Front-Row-Center Vanilla Mousse Cheesecake

Cheesecake is one of the hubby's favorite desserts. Over the course of our one-year-and-counting marriage I've tried to attempt his very favorite foods and so far I've tackled chicken alfredo, chicken fried rice, and ribs (in order of easiest to most difficult). Until recently I hadn't been brave enough to tackle his favorite dessert: cheesecake.

Why?

Well, funny you should ask. Way back in December 2006, when our relationship was in its tender first-month-getting-to-know-each-other-while-feeling-a-little-awkward-to-be-newly-dating-stage, my now sister-in-law and I decided to take a trip to visit Nick and Sean and their family in Bluffton for a weekend over Christmas break. Maria and I'd both only met Nick's family once or twice before that at a tailgate, so we were a little nervous about spending the whole weekend with them. Would they like us? Would they approve of us dating their sons? I decided that to show our appreciation of them letting us crash their house for a weekend and to prove that I'd be a valuable asset to Nick and the Crandalls as his girlfriend, I'd bake something for everyone to enjoy during our time there. So Maria and I headed to the store and settled on Nestle Tollhouse refrigerated fudge pull-apart-brownie dough with Christmas sprinkles. We even got a Christmas tin to put them in as a nice touch.

We baked those babies to perfection and headed down to Bluffton with our Christmas tin of brownies, looking forward to how impressed Nick's mom would be at our thoughtfulness and excited to see everyone enjoying our brownies all weekend. We got there and our brownies were received with a "thanks girls...yall are so sweet" and were promptly placed on the top of the fridge...where they stayed the entire rest of the weekend. The air was completely let out of our balloons. As it turns out, my mom-in-law Marcy is absolutely famous for her homemade brownies, so for the rest of the weekend I'd hear from Nick, "hey Lyndsey, I'm going to get a brownie...my mom's brownies are so good!!" which would be followed by Nick skipping in to the kitchen, pushing our brownies aside to reach Marcy's, and scarfing one down with a smile (at least that's how it seemed).

We still joke about it with them and the family, and Nick and Sean have come to find out that it's polite to compliment your significant other's attempts in the kitchen, no matter how good or bad...or how much worse than your mom's ;).

Ever since then, I've been a little weary about making anything that falls under the "my mom makes it best" umbrella...until recently! Nick's mom makes amazing cheesecake. Seriously. Nick's fave is her caramel praline cheesecake, and he requests that she make it for every major holiday or event celebrating him (including our rehearsal dinner). So when I saw a recipe for vanilla mousse cheesecake in a magazine, I knew it'd be the perfect dessert to try for the one-year-anniversary dinner I was going to make for him, but I was a little concerned it would turn out just like the Brownie Debacle of 2006. I made it and nervously cut Nick a piece for him to try, terrified I'd hear a phrase like "not quite...." or "you'll learn....", but to my surprise, Nick loved the cheesecake. While Marcy's recipes will always be well-received by the hubs' (and my) appetites, I'm glad to know mine have a place in his heart too :)

I'm happy to report that my cheesecake did not get banished to the back of the refrigerator! And really, I should get no credit for the deliciousness of this cheesecake. It's so easy to make, there's almost no way it could come out badly...

So here's the recipe for my Front-Row-Center Vanilla Mousse Cheesecake:

Ingredients:

For the cheesecake:
40 vanilla wafers, crushed (about 1.5 cups)
3 tbsp. butter, melted
3 pkg cream cheese, softened (8 oz. each)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla
3 eggs

For the mousse:
1 pkg cream cheese (8 oz.)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
8 oz. whipped topping, thawed

Heat oven to 325. Mix wafer crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of 9-in springform pan.
Beat 3 pkg. cream cheese, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tbsp vanilla with mixer until well blended.
Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each until just blended.
Pour over crust.
Bake 50 to 55 min. or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool completely in pan.
Beat 1 pkg. cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 tsp. vanilla in large bowl until well blended.
Whisk in whipped topping; spread over cheesecake.
Refrigerate 4 hours. Remove rim of pan before serving cheesecake.
Garnish with fresh berries if your heart so desires.

Enjoy!

the good stuff

Nick and I have been looking forward to May for a long time. One reason was because two of our closest friends were getting MARRIED in May! Another reason is that our little brother, who Nick has obviously known his entire life and who I've known since he was a scrawny little 12 year old, is graduating from high school in May! But the other reason we've been so excited is that during this small window of time that is the month of May, our favorite little red berries would be ripe for the picking. So last weekend we took a break from the fast-paced big metropolis of Clemson where we live to enjoy a simpler way of life. We went to Hunter Farms in Easley, grabbed a bucket and got to pickin!

And then afterwards, we took our spoils back home where we gobbled up strawberry shortcakes. Amen.

you might be a redneck if...

...you take out your dentures and put them in your pocket because they're bothering you, then proceed to lose them and have to retrace your steps for the rest of the day, with the bank being your fourth stop along the way.

You might be even more of a redneck if...

...you loudly proclaim to the entire bank that you've misplaced your dentures after removing them because they were uncomfortable, and ask if anyone's seen them.

(Alternately titled: Welcome to Oconee county. Nothing could have prepared you. Run for the hills. Actually, stay put. This could make for a few great stories some day.)

our love story, according to nick

I was reading through a journal Nick gave me last Valentine's day (2010) where he wrote out his version of our love story. It made me smile in more ways than one, so I thought I'd share...

Our very first picture together- Nov. 2006

On October 11, 2006, outside Tillman Hall, Nick met Lyndsey! And, thankfully, Lyndsey thought Nick to be the cuter twin. After some hand-holding escapades, Nick and Lyndsey began dating on November 10 December 4, 2006. The next few years brought some amazing adventures. Winter Break 2007, Nick and Lyndsey went to New York City, where Lyndsey discovered how much she loves Broadway shows. Spring semester 2009, the couple embarked on their wildest adventure so far! Off to Granada, Spain (and Portugal and England), they traveled and studied away from home for 4 months. And, in between the traveling, was Wicked, seran wrapping, odd seatbelt rules, and so much more. Then, on July 10, 2009, Nick proposed after lunch at a beautiful spot on the water. Nick continued his love for making books with a proposal scrapbook, which did well, maybe even 
better than the first plan, parasailing. Now, the couple is planning their honeymoon and wedding on June (scribbled out number) 4! And they will live happily ever after.

THE BEGINNING... 

In the Sierra Nevada mountains in Spain-2009

 I loved the scratched out dates...hopefully after writing this he was able to remember when we started dating and our wedding date! :) Since February 2010, we've embarked on what is now our greatest adventure: marriage! We've traveled to Costa Rica and settled into our cute little apartment in Clemson. We thought we knew each other so well and loved each other so much in February 2010, but that was nothing compared to how much I know and love Nick today, on March 31, 2011. And today will be nothing compared to how much we will know and love each other when we're old and gray. As my sister-in-law Maria has said, I couldn't be more lucky or blessed to have made such a great decision at a young age: to marry my best friend and live life with him. I look back on October 11, 2006 outside of Tillman Hall and I can see now how the Lord was preparing us for each other and how He led us, grew us, and prepared us over the next 4 years to be husband and wife, all for His glory. Praise God!

Our very last date as an engaged couple...seeing the Greenville Drive the week before the wedding

double date

Nick, Dallas, Elizabeth and I went to the Clemson baseball game last weekend!

I actually really like watching baseball. Who knew?

Clemson beat Charleston Southern like 20-1. We left after the 5th inning to go get our free hotdogs at Beef o Bradys (thanks to Clemson getting 5 runs!)

We're ready for these two to join us in  married-folk land...only 2 1/2 more months!

After the game we watched the Clemson/Wake Forest basketball game and celebrated another Clemson win! It was a very sports-filled day, so in exchange, Nick watched a Jodi Picoult novel-turned-Lifetime movie with me on Sunday afternoon. Pretty even trade I'd say :)

Valentines

Let me just say that I love Valentines Day. Maybe it's because my mom has always made me feel special by surprising me with candy and little gifts each year, or maybe it's because I've had a pretty spectacular guy to call my Valentine for the past 5 years, or MAYBE it's just the fact that we can draw out the holiday season (including my birthday, my brother's, Maria's, and Nick & Sean's!) a little longer.

This year has been my best Valentine's day yet, because I got to celebrate it with my husband, instead of just my boyfriend or fiance. Nick took me to Greenville to spend some time and enjoy the beautiful weather on Saturday. We listened to part of Perry Noble's recent marriage series on the way into Greenville, and reflected on how God's been working in our marriage these past 8 months. Then we listened to the last few heartbreaking minutes of the Clemson/UNC basketball game. Nick decided to take me to the zoo--the only zoo we'd been to together was in London, so it was exciting to see Nick experience the Greenville Zoo for the first time and to reminisce of the times I'd been there on fieldtrips in elementary school. Then we went to one of our favorite restaurants, PF Changs, for dinner. Nick gave me a pedicure/eyebrow waxing/glass of wine package at a spa, which I can't wait to use! :)

On Sunday after church we headed over to the Botanical Gardens to walk around, which evidently was everybody else's Sunday afternoon gameplan, because it was pretty crowded! It was nice to get out this weekend, enjoy a break from school and work, and just hang out with each other. Sunday afternoon was spent baking for the bake sale we had at work today. I am the March of Dimes rep and this was one of our first fundraisers. I made brownies with heart sprinkles, Valentines funfetti cupcakes with pink icing, heart shaped funfetti cookies, Crinkles, and peanut butter balls.

Since I didn't have time to eat breakfast this morning Nick surprised me by showing up with a Valentine's smoothie (which is one of my favorite foods). I seriously couldn't ask for a better hubby!

I didn't take too many pics this weekend, but I'll try to upload some of what I took sometime soon! :)

Time to Ketchup

It's been awhile since I've blogged! Like many of our favorite TV shows, I took a break for the holiday season. This was more due to the fact that the week after my last post I started a 40-hr a week job and my free time has been drastically cut back. But I thought it might be time to pick back up on recording the events and experiences of my life as a 23-year-old not-so-much-anymore-housewife for future posterity. I mean, even Glee is coming back tonight after a few-month long hiatus, so I know it can be done!

Here's what we have been up to the past few months:

November

Celebrated my birthday with a zebra cake

Learned the ins and outs of canning

Made apple butter

LOTS of apple butter

Learned that our couch eats remotes

Learned how to rescue remotes from the dark pit of the couch

Celebrated at Ashton and Taylor's wedding

(Probably one of the prettiest weddings ever!)

December:

Nick re-learned how to tie a tie

And I was proud

Celebrated Maria's graduation

Decorated for Christmas!!

Celebrated Christmas on the 22nd by opening our ornaments to each other

Celebrated Christmas on the 23rd by opening our stockings to each other

Celebrated Christmas at the Crandalls in Bluffton

January

Played in the snow!!

Some of us tripped in the snow

Celebrated Nick's first day of his second semester in grad school

Had a wedding shower for Dallas and Elizabeth

Ate chicken fried rice for Nick's birthday

Celebrated Nick's birthday with a zebra cake!!

I worked on my lack of cake-decorating skills

Saw Clemson make a huge comeback for a win against NC State

Celebrated the 8th year of Emilie's life...

And the 12th year of Kate's life!!

So now you're all caught up! Nick and I had an amazing end to 2010 and beginning to 2011!

Lately

So what have the Crandalls been up to lately?

A couple weekends ago Nick and I headed to the Denver Downs pumpkin patch to get a real pumpkin picking experience. As you can see it was kind of slim pickings but we found the perfect two pumpkins.

The next weekend we headed out to our tiny deck with our carving kits and some music and got to work.

Nick loved scooping the guts out with his bare hands

My owl on a tree branch wasn't too shabby...except for the ears that fell off.

And Nick was proud of his scary face pumpkin!

We hung out at the Clemson/GA Tech game with our friends' adorable puppy Beaux

And....we went to Hilton Head for the weekend and actually stepped foot on the beach!

the end of an era...you might say

  

Here it is.

And here is a little background for those that don't know...

It was sophomore year, a solid three years ago, during a routine phone call with my parents, when they asked if I'd like them to pick me up anything at the store to get on my next trip home. "You know what?" I replied, "I've really been craving chocolate milk lately." 

Little did I know, that craving would change my life as I knew it.

So I headed to Greenville that weekend to hang out with the fam and pick up my container of Nesquik. What I found, however, was a CONTAINER of Nesquik. A container. of Nesquik.

Every college roomate I've had since has been subjected to my begging, pleading, and bribing of them to help me tame the chocolate beast and finish off that giant container so it didn't have to travel home with me every summer. This container of Nesquik has been the focus of chocolate milk parties, and has graced every countertop of every apartment I've lived in. It would even find its way back onto the counter when an unsuspecting soul would hide it away in a cabinet. This container has been the one constant during my time at Clemson amongst years of different classes, different apartments, and different roomates. I could always count on that bright yellow bottomless pit of chocolate powder to be there, no matter where I ended up in life. I honestly believed that I would never see the bottom of that container.

Well, the day has come. My hubby happens to love a tall glass of chocolate milk every now and then daily, and has taken on this container like no one before him has been able to. He tackled it with a vengeance and in a matter of only a few months of marriage, the container was defeated.

I wish I had a photo of the inside of the empty container, but I think I was so shocked that it was actually gone that I could only manage to snap a photo of the outside. But rest assured, the beast has been dominated.

It's the end of an era...you might say.