NY Cheesecake with Strawberries

So....I don't like cheesecake. (I knooow, I'm crazy.)

But even I can tell that is is one DANGED good cheesecake.

New York, New York...one of the things I miss most about you is your food. Mostly the pizza. Ah...the pizza. But I also know that their cheesecake is pretty danged awesome (Michael certainly loved it.), so when Michael's birthday snuck up on me this year, I knew the perfect treat would be a NY style cheesecake---with strawberries...because he loves 'em.

Apparently 1 whole cheesecake is a bit too much for my boy to polish off on his own, though, so we shared some pieces with my mom and his family as well. And from all these sources, the reviews came in: this is a DANGED good cheesecake. All you have to do is look at it to see the amazing texture (and, boy, does it smell great), and I've been told it tastes silky and tangy, yet sweet.

And making it is surprisingly easy (time consuming, but easy)--I didn't even need to do a water bath and it didn't crack (mind you, I've made this once. Perhaps it will crack for you--I do not know for sure.) This was my first full-sized cheesecake and it went so smoothly. And you get a total sense of accomplishment saying to yourself, "I just made an amazing cheesecake. GO ME!"

And soon you'll make this and I can say, "GO YOU!"

Something Saturdays (9/27/14)

Short people problems--this is my life.

Saturday we went to a party for Michael's uncle's 60th birthday. It was fun to see his family-plus one of our waiters ended up being one of my 3rd cousins who I haven't seen in foreverrr (and it took us halfway through the evening to realize who each other were lol)! Sunday we had more family time-we saw Michael's mom's family and then went to visit with a few people from my dad's side who I love and haven't seen for awhile!

I had my final florist appointment this week! Still waiting on some quotes from people, but I think I have a good idea of who we're going to go with. I also ordered a few wedding related things (flower girl baskets, my shoes, etc.) and framed the first engagement picture that we're going to put on the wall (which is the main part of getting our house together we still have to do--hanging stuff on the walls).

My wedding ring came in--which means I got to reunite with my engagement ring! It is now resting safely on my ring finger, where it belongs :) And the gorgeous wedding band is safe in our safe with Michael's wedding band.

Michael's job is going super well! He had a work retreat on Friday and he had a blast. He completely loves his co-workers and bosses, so that's amazing. And his new schedule is working out great, too. We were actually able to go out to dinner together on Wednesday (and it was DELISH). Life is good :) I went to our old high school to visit his mom (a teacher there), his sister (a student), his best friend (also a teacher), and just other people that I encountered and it was really good to see people and tell everyone how happy we are and what a great decision it was to move back. :)

Mashed Potato Pizza

Sometimes inspiration hits you like a sledgehammer.

One day I was just on facebook, like I do, and I saw a girl I knew from high school posted a promo from a restaurant about how their "Mashed Potato Pizza is Back!" and I was just like "WHAAAAA??!"

And I knew I must make it.

What does a pizza consist of? Crust, sauce, cheese, toppings.
What does this pizza consist of? Crust, mashed potato, cheese, topping.

Pretty similar.

Pizza is always the perfect dish because you can completely, 100%, make it according to your preference. I used whole wheat thin crust pizza crust, because I like it. You can use whatever suits your fancy-whether that be store-bought or your favorite recipe. You can also use regular, plain old mashed potatoes or jazzed up ones (like garlic mashed potatoes! Or ones with sour cream!)--and you can use fresh mashed potatoes or save on time by using leftover. Top it with your cheese of choice. And then whatever toppings make you happy-which for me are chives/scallions. For you it might be bacon. Who knows!?

Also, if you're extra special and get your hands on some STAR Grilling Cuisine Cooking Oil (with garlic!) it makes a tasty addition when brushed onto the pizza dough before baking. Just saying.

It's fall. Comfort food season. What's more comforting than pizza AND mashed potatoes?!