Paint Splatter Cheesecake | Splatoon

          "Splatoon" for Nintendo's WiiU is a wonderful, colorful game, and one of Smalls' favorites. She was even an inkling girl for Halloween! (You can see the costume I made for her here–not anything too elaborate, but it got the job done). The object of this awesome, kid and family-friendly alternative to shooter games, is to cover the playing arena/turf with more paint than the opposition. You can play one-on-one locally or online in teams. Your inkling character can get different outfits, accessories, and paint dispensers, i.e. guns, rollers, buckets, etc. There is a story/hero mode in-which you retrieve Inkopolis' valuable Zapfish from the antagonistic Octarians, but the real fun is had in the group efforts ;).

Note: This cheesecake uses a cereal crust because Splatoon makes me think of Saturday mornings and cereal and cartoons. The recipe below calls for fruity, colorful cereal, but you can totally substitute other cereal like Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Captain Crunch! If you use a cereal that isn't sweet, go ahead and add 3 Tbsp. of sugar.

Splatoon Turf War Cheesecake

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Ingredients:
Crust
5 Cups Colorful Fruit Cereal (like Fruitie Pebbles or Froot Loops)
1/2 Cup (1 stick) Butter, melted
Filling
1/2 Cup Cold Water
1 Pkt. Plain Gelatin
2 8oz. Pkgs. Cream Cheese, soft/room temperature
1 14oz. Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
Gel Colors (choose which ones you want to include)
Magenta/Deep Pink
Orange
Teal/Turquoise
Bright/Lime Green
Purple
Dark Blue
Yellow

Important Items:
2 Gallon Ziplock Bags OR Food Processor
8"x8" Square Pan (if you use a silicone pan make sure you 1st put it on a tray to keep it level/flat)
5 Med-Small Bowls + Spoons

Directions:
1. Heat your oven to 350ºF. Put the cereal into 1 of the gallon bags & seal, & then slide it inside the 2nd gallon bag & seal. Toss it on the floor & prance around on it until the cereal is pulverized. You can also forego the bags & whiz the cereal around in a big food processor. Pour the finely crushed cereal into a bowl & pour in the melted butter. Stir well until it is combined & crumbly & then press it into the bottom of the pan & pack it down with the bottom of a measuring cup. Slide the pan into the oven & bake for about 12 minutes. Remove from oven & cool.
2. Pour the 1/2 cup water into a heat-proof bowl & sprinkle the plain gelatin over it & set it aside to solidify. In a large mixing bowl beat together the soft cream cheese & sweetened condensed milk on medium to med-high speed until completely combined & smooth. Turn the speed to low & beat in the vanilla, & then the lemon juice. Once the lemon is combined, whiz the mixture on medium to medium high to really get it creamy & smooth. The water & gelatin should be solid by now. Pop it into the microwave for 30 seconds to completely melt it. Turn the mixer on low speed again & slowly pour the melted gelatin in. Once it's incorporated, increase the speed & mix until smooth.
3. Pour half of the cheesecake mixture over the cereal crust in the pan & spread it out to get into the corners. Separate the remaining mixture between the 5 bowls & stir in your gel colors of choice, keeping in mind that the colors need to be vibrant, so begin with 1 or 2 drops, & continue to add 1 drop at a time until you reach the color you want. Adding yellow to a couple of the colors, like orange, pink, & green, really lifts them up.
4. Spoon dollops of colored cheesecake mixture all over the white layer, letting it overlap & splatter onto each other (I totally could have stood more splatter/drips on mine!) until you run out of mixture. Tap the pan on the counter several times to flatten out the dollops really well. Cover with plastic wrap & slide the pan into the fridge for 2 1/2-3 hours & then it's ready to eat!