment.)
You will probably need to scrape down the sides of the bowl to be sure and get the cream cheese and half and half well incorporated. Once they are mixed, turn the speed up to medium high and mix for a couple of minutes.
If your mixture seems a little thin, you might want to put it into the fridge for a little bit to allow it a chance to thicken.
Spread the cream cheese mixture over the top, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- This was a super easy dessert to make. At this time of year... what could be better than blueberries!
Also, just take note of this process and then let your imagination combine any number of flavors at different times throughout the year. This could be 20 desserts in one.
