To have and to...sweeten

via here and here

My friend's wedding weekend is over and I'm struggling with the thought that the sweet stuff has come to an end! Thankfully, Pinterest came to the rescue when my call went out for the need of comforting goodies to be at arms reach. This food snap has left me drooling over a slice of the baked goods! Not only did I want a good excuse to post this delicious looking pic, I realised Shade of Whim lacks the recipe-type post and figured it's never too late to get a good thing started. What better way to introduce us (and my blog) to a recipe post than with Blueberry Cheesecake Bars. Don't those three words just belong together?

Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients

Base:
Butter, for greasing
2 tablespoon sugar
1/8 tablespoon ground cinnamon
9 graham crackers
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 eggs
2 lemons, zested and juiced
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

Directions

For the Base:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Grease the bottom of a 9 by 9-inch baking pan with butter. Then place parchment paper over the top, pressing down at the corners. In a food processor, process the sugar, cinnamon and graham crackers until you have the consistency of breadcrumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse a couple of times to fully incorporate. Pour into the lined baking pan and firmly pat down with the bottom of a glass. Bake for about 12 minutes, or until set.

For the filling:
Add cream cheese, eggs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar to the food processor and pulse until well combined. It should have a smooth consistency. Pour onto the cooked graham cracker base and then sprinkle with blueberries. They will sink slightly but should be half exposed.

Bake in the oven for 35-45 minutes, or until the center only slightly jiggles. Remove from the oven and cool completely before Refrigerating for at least 3 hours. Once set, remove from pan using the parchment lining and slice into 10 rectangular bars.

Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence