When I was little, a friend offered me a Twinkie and I thought it tasted like heaven. Years later, I indulged in another one to relive that childhood memory, and was so revolted by the synthetic nastiness that I could barely finish the thing. So why, after that terrible experience, did I voluntarily spend good money for something I consider a gastronomic crime against humanity? Because my husband and I were invited to a Gourmet Twinkie Party.Yeah, you read that right. The hostess (no pun intended) sent us a link to the official Twinkie recipe page, which can instruct you in the creation of Layered Twinkie Delight, Patriotic Twinkie Pie, and the exotic Twinkie Fantasy. It was one of those ideas that was just bizarre enough to sound fun - kind of like strapping on a parachute and jumping out of a perfectly good airplane.
I chose to try the Mini No-Bake Twinkie Cheesecakes, mainly because they seemed like the least frightening option. Basically, you put slices of Twinkie in a mini-muffin pan, dollop on a cream cheese mixture, then add a bit of cherry pie filling.
The above photo was taken after the party. As you can see, several brave souls actually sampled these little dainties. To our surprise, we found that these and a few of the other recipes like the Twinkie Toffee Treat weren't too bad. Ironically, the dishes that we enjoyed most were the ones in which it was hardest to recognize Twinkies as a main ingredient (e.g. with the cheesecakes, the cream cheese mixture masked the identity of the "crust" lurking beneath).A word to the wise: If you're feeling adventurous and decide to try this cheesecakwinkie recipe for yourself, be advised that it's best to eat them within a few hours of assembly. By the next day, the Twinkie crusts will have become rather tough and spongy. Yum.
P.S. The cream cheese mixture (8oz cream cheese, 1 cup sour cream, and 1/2 c sugar) was actually rather good. If you're craving cream cheese but not in the mood to make a full-blown cheesecake, you might try putting that into a graham cracker crust or little pre-made tart crusts, like these ones that I bought on impulse weeks ago with no idea what to put in them. Fortunately I had more cream cheese mixture than I did Twinkies, so the tarts were able to fulfill the measure of their creation. I love happy endings.
11 comments:
Fun post, but all I have to say about that Twinkie stuff is... "BLECH!!!"
I had the same kind of bubble bursting experience eating a twinkie as an adult after remembering how much I liked them as a child. Uggh!!
It made me want to try and make a twinkie that actually tastes good. Maybe I could make some yummy yellow cupcakes and inject them with REAL whipped cream somehow.
Your tartlets look delicious.
Funny how kids often prefer preservative-rich, synthetic food over homemade goodness. I'm convinced that's what keeps McDonald's in business.
Your cheesecake was divine, Kimberly! I really was worried that nobody would come to the party because of the gag-factor and was happily surprised at the great turn out!
Thanks again!
Such a fun post - thanks for the tip on the cream cheese mixture too. We wish we could have made it up to try your twinkie-inspired cheesecake deliciousness...
Have you tried the new bannana twinkies? They taste so much better. But, I also love Natalies idea, I think I'm going to try that. They look delicious.
Serena: "new" banana Twinkies? Among the festivities of the party, we had to take a quiz, in which we found that when Twinkies were first invented, the filling was banana filling.
Maybe Hostess has discovered that their original idea was best.
Not a big Twinkie fan, but those pumpkin cookies look good. I'll have to get the recipe.
We got them at Winco. The kids and Alex love them so much better.
yeah i havent had a twinke in awhile ... no desire to run out and buy any either.
the tarts look incredile tho, and i dont even like cheesecake :P
I have a stomachache just reading this post! Sounds like a fun party, though!
Post a Comment