Hawaiian punch cheesecake

One day at work we had a carry-in and one of the employees brought in this blue pie. Nobody knew what it was and not many people rushed to try it, but I'm always one to at least try food because I never know what might surprise me. Something that looks bad could taste scrumptious or something that smells great might not be so tasty.

Anyway, after one bite I was hooked so I asked her for the recipe and now I will share it with you. This is my second time making it. While mine is 'hawaiian punch' flavored, like I said she used a blueberry flavor, but she also recommended grape as being a tasty flavor. I think I will try one of the other two next time I make it.

Review: The color alone is fun but the cheesecake also is quite flavorful. As mentioned above, the person who gave me the recipe recommended blueberry, grape and tropical/hawaiian punch as the top three flavors. She recommended staying away from anything really lemony such as lemon or lemon lime. It was quick and easy to make but because it does call for cream cheese it is thick to mix. Just using a spatula will not work. You will need a mixer of some kind whether it is an electric handheld mixer or one of those electronic mixing bowls. Either way, because of its thickness you will want to start at a slow speed and then work up to maximum speed. You also might have to start and stop it a few times to push the mix down but basically it is like making a cake but much, much thicker. The recipe also calls for adding sugar if you think it needs it after tasting but trust me, unless you want to go into a sugar coma or become a diabetic, you won't need to add any sugar. It is rich enough as it is. Finally, I did not use any low-fat or sugar-free ingredients but if you can find them then this could be a fairly healthy dessert.

Recipe:

• 1 1/2 packs of cream cheese
• 1 can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1 pack of Kool-aid of your choice (she said she has tried generic brands and they do not work as well so she recommends sticking to the brand name Kool-aid)
• 1 cap full of lemon juice
• 1 cap full of vanilla extract
• 1 graham cracker pie crust

Here's the tough part (insert sarcasm). Mix all the ingredients into a bowl, taste and add sugar if you need or want to (again, it will not be needed and you probably shouldn't health-wise). Once you get everything mixed and it becomes smooth like a cake mix, use a spoon or spatula to fill the graham cracker pie crust. Refrigerate for at least a couple hours and then it will be ready to serve.