Name: Lemon Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 10 Strawberries
Ingredients: 4 ounces low fat cream cheese, room temperature; 1/2 cup plain non fat Greek yogurt; 2 tablespoons honey; 1 teaspoon lemon zest; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract; 10 strawberries, cut in half lengthwise

These Lemon Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries are the perfect way to get your cheesecake fix without over doing it! They’re super easy to make and great for parties too!

It’s about time I shared a new dessert recipe. It’s been a while and with my birthday and Mother’s Day coming up, I figured this was the perfect time. These little Lemon Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries make a great dessert if you’re looking for something sweet that isn’t a total calorie bomb. They’re just the right size to curb your sweet tooth and who can say no to the combination of lemon and strawberries? Not this girl!

I can’t believe my birthday is just over a week away. I don’t have anything big planned for it, but I am excited that my mom will be coming in to town the next day. I’m looking forward to going out for coffee as many times as possible during the few days that she’ll be here.

I’m also hoping the weather cooperates, unlike it did last weekend when we got about a foot of snow. Assuming it does, I’m planning a trip to the Denver Botanic Gardens with her. When I was still living in Arizona we would go to the botanic gardens at least a 2-3 times a month. It was always pleasant walking around looking at all the plants and flowers and it gave us a chance to catch up on what happened that week. Well we have months of catching up to do, so we might be walking for a while.

I think I’ve finally decided that I’ll be making her a special Mother’s Day brunch versus a fancy dinner. Luckily, anything goes with brunch, which means these Lemon Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries are totally acceptable.

The lemon cheesecake filling for these stuffed strawberries can be made the day before you need to serve them which is always nice when you’re cooking for a special occasion or party. On top of being easy to make, the filling has also been lightened up by subbing some of the cream cheese with Greek yogurt.

Instead of using cane sugar to sweeten the cheesecake I went with honey. Lemon and honey are a wonderful pairing and I find that I don’t need to use as much of it to get the desired sweetness I’m looking for. Whether you’re making these stuffed strawberries for brunch, a party or just a little after dinner treat, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Lemon Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

Yield: 10 Strawberries

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

4 ounces low fat cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup plain non fat Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
10 strawberries, cut in half lengthwise

Instructions

In the bowl of an electric mixer or using a handheld mixer, beat together the cream cheese and yogurt until smooth and creamy.
Add in the honey, lemon zest, juice and vanilla bean paste and beat again until smooth and fluffy.
Pipe the lemon cheesecake filling onto each strawberry half.
Garnish with extra lemon zest if desired and serve.

Notes

If your cheesecake filling is a little runny, place it in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. It should firm up and be easier to pipe. The filling can also be made a day ahead of time.