Blueberry Cheesecake

Cheesecake makes me happy.  All kinds of cheesecake.  But the one that makes me the happiest is the one I grew up with.  I wasn't introduced to New York style cheesecake until I was in high school and while I love that, I sometimes just want the light creamy texture of this cheesecake.  My mom would make this for my Dad's birthday and it was my favorite to dessert to make for a Sunday evening.  I remember asking for it for my birthday, but since I also wanted lasagna my Mom said that would be too much cheese.  Some years I got my wish, others I didn't.  But I don't think I ever stopped trying.  Now that I am in charge of my birthday dinners, we eat both.  You only get one birthday once a year after all.    This cheesecake is refreshing.  It's not as rich as New York style cheesecake so you have to be careful that you don't eat the whole pan.  You obviously don't have to use blueberry pie filling, you can use whatever you prefer.  I go back and forth between blueberry and cherry.  I hope you love it as much as my family does.  A word of advice – do not use Imperial margarine in your crust.  It has too much water in it so it makes your crust soggy...ick.  You can find Dream Whip in the cooking aisle usually on the top shelf above the jell-o.

Blueberry Cheesecake

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Chilling Time: 2-4 hours
 

Ingredients:

CRUST:
1¼ c. graham cracker crumbs
¼ c. sugar
¼ c. softened margarine
 

FILLING:
2 (8 oz. Each) packages cream cheese, softened

1 c. sugar
2 envelopes Dream Whip
¾ c. milk
2 t. vanilla
Directions: For crust: Mix together the crumbs, ¼ c. sugar and margarine and press in a 9x13 pan.  Bake at 375° for 3 minutes.  Cool.  For filling: Whip the cream cheese with the 1 cup sugar in a large bowl.  In a medium bowl whip the Dream Whip with the ¾ c. milk and vanilla until mixture is stiff.  Mix the Dream Whip with the other mixture and spread over cooled crust.  Refrigerate until set.  Serve with pie filling of your choice.