When I was in high school, I was a waitress at a small restaurant. The restaurant was named County Seat, which was really ironic because it was located next door to the court house of the parish seat. Yes, I said parish seat. It was a big play on words because I’m from Louisiana and it’s the only state that has parishes instead of counties. In case a more thorough history lesson is needed, the parish or county seat is where the court houses are located.
That’s me on the left. I blew my daughter away with this pic. 😉
My mom is a fabulous cook and I learned a lot from her both directly and indirectly. The same thing happened when I was working at the County Seat. We were allowed to eat almost anything we wanted while we were on the clock but had to cook it for ourselves. I was the baby of the crew, so quite a few of the cooks prepared my meals for me, teaching me new tricks along the way. I was also younger than the owners’ daughter and became a little spoiled by the wife. This cheesecake was her specialty and she always let me “try” the first piece of the cheesecake to make sure that it came out “right.” It was always just right when it was still warm and had just set enough to hold its shape after being cut.
The restaurant closed without me ever getting the recipe for the cheesecake. Over the years, I wished and wished that I had the recipe. The wishes continued for more than a decade. One day I miraculously discovered the recipe in a cookbooks I received as a wedding present. Ever since I found the recipe, it’s been my “signature” dessert. I’ve even learned to modify the recipe to make it low carb and gluten-free. Surprisingly, these changes are delicious, undetectable, and enjoyed by everyone!
- 3-8 oz packages of cream cheese
- 1½ c sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 T vanilla
- 1 tsp almond
- 1 tsp butter flavor
- 2½ c crushed vanilla wafers **Gluten-Free Recipe Below
- 1½ sticks melted butter
- Let cream cheese soften to room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 400*.
- Blend all ingredients for cake.
- MUST be WHIPPED at high speed for 25 minutes.
- While the cake ingredients are whipping, proceed with the crust.
- Pour melted butter or margarine over wafer crumbs till moist (may not need all butter or margarine). Excess will drip from the bottom of the cake pan and burn on the bottom of the stove.
- Line sides up ¼" to ½" thick Put remainder in bottom and mash flat.
- Pour cake mixture over crust.
- Bake in oven for 40 minutes.
- Turn off oven.
- Leave door cracked with cheesecake in oven for 1 hour, then cover with foil.
- Refrigerate for 6 hours.
- Use a knife (or pastry knife) to gently run around the inside rim before loosening the ring from the springform pan. Let return to room temperature to serve.
- Top with favorite toppings: fresh fruit, chocolate syrup, caramel, etc.
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