Strawberry Cream Pie

Last week, Sophie and I ended up doing a lot of baking. We made a fresh cherry pie, a strawberry cream pie and banana bread. She's starting to really like being a part of things in the kitchen and loves to help me when she can. We had a ton of fresh strawberries and I was looking for a new dessert recipe. This strawberry cream pie was amazing! It has a graham cracker crust and a cream cheese style layer like a strawberry pizza but then its topped with both whole strawberries and an amazing glaze that's super easy to make.

Strawberry Cream Pie
(Adapted from Your Home Based Mom)

Step #1 - Graham Cracker Crust

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs.
(I crushed up one package of graham crackers in my food processor and it was just the right amount)
1/4 cup sugar
6 Tbs butter, melted

Combine these three ingredients and press firmly into a 9 inch pie dish. Bake at 7-8 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Let cool.

Step #2 - Strawberry Glaze

1 cup strawberries, stems cut off
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs cornstarch
1/4 cup water

Puree strawberries in a food processor. Combine sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Add the water and strawberry puree. Cook and stir over medium heat until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and strain if you want, but you don't have to. Pop this into the refrigerator to cool.

Step #3 - Creamy Filling

6 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 cups whole strawberries

First whip your heavy cream until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, blend the cream cheese and sugar. Stir in the vanilla, then fold in the whipped cream. Spread this mixture in your cooled crust. (I only wanted a thin layer of this filling so I used about two thirds of the mixture) Place your whole strawberries on top of the creamy filling with their cut sides down. Spoon your strawberry glaze over the top. Chill for at least 3 hours.