instant pot cheesecake

Last year, my husband got me an Instant Pot for Mother’s Day. I had been using an electric pressure cooker for years; but only for homemade Cuban style black beans. I never really used it much for anything else. When I saw the instant pot craze going on I honestly chuckled to myself :”everyone is discovering a pressure cooker”, something that has been around for many many years. So what if this one a few extra built-in buttons and functions? It was nothing different to me. It wasn’t until my beloved electric pressure cooker broke and my husband replaced it with an instant pot.

The reality is: that it, in itself is a pressure cooker.

What makes the instant pot so special is the community it belongs to. This pressure cooker has “friends”, literally.

Shortly after I had gotten my instant pot, my husband had joined a Facebook group where recipes and tips were shared, The group is so massive I can’t even remember the last count of tens of thousands of members that are in it…and recipes that these sweet people are creating makes this little pressure cooker very special indeed.

So, I made a cheesecake in it and I decided to use a cheesecake recipe that was called cheesecake number 17. It was obviously the 17th attempt at making cheesecake for the creator of the recipe; and 17 was the magic recipe .

A few days before we had been to our local Green market, it’s winter here which means we have beautiful springtime weather with highs in the 70s. Clear blue skies, and fresh breezes coming off the coast. Fragrant flowers and berries are plentiful and everything seems new and fresh and clean.

This is January in Florida. Of course; we have Africa heat and rainforest humidity in the summer; and the threat of hurricane season looms over us six months out of the year; however, January in Florida makes it all worth it. February -April are just as refreshing- but: there is something about the fresh start January promises…

speaking of fresh starts:

After hurricane Irma last year; I realized the massive amount of “stuff” homes hold, and I also began to reassess my life in how I dealt with “the stuff”.

As a food blogger, I have a collection of darling dishes, delicate silver and props for photography.

As a cook, I have a obscure amount of cookbooks for inspiration.

As a collector, I have an additional obscure amount of vintage cookbooks for nostalgia.

As a mother, I have a collection of toys, stuffed animals, children’s artwork and construction paper cards and crafts inhabiting my home.

As a female, I have enough clothing and shoes to clothe a small village. There is no excuse for this.

As an artist, I have a collection of paints, pastels, paintbrushes, and canvas for when the mood strikes.

But:

As a human, and a mother to three children, I realize that I will be utilizing my free time with other things.

(For now)

I will be prepping bottles, changing diapers and making 26 minute cheesecakes in my instant pot. I will take the time to play and enjoy the best gifts ever: family.

I will still photograph recipes to share here, and, sometimes they won’t be perfect, they might not be on the perfect plate, but- I can assure you: it will be a good recipe.

I will, on Sundays- make a point to read and be inspired by a book from my collection. If it doesn’t inspire- it will be passed on.

I will, on occasion: allow my kids to get messy with the art supplies. And try not to save every single thing they make.

And, finally: I will no longer struggle with finding room in my closet to put my laundry away or struggle with the fact that there’s “nothing to wear”. Because I have officially purged my clothing and shoe collection down to the items I truly love and wear. The amount of time it takes me to put away my clean laundry has now been reduced to 30 seconds.

A major purging/decluttering project is not something that happens overnight, or even over the course of a week for that matter. I am two weeks into it and finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I loaded my car four times and dropped off donations to local thrift stores, and I filled for industrial size trash cans. My house finally feels like January fresh clean and new without the distractions of last year or years past.

If something hasn’t been used, worn or admired in the past year, why should it take up space and clutter this year?

Decluttering the distractions so that I can enjoy life and live more.

That’s been the goal. So: I encourage you to do the same.

Enjoy life, not the stuff.

Eat cheesecake.

You only live once.