Blueberry Cheesecake

Cheesecake + Blueberry Topping.
A simple birthday dessert for my dad, who turned the big 60 on Monday! 

Cheesecake is one of my dad's favorites and the obvious choice for his birthday. I adapted the recipe from Tyler Florence's Ultimate Chessecake and it was amazing! The cheesecake isn't too heavy, and has lemon and orange zest in it, making it brighter than a traditional cheesecake. The blueberry topping adds a little more tartness and another layer of flavor. I made the cheesecake the night before, let it refrigerate overnight and made the blueberry topping the day of.

Cheesecake & Blueberry Topping 

adapted from Tyler Florence's 'Ultimate Cheesecake' 

Ingredients
Crust:
2 cups finely ground graham crackers (about 30 squares)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
Filling:
1 pound cream cheese, 2 (8-ounce) blocks, softened (I used 1 block 1/3 fat, and one regular)
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 pint sour cream
1 lemon, zested
1/2 orange, zested 
1 dash vanilla extract

Blueberry Topping:
1 pint blueberries
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, combine the ingredients with a fork until evenly moistened. Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 8-inch springform pan with non-stick cooking spray. (I used a 10-inch springform pan and this was plenty)

Pour the crumbs into the pan press the crumbs down into the base and up the sides. Refrigerate until the filling is ready.

For the Filling:

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat slowly until combined. Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add sour cream, lemon zest, orange zest and vanilla. Periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The batter should be well-mixed but not overbeaten. Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Set the cheesecake pan on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold up the sides around it. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan until the water is about halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan; the foil will keep the water from seeping into the cheesecake. Bake for 50 minutes. The cheesecake might jiggle a little, but will firm up once chilled. Let cool in pan for 30 minutes. Cover and chill in the refrigerator, until ready to serve (at least 4 hours, I chilled mine overnight). 

For the Topping:
In a small saucepan add all the ingredients and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes or so until the fruit begins to break down slightly. Leave to cool before spreading on cheesecake.

Serve:
Once you're ready to serve, run a knife along the edge of the pan and unmold, transferring to your cake plate or server. Pour the blueberry topping over the cheesecake and enjoy! 

xoxo
Marisa 

Anthro-Inspired Kitchen Decor

I've been wanting to add some personality to my kitchen, and the wall space above the stove seemed like the perfect place to do so. Inspired by Anthropologie's Zinc Letters, I decided to create my own at a fraction of the cost. 

Anthropologie Zinc Letters

Empty wall space before

"EAT" seemed like a perfect phrase for the kitchen, but you could change the word to suit a different room or make a monogram with two small letters and one big letter! 

I found these 8" paper mache letters at Joann's for $2.99 each and used craft paint that I already had on hand. 

Black base coat 

First I painted the letters black, then I painted a rough silver layer. I didn't want to add too much paint at once because I wanted the final result to look worn. 

After first coat of silver paint

After adding one more silver coat I went back with a little black and blended it until I liked the way it looked.  

Finished product

To hang them, I just used lightweight command strips and stuck them to the wall.

I love the way they turned out, and for less than $10, I think they make a great impact! 


xoxo
Marisa 

DIY Ikat Curtains

My new little abode has pretty white wood blinds everywhere except the bedroom...in the bedroom the two gorgeous windows are outfitted with skanky light blue vertical blinds... 

Skanky vertical blinds on move-in day 

For the past 2 months I’ve been trying to think of a way to fix this situation, but I couldn’t find a fairly easy way to cover the vertical blinds without taking them down and hanging curtains. The window behind my bed seemed like the easiest one to tackle first, because I never open those blinds. Of course I couldn’t just find pre-made tab back curtains that I loved, so I finally decided to improvise and make my own! I really wanted to bring a fun pattern and some color into the room because my headboard is a neutral color, my bedding is all white and the walls are greige. The “fabric” I finally decided on was actually a fabric shower curtain from Target in this fun red/beige ikat pattern.

Close-up of the pretty ikat fabric

The shower curtains were originally 72”x72”, but after a little trial & error, cutting, sewing, hemming (and a lot of help from mom), I successfully completed a custom pair of tab back curtains to replace the vertical blinds!

In progress

The finished panels are 89” long. I added the extra length by cutting a 34” strip off of the side of one panel, and using that strip to extend each panel by 17”. The panels are not even in width, but it isn’t noticeable. If I had been making these curtains for a window that I would open and close regularly, I would have made them more even but for this particular case it really didn’t make a difference. For the tabs on the backs of the curtains I used white grograin ribbon and generally followed this tutorial from View Along the Way.  

Measuring & pinning for the back tabs 

I absolutely love the way that they turned out, and now I just have to decide what I’m going to do with my other window!

 xoxo
Marisa 

Well Hello There!

Well hello there!  I'm Marisa, a twenty-something southern girl and recent college grad with a love for food, design, DIY projects & life. I hope this little corner of the internet can be a place where I can share my adventures with you! 

Thanks for reading! 

xoxo 
Marisa