Cheesecake Cookies

My original plan was to make these for Gabe's parents.  I decided to make another cookie which I should of made these because the ones I made for them didn't come out the way I wanted.

I found the recipe on Lou Lou Girls. They love cookies as much as I do and Kim, Cassie,Jessica and Miss Amber have plenty of recipes for everyone to enjoy.

The girls have a link party every Tuesday night.One day I'll get to the party early!

I had everything I needed to make the cookies.  Our physician - Dr. Richard Panebianco is retiring. The cookies would be a perfect appreciation gift. I made the Chocolate Chip Banana Bread/Texas Muffins for his assistant Diane.

My cookies do not look like Kim's. May not look the same but they sure are good. I had to do a taste test before I gave them to him and I knew he was going to love them.

Perfect cookie for a doctor that will be missed.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups finely crushed graham crackers- 1 sleeve
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, separated
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray with baking spray

Place the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse a few times until finely crushed.  A blender works well to crush the crackers, just do a few crackers at a time until the entire sleeve is crushed.

In a medium sized bowl add the graham crackers,flour and the baking powder.

In another bowl beat the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer until well combined. Add in the egg white and mix again until thoroughly mixed. 

Add the butter,brown sugar and egg white combination to the graham cracker crumbs ( in the other bowl) and blend until just combined.

In another medium size bowl combine the softened cream cheese, granulated sugar, egg yolk, lemon zest and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer until well combined. Set aside for later.

Form the dough into small balls and place on the prepared cookie sheet.

Flatten the small balls ,then gently with your thumb make an indentation in the center of the ball to make a bowl shape. The dough may crumble a little- you can gently reshape it.

Spoon the cream cheese mixture into the indents of the cookie.

Bake until the filling is barely set and the cookies are golden brown. They should be done in 12 minutes.

Let them cool on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes before removing them and cooling completely on a wire rack.

             So, do you think Dr. P was happy with the cookies?