Peaches and Cream Torte

I had to make a pie for Pi day. Seriously, I'll take any excuse to have dessert.  I had previously been looking through my cookbooks for a dessert to make when we had some friends come over for dinner. I spotted this Peaches and Cream Torte in a Taste of Home cook book. Well, it needs a lot of time in the fridge and it wasn't going to have the required chill time so I ditched that idea and made something else instead. Well, when Pi day came around my mind came back to that Peaches and Cream Torte, so I made it.  I made it in a spring form pan since that's what the recipe called for. You definitely cannot make this in a pie plate. There is way too much filling, but if you need a substitute for a spring form pan you could easily use a 9 x 13 inch pan. In hindsight, I actually think that would be a little more ideal than the spring form pan.  Once I released the side of the spring form pan and removed it I was a little puzzled as to how I was going to store the leftover torte. It's not the firmest dessert. I ended up putting the side of the spring form back on to put the leftovers back in the fridge.  Now, if I did use the 9 x 13 inch pan, I would only do one layer of the cream mixture and the peach mixture as opposed to two layers. This dessert was fantastic. It was cool, creamy, and light. It would be perfect for a summer BBQ or potluck (especially with the 9" x 13" pan) ... And yes, I forgot to reserve some graham cracker crumbs for the top of mine *sigh.*

Peaches and Cream Torte

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 can (29 ounces) sliced peaches
• 1-1/4 cups sugar, divided
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream

In a small bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar; stir in butter. Set aside 1/4 cup for topping. Press remaining crumb mixture onto the bottom and 1 in. up the sides of a greased 9-in. spring form pan.Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Drain peaches, reserving syrup in a 2-cup measuring cup. Add enough water to measure 1-1/2 cups. In a large saucepan, combine 1/4 cup sugar and cornstarch; stir in syrup mixture until smooth. Add peaches. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat cream cheese and remaining sugar until smooth. In a small bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form; fold into cream cheese mixture.Spread half of the cream cheese mixture over crust. Top with half of the peach mixture; repeat layers. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Remove sides of pan before slicing. Yield: 12 servings.