Sometimes things just come together…like this IceBox Roasted Strawberry Cheesecake. I had leftover roasted strawberries from my Ghiradelli S’mores contest entry and it would’ve been a shame to toss them. Sure, use them to top yogurt or just devour as is, but I felt they were meant for more. Then I found a block of cream cheese in my fridge and it all came to fruition. Plus, I got to use the graham crackers I had left too! S’mores leftovers becoming cheesecake – miracles do exist.
Cheesecake:
8 oz Cream Cheese, softened
½ C. Greek yogurt, full-fat preferred
1/3 C. Granulated Sugar
Juice ½ Lemon
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Crust:
4-5 full sheets of Graham Crackers, crushed
1 tbsp Butter, melted
Strawberry Topping:
1 lb Strawberries, cut into bite-size pieces
1/3 – ½ C. Granulated Sugar
- Mix cut strawberries and sugar. Place into a baking dish with elevated sides – you want to keep all the good juice.
- Roast at 350, stirring every 5 mins until tender (10-15 mins – longer if you’d like). I honestly did these in my toaster oven and it made it so easy to keep an eye on them. If you don’t have a toaster oven, do this in your regular oven OR you could do this on the stove top – it will just be less “roasted” and more “compotey.” TOTALLY a word…
- Allow strawberries to cool completely.
- Cheesecake time – combine all ingredients in a food processor. Process, making sure to scrape down the sides as needed. TASTE TEST. Add more lemon or vanilla if needed. (I ALWAYS suggest taste testing – you may be following a recipe but you’re making and serving it – make it your own and make sure it’s tasting good along the way!)
- Make your graham cracker crust. Mix the crushed graham crackers and melted butter till it resembles firm sand. You don’t want it “wet” so if you need to add more graham crackers, go for it – no one ever complained about too much graham cracker crust…
- Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap.
- Pour in your strawberries and set in the freezer for 5 mins. (Not completely necessary, but I felt like it helped keep the fruit layer from integrating too much with the cheesecake layer…). Next, pour in the cheesecake layer, spreading evenly. If you want that strawberry goodness throughout the cheesecake (I don’t know your life!), carefully swirl with a spoon. Next? You guessed it, the graham cracker crust. Gently press it evenly on the top.
- Cover with plastic wrap pushing onto the crust and then foil the whole thing and put into the freezer to set.
- Freeze 4-6 hours or overnight.
- When ready to serve, I suggest letting it sit for a little so the cheesecake softens up a bit. This is a cold dish, but it’s not meant to be eaten when it’s frozen solid.
I love the iciness of the fruit with the creaminess of the cheesecake. Plus, how wonderfully old school is an IceBox cake?
