By Teri Cayton
The Parsons Advocate
Manners are very important to me and it seems that the general public today does not know the meaning of the word. It is not that hard to excuse yourself if you bump into someone or thank someone for holding a door for you. I was walking the dog this past week and it was early in the morning. As I made my way around my usual route, I saw a lady come toward me and I instinctively said “Good Morning” to her. She looked straight at me and just kept walking.
To me that was very rude, it was so simple for her to just answer me with a reply. Momma Said, “A little kindness goes a long way.” We used to have a class in Home Economics that actually taught manners, but in my family we already had the upper hand because we were taught thank you and you are welcome at home. We were thankful for everything we got and we were always ready to express those thanks.
To this day I practice those habits and it really hurts me to see that they are not reciprocated. The gesture of saying good morning to someone should brighten their day. It is probable that half the time the gesture is not given back but it makes me feel better to know that I was not the one that was slacking. Momma Said, “It is better to give than receive.”
I will continue the practice and maybe it will rub off on some folks. It is the thought that counts but people are so cut off from society today that sometimes I feel invisible. If they don’t see me maybe I can whisper in their ear and plant the seed of kindness, after all it is free.
Cheesecake Cups
Ingredients
- Graham cracker crumbs
- 2 packages full fat cream cheese 8 oz. each, room temperature
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream equal to 1 pint
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar divided into 1 cup and 1/2 cup
- 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- Can also use premade cheesecake filling
Instructions
- The size of cup you use will determine how much graham cracker crumb to put in the bottom. The cup size will also determine the number of servings. I used large 9 oz. cups and was able to make 8 cups.
- If using 9 oz. cups, place 2 tablespoons of graham cracker crumbs in the bottom of 8 cups. If you are using smaller cups (between 4-6 oz.) place 1 tablespoon of crumbs in 12-16 cups.
- In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and 1 cup powdered sugar with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy, 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
- Remove the metal mixing bowl from the freezer. Add the heavy whipping cream, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, fresh lemon juice and vanilla extract and beat with an electric mixer until the whipping cream has stiff peaks, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese to the whipped cream and mix them together on low speed for 1-2 minutes or just until you can’t tell which is the cream cheese and which is the whipped cream.
- Place the cheesecake filling in a piping bag (or ziplock bag with the corner cut off) and pipe the cheesecake into the cups, filling about 3/4ths full.
- Refrigerate the cheesecake cups for 1-2 hours. For longer refrigeration, I recommend covering the cups with plastic wrap. You can refrigerate these overnight and serve the next day.
- Top the cheesecake with your desired topping – cherry pie filling, blueberry pie filling, homemade strawberry sauce, chocolate ganache, oreo crumbs, chopped candies, etc.
Notes
Crust variations – in place of graham cracker crumbs you can use a whole nilla wafer, whole oreo, whole gingersnap cookie, or crushed nilla wafers, crushed oreos or crushed gingersnap cookies.
Topping variations – top the cheesecake with fresh fruit, raspberry puree or pie filling, lemon curd, sautéed apples, chocolate shavings, crushed candy bars, mint chips, etc.