A Graham Cracker Crust For A Crowd Recipe
A Delectable Base For When You Need A Dessert In A Hurry
As our bi-weekly game night was quickly impending, I was faced with the fact that I had promised one of my fellow compatriots a cheesecake. Now, I have made real cheesecakes plenty of times. However, there are just some times that I don't feel like cracking out a bain marie and eggs. I know, how incredibly lazy and slothful of moi!!!
So my dear followers, I took the easy out and made a fake from scratch cheesecake. I draw the line at buying pre-made graham cracker crust and filling, I mean, I was already being a horrid monster of a person by not making a "real" cheesecake, at least I didn't let my cookery standards drop too far.
I'm just being slightly sarcastic here my peeps, I have no aspersions about utilizing (or others utilizing) ready made ingredients, none at all, I just tend to like to make from scratch most of the food that I and the people in my life nosh on.
To begin my crust making operation I selected a 9X13 pan. This recipe is for a crowd sized dessert or for a group of people that like to consume massive quantities. I would never judge when it comes to dessert inhalation. This blue pan just recently returned home after spending two years in my friend's kitchen. It had went to her house full of Brownie Surprise for Super Bowl and decided to move in for a spell. I figured a proper homecoming would be to utilize Old Bluie for my game night cheesecake mission. Prodigal Pan stuff.
Next, I needed some graham cracker crumbs. I am sure you can probably buy them ready made, but seriously, it only takes like two minutes to make them in the food processor. Back when I wasn't a 1%er, I just crushed the grahams with a rolling pin, but now I give the sheets a whirl in the old Cuisinart(Eternal thanks go to my garage sale Grandma!). Don't worry, I took them out of the plastic first!
Crumbs made to my non-excellent standards, I proceeded in my crust creation by placing the former grahams in a bowl. A sprinkle of cinnamon, sugar, and brown sugar, and I had a potential cheesecake base mixture a workin'.
I slathered that carb heavy conglomeration in a small ton of melted butter and mixed it into a well interspersed fat and starch bomb.
Next, came the engineering part of the recipe. Crust pressing. Now, as some of you know, I am straight line challenged. That disability also applies to crust pressing. One side of my crust tends to have more depth than the other. Guess what side I grab my piece out of! YAY! Anyway, I like to press my crusts with my 1 cup stainless steel measuring cup as it has the absolute best pressing surface. I spray it with cooking spray or slather it with butter and press like a boss. Wish that kind of pressing worked my triceps. That would be excellent, but I digress.
Pressing done to almost non-perfection, I popped my crust into the awaiting oven. 10-12 minutes later my house smelled like the Keebler Elf tree and I had a cheesecake base fit for perfection! The whole process, minus baking time, took less than ten minutes, and on another day when I don't have to take some children to a movie, I will regale you all with my quick, fast, and in a hurry, no bake cheesecake and strawberry sauce recipes. The combination of the caramely, hint of cinnamon crust, with the creamy notes of lemon cheesecake filling, and gooey homegrown strawberry sauce accompaniment elicited many sighs of contentment at game night last night!
Quick Graham Cracker Crust For A Crowd
2 Packages graham crackers (18 sheets)
12 Tablespoons melted butter
1/2 Teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Granulated SugarPreheat oven to 325 degrees
Pulse graham crackers in a food processor. You want to leave them with a bit of texture, do not grind them into dust!
Pour graham cracker crumbs into a large mixing bowl and add both the sugars and the cinnamon. Give the mixture a stir to incorporate everything.
Pour melted butter over the top of the mixture and mix it all up. I use a silicon spatula for this operation.
I have also been known to use my hands to combine everything as well. Call me a kitchen heathen if you want, but >sometimes our meat mits are the best mixers!Press graham mixture in a 9X13 pan and bake for 10-12 minutes. You want the sides of your crust to be a delectable golden brown.
Let your crust cool completely and top it with any manifestation of chilled dessert-type awesomeness you desire!!
Want to read more @Generikat posts?
Awesome Food
Nice Work !
Mmmmm, very inspiring home cookin'. My mouth is watering for cheesecake now!
You are too kind! As much hiking as you do, I feel you need at least a small slab of cheesecake, for fueling purposes of course!
I always seem to learn something reading your stuff, which is actually quite apropos, as you ARE the only known 'brarKat in my life. And though always a wonder, I guess that IS one of your known functions. To be a walking, talking reference shelf of knowledge. Which you DO fulfill, to the Nth degree of positivity, on a whole-often of regular basis.
All that said, I now know what a bain marie is. Some sort of mini hot-tub for slow cooking and heating and boiling things. And therefore, I now feel 8% smarter than I was 7 minutes ago. A grand accomplishment, in anyone's life. Guess I can go take a nap now.
OK, I'm back. I like the looks of that Cheesecake. I'm pretty sure if I was around those parts, I'd stop by regular for an afternoon snack. But since I'm not, I'll remain content that I can just read about them, and see them on the screen here. And thanks for making no judgements about we dessertmeisters. I'm not an inhalationist, but maybe scarfemonger would not be too strong a term. You know what W.C.Fields 'nStream said, "Never met a dessert, I didn't like".
Well, I seem to have gone on a bit about desserts and such here. So, since it's a partially sunny afternoon on a Tuesday in January, I'll sign off here. Hoping all is well with you, and you make some more desserts soon. Have a most wondrous day, and I also hope the snow is not above your eyebrows yet. Ta' for now, MzK
WOW! I feel sort of almost special right now! It's always a pleasure to be useful in the reference brar' department, and 8% smarter is totally amazing!
Um, I totally learned something too! I didn't know there was a personal dessert terminology assessment paradigm. I should have known you would have a dessertologist classification system! Genius! Confession time, I am most definitely an inhalationist when it comes to chocolate. Glad this is a dessertmeister judgement free zone.
If you must know, I pretty much always make a dessert of some form everyday. Lots of peer pressure has been placed upon my brarekat form to start my own dessertery so that I can sugar-bless all the peeps in my community. That might be a bon bon too far for me in the energy department, but rest assured my HS, there will always be a plate of dessertilicious lying on the counter for you if you are ever in the neighborhood:o)!
Hope you are having the most splendiferous day! Now, to the brare-cave!
Oh you have some proper depth to that crust right there. You cant get a nice thickness like that from store bought!! Well done.
I will admit to hand crushing - the processor is too much trouble for just that.
Oh! A very valid point OGP! I hate it when a crust to pie ratio is like a cow patty sitting on a dog hair! I require more of a base texture than that! Lol!
And hand crushing was and usually is the way I roll, I was just in a major hurry😜
That is a great quick graham cracker crust recipe! I usually like to make all of my desserts homemade too. But sometimes life gets hectic, and I just don't have time!
I appreciate it so much! Have a great weekend with your family!
Awe, thank you @lifes-a-donut! We had a fantastic weekend, I hope you and yours enjoyed your weekend too!!
Graham cracker crust is the only way I enjoy pie. Thanks for sharing!
Ooh, I really love graham cracker crusts on pies too! Thank you for commenting!
Great post
Perfect tutorial
I am hungry ahaha
Well, I sure hope you found some food, lol! Thank you so much for the kind words!
Yap good food
Thank you!
nice post please vote my comment, because your vote is very valuable to me
wow its easy and yummy recipe i must try it.
upvote you please upvote my comment and follow me back thank you
Nice post, please upvote my post , thanks :-)