Buttery pistachio shortbread + creamy cheesecake hinted with lemon + roasted strawberries + even more fresh sugared berries = the quintessence of summer wrapped in a spring form pan.
Scraping down the sides of your mixer bowl with a spatula after each ingredient addition helps to keep your cheesecake smooth and creamy!
Double Strawberry Cheesecake with Pistachio Shortbread Crust
Servings: 12-16 / Prep time: 30 minutes / Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients :
1 pkg unshelled pistachios / 6.25 oz
1 pkg Sandie’s shortbread cookies
3 TB melted butter
3 pkgs Philadelphia cream cheese / 8 oz
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
8 oz sour cream
1 TB flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 lb strawberries / thinly sliced
Turbinado sugar
1. Read up on the 7 Commandments of Cheesecake for optimum results!
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For the crust, unshell pistachios and finely chop in a food processor. Reserve 1/8 cup of pistachios for garnish. Add shortbread cookies and melted butter to pistachios in the food processor and pulse into a fine crumb. Press crumbs into 9″ spring form pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 12 minutes.
3. Beat the cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, one or two minutes. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go. Next, slowly add in the sugar and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add eggs one at a time beating after each addition. Add sour cream, flour, vanilla, and lemon zest and blend until smooth. Pour cheesecake into spring form pan. Arrange half of sliced strawberries on top of the cheesecake and sprinkle with Turbinado sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Then, reduce heat to 325 and bake for 1 hour. Cheesecake should be set on the sides but still a little wobbly in the middle. Let cool and then refrigerate overnight before serving.
4. When ready to serve, toss remaining berries in Turbinado sugar and arrange over the roasted strawberries. Garnish with pistachios and eat it up!
