Welcome, Summertime!...Strawberry Cheesecake Pie Recipe

Hello, Friends! Who's ready to welcome summertime with a delicious homemade dessert?
{How about some strawberry pie?}

I thought it would be fun to share my own recipe for Strawberry Cheesecake Pie. It's got a pie crust on the bottom, a layer of creamy cheesecake filling, and it's all topped off with fresh glazed strawberries.

Mmmmmmm....here we go. First I'll show you how I made mine, with photos. The entire recipe is available in the PDF link, and also at the end of this post.
CLICK HERE for a printable PDF recipe.
First make your pie crust. I just used a refrigerated pie crust, but you could make one from scratch if you prefer. Once it's in the pie pan, make the edges as pretty as you can. Then poke holes in the crust with a fork, to reduce shrinkage. Bake it at 450 for about 9 to 11 minutes.

The crust should be very lightly browned. Put it aside to cool.

For the creamy cheesecake layer, blend cream cheese with powdered sugar and vanilla. {To keep the mixture white, you could use clear vanilla.} Fold in the Cool Whip, then spoon the filling into the pie crust. While the pie chills, prepare the berries and glaze.

Clean the strawberries. Choose some of the ripest ones to use in making the glaze. You can leave the rest whole, or cut them in half.

Mash enough berries to make about 1/2 cup. I like to add the sugar now, and let the berries soften. Then put the pureed berries and sugar into a small saucepan. Add the cornstarch and a pinch of baking powder. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.

After the mixture thickens and turns clear, add a little dab of butter and the vanilla. Let the mixture cool to room temperature.

Arrange the berries over the cheesecake layer. This step can be as plain or fancy as you like. I kind of wish I'd taken time to make a fanned design, but it's still very pretty.

Oh, boy...the last step really glams it up. Spoon the glaze over all the berries and cream.

Strawberry Cheesecake Pie CLICK HERE for a printable PDF recipe. Ingredients:
1 9" pie crust, from a box or from scratch
Cheesecake layer: 4 oz. cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup powdered sugar 3/4 tsp. vanilla 1 cup Cool Whip, thawed
Strawberry layer: 3 cups fresh strawberries, cleaned 1/2 cup sugar 1 Tbsp. cornstarch pinch of baking powder 1/2 tsp.vanilla small dab of butter
Prepare the pie crust first. Lay the unbaked crust in a 9" pie pan. Pinch the upper edges of the crust to make an attractive design. Prick the crust with a fork to prevent shrinking. Bake the crust at 450 degrees for about 9 - 11 minutes, until just delicately browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Prepare the cheesecake layer. In a small bowl, blend the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip. Spread evenly over the baked crust and chill.
Prepare the strawberry glaze. Puree enough berries to make 1/2 cup. In a small saucepan combine berry puree, sugar cornstarch and baking powder. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook until thickened and clear. Add butter and vanilla. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.
Arrange remaining berries on top of the cream cheese layer. Keep the berries whole or in large pieces. Spoon the glaze over all and chill the pie well before serving.
Serves 6
A picture is worth a thousand words...