Strawberries stuffed with Cheesecake - Yeah Baby!

A co-workers and I are trying to lose weight by watching our carb intake. We've both been doing really well. But then those pesky birthday's come up and you want to be able to celebrate with the other ladies in the office by partaking of some kind of delicious yummy something or other, right?

Well for my birthday in July, my co-worker Angelica made me a yummy low-carb cheesecake topped with strawberries.

So I knew I had to come up with something great for her birthday in August. Thank goodness I have the world at my fingertips and I googled until I found the perfect item!

Click on the picture to enlarge it and you will see they are yummy, sweet, juicy strawberries stuffed with cheesecake and topped with diced walnuts! *sigh* Heaven in a little bite!

My sister and I got together the night before and whipped these up. They are so super simple and look like a gourmet dessert that took hours and hours and a gourmet dessert chef to make them.

But no...if I can make these...you can make these. And I got to break out my beautiful cake plate that I hadn't used in years. It definitely added to the beauty of the dessert.

Ingredients:

20 whole large strawberries, hulled
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup Splenda (this is what made them low-carb, but if you want you can use 1/4 cup powdered sugar)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
2/3 cup chopped pecans
Directions: (Call your sister and pretend you need her help, then just let her do all the work :-D )
Just kidding...this is how you do it:

Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each strawberry so the berries stand upright. Place berries, cut side down, on a serving platter. Carefully cut the berries into 4 wedges, cutting almost to, but not through, the bottoms with a criss-cross cut. Fan wedges just slightly, taking care not to break them. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until combined but still stiff. Using a teaspoon or pastry bag with decorative tip, fill the strawberries with the cream cheese mixture. Roll the stuffed strawberries in the walnuts. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Simple Simon right? Make some...now, go on, you won't regret it!