Cheesecake

Ah, cheesecake...Subtle, sublime, sophisticated...my new favorite dessert. I have fallen in love yet again, this time with the simple cheesecake. It is a wonderful treat, not overly sweet, light and tenderly fluffy, with a pleasant creaminess on the tongue. I decided I had to try making one, but at 350 calories for a small slice I didn't want to have the whole thing sitting on the kitchen counter for several days; so I waited until I could take one to a gathering of friends. Just such an occasion presented itself Friday night.


We were attending a deck supper with 6 others prior to trooping off to the Salmon Stampede :) With Stetsons and toe pinching cowboy boots waiting in the car, I flip flopped my way around to our friends back yard proudly carrying my first cheesecake. I also carried a jar of home-canned cherry conserves to spoon over the top of each carefully cut piece. This conserve is a thick, sweet, dark red liquor lovingly made from the Bing cherries off one of Dad's trees. There are also whole cherries populating this lovely liquid.


After dinner, as I was serving the cheesecake and preparing to bless each diner with a spoonful of my lovely conserve, a large plastic bottle of Hershey's chocolate sundae sauce was thumped onto the table beside me. 'No matter', I thought, 'when my friends taste the deliciously fruity conserve they will revel in this delectable dessert'. I could hardly wait to hear their exclamations of delight...and their praise!


I now know that not everyone loves cheesecake. Some in our number actually squeezed Hershey's sauce over their slice in an attempt to make it more to their liking.

The best comment I could wheedle (and wheedle I did-this was a tough crowd!) out of these diners were two or three 'it's good' tokens, grudgingly given. I should have spooned the cherry sauce on for them instead of serving the dessert bare.