These cheesecakes are an incredible part of our family’s passion for creativity, community, faith, and tradition. The recipe was passed down generations ago and landed in the artful hands of my grandmother, Mom Helen. As a real estate agent in Metro Atlanta, she was always looking for ways to make closing day even more special, so she baked personalized cheesecakes and handed them to clients along with their new set of house keys. Mom Helen had always been known for her desserts – tall layer cakes, cream pies, and chocolate tortes – but there was something extra special about her cheesecake. Soon, she was catering luncheons, had her own storefront, and was delivering hundreds of desserts to restaurants, events, and yes, real estate clients. When her health interfered with the business and forced her to close, my Dad, Mike Kelley, took over some of the baking responsibilities. Those real estate contacts then received their cheesecakes at Christmas, a sincere and delicious thank you for their business with our family’s real estate brokerage, Peggy Slappey Properties (PSP). I learned how to bake by watching first Mom Helen, then my Dad. It’s now my turn to keep the cheesecake tradition thriving; we started two years ago by making the cheesecakes for each agent/brokerage that closed a home with PSP – over cheesecakes from our home kitchen! Each cake we create is special, a way for our family’s love of food and tradition to be shared with others. I am so very proud to carry on a small piece of the legacy Mom Helen began all those years ago by saying, “Thank You,” to her clients. Today, I am a Nurse Practitioner with Brenau University. My husband (who also bakes cheesecakes) is a DeKalb County Firefighter. We have two children – Makenzie, 5 and Bryce, 10 months – and we can’t wait to bake one of these fabulous cheesecakes for your next family gathering!
