Blueberry Cheesecake Pie

I haven't baked anything in months now. The last thing I baked was a chocolate cherry bread around 2018 holidays from Paul Hollywood from the Great British Baking Show. (That was a FABULOUS bread and deserves its own post some day).
I tend to eat pretty healthily most days but do indulge in pastries for breakfasts a few times a month. I have no qualms about eating dessert for breakfast every now and then. Since I've stopped working these days (and don't have easy access to the amazing bakery I buy from that was near work), I've been feeling ok about making desserts at home and calling them breakfast ;)

This pie recipe called out to me since it seemed easy enough to make and didn't have a huge amount of sugar for the amount of servings. Plus, with my mother-in-law visiting for the Fourth of July, we had an extra person to share this dessert with. I actually ended up making another one of these the very next day to take to a game night with friends....it was tat good and easy! :)
Think of this pie as a cheesecake, but far far easier to bake since there is no water bath involved. There's a buttery graham cracker crust with a very creamy cheesecake filling all topped with a not too sweet blueberry topping that gels just right. I hope you try this pie!

Recipe adapted from Williams Sonoma
Makes 8-9 servings

Ingredients:
7 oz graham crackers
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup (or 8 tbsp butter), melted and slightly cooled
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1/2 lb (or 8 tbsp) cream cheese, room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
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1/2 lb fresh blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp tapioca starch (or corn starch) mixed with 2 tbsp water

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a food processor, add graham crackers and 2 tbsp sugar and pulse until it's fine crumbs. Take out blade, and add melted butter and using a spoon, mix thoroughly until the butter is evenly distributed. Invert this crumb mixture onto a 9" pie plate and using your hands, press the crust all around. Bake for 10 minutes and set aside to cool for 30 minutes.
In a medium bowl, add cream cheese, vanilla extract and 1/4 cup sugar and using a hand held mixer, mix until it's smooth and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, until completely mixed through. Using a spatula, pour this mixture into the  baked shell. Bake for 25-30 minutes till set but slightly jiggly. Let cool for a hour.
In the meantime, in a 2 quart pan on high heat, bring blueberries, water and 1/4 cup sugar to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. Remove from heat and mix in tapioca water (mix the tapioca starch water again or else the starch will sink to the bottom) while continuously stirring. Put it back on the heat on medium high and cook stirring constantly until thickened, about 1 more minute. Remove from heat and let cool. Once the cheesecake pie has cooled for at least an hour, pour this blueberry mixture on top and refrigerate the pie. It's best to have it in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours, but ideally overnight. Tastes better next day :)