Strawberry Cream Cheese Pie

Ingredients

1 homemade pie crust

Cream Cheese Filling:

375 grams cream cheese (1 ½ packages, 12 oz – regular or light)

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar (160 grams)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Strawberry Topping:

1 lb strawberries, thinly sliced or chopped

3/4 cup cold strawberry juice* (or another red juice), divided

1 package unflavored gelatin (7g)

1/2 cup strawberry jam

whipped cream, to serve if desired

Homemade Whipped Cream, for serving

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 425°F and press the pie crust into a 9-inch pie plate. Crimp the edges as desired.

Place a piece of parchment paper over the pie crust and fill with dried beans or pie weights. If these are not available, simply prick the bottom and sides with a fork all over.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until the edges are light golden brown. Remove the parchment and pie weights and continue baking for another 4-5 minutes until the bottom is light golden brown. Set on a wire rack to cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth.

Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat on low speed until smooth.

Add the cream and beat on low until incorporated, then beat with an electric mixer on high speed until thick and fluffy. Set aside.

Place ½ cup cold juice in a medium bowl. Sprinkle the entire package of gelatin over the top and set aside.

Whisk together the remaining juice and jam. Heat in the microwave on high for 45 to 90 seconds, until very hot but not boiling.

Whisk into the gelatin until dissolved and set aside for 15-20 minutes until it reaches room temperature (you can use the fridge to speed things up if you need).

Spread the cream cheese filling into the cooled pie crust.

Top with strawberries, then carefully pour the cooled gelatin mixture over the strawberries to fill the crust (if you don’t use it all, it’s okay!).

Refrigerate for 4-6 hours until completely set. Top with whipped cream if desired and serve.

Notes:

*You can use any red juice to make the gelatin, or simply use water. If using water, you may want to add a tablespoon or two of sugar if your strawberries are not too sweet.

**If you need to keep things simple, you can use a package of strawberry Jello instead of the homemade gelatin layer. Simply reduce the amount of water called for on the package by ½ cup.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 466 cal | Carbohydrates: 53 g | Protein: 7 g | Fat: 25 g | Saturated Fat: 13 g | Cholesterol: 65 mg | Sodium: 257 mg | Potassium: 233 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 35 g | Vitamin A: 780 IU | Vitamin C: 35.2 mg | Calcium: 74 mg | Iron: 1.2 mg