Cheesecake Filled Strawberries

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of attending a baby shower for my aunt's cousin who is about to have a baby girl. Ever since I found out she was pregnant with a girl I immediately knew I wanted to prepare some sort of pink dessert for the baby shower. After making macarons for my friend's birthday back in April I thought it would be cute to make them again for the shower, only this time use food coloring and have them be pink.

Unfortunately my macaron shells did not turn out correctly and I didn't have enough time to make another batch. Although they tasted fine they were not visually appealing and I felt wrong bringing them to the event. Instead I brought strawberries which were filled with a cheesecake-like filling. I think the macaron slip-up ended up being a blessing in disguise because the strawberry dessert took very little effort to create and was a big hit with the crowd.

I didn't quite know how much filling would go into each strawberry and afterward I was left with quite a bit so my mom and I decided to pipe it onto little mini-meringues that she had baked as well. The meringues with the filling were also well received and withstood the warmer temperature, unlike the typical whipped cream my mom usually uses.

Overall the baby shower was a success and everyone enjoyed both the food and the games. The next day I got a call from the mom-to-be thanking me for bringing the strawberries and leading some of the games. It was definitely fun and now I can't wait until the new baby is born and we all get to meet her!

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
Note: I had a lot of filling left over, even with four pounds of strawberries. Therefore, the recipe below reflects half of the amount I had initially made.

• 4 lbs fresh strawberries
• 16 oz (2 cups) cream cheese, room temperature
• 6 tbsp powdered sugar
• Optional: A few drops red food coloring (to make pink)

1. Wash all of the strawberries and pat dry. Carefully cut the tops off and hull out the insides, making sure to leave about 1/4" on all sides.
2. Beat the powdered sugar with the softened cream cheese. If you don't want the filling to be too sweet, start with four tablespoons of powdered sugar and add more if necessary.
3. If you want to add color to the filling start with 2-3 drops and continue to beat the cream cheese until no streaks remain. Add more if desired.
4. Transfer the filling to a piping bag or plastic ziploc bag with the tip cut off. Carefully pipe the filling into each strawberry until the filling is even with the top. Lay out on a platter and refrigerate until ready to serve.