Cheesecake Large and Mini

Our family has always liked cheesecakes whether they are large, small, ice box or baked.  They can be plain or topped with a variety of goodies.   You can change up the type of crust you make from graham cracker, chocolate cookie, pretzel, cereal or vanilla wafer.    You can also change up the flavor of the cheese filling.  The choices are endless.  You can mix and match to whatever your family prefers.

Last weekend we attended a graduation party and I made mini cheesecakes to take with me. 

Topped with fresh blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries

Topped with animal crackers, fruity pebbles, and mini chocolate chips

Plain, Large M&Ms and Mini Oreo cookies

As you can see with all the different toppings there was quite a selection to choose from.  I have used this recipe for a number of years and it has always turned out good.  Give it a try you won't be disappointed.

Click on photo to open, right click to save as, save to place of your liking for printing later. 

Had a graduation party to go to and I don't like to go empty handed.  So these mini cheese cakes got topped with homemade Strawberry Rhubarf jam and half of a fresh strawberry.  

 

These mini cheesecakes got topped with crumbled up baklava. 

Find more recipes here......

Follow me on Facebook

Or find me on Pinterest

Click this image to subscribe to my newsletter

Join me on Google+ 

From the bottom of my heart.............. 

Oreo Cake

A cake for all of you who love Oreos.  Funny thing is, I have never been a big fan of Oreos.  Probably because I don't really care for milk.   However, this cake is yummy and I don't even mind the Oreos.   

This cake looks elegant and difficult to make, but it really is simple and tasty.   Any chocolate lover will get their fix having a slice of this cake.   The filling is basically the same recipe for all those Oreo Truffles you see around Christmas time.   Oh and the fudge topping adds yet another level of chocolate heaven. 


Click on photo to open photo. Once open right click to save to your computer for printing later.

For more recipes, click the button below:



Follow me on Facebook
 

Or find me on Pinterest

 Click this image to subscribe

Join me on Google+

From the bottom of my heart.............. 

The Cookie Capers Have Begun.

The Cookie Capers have begun. One of my favorite things about Christmas is making several types of Christmas cookies and candies. This year will be no exception. Have had a little time on my hands so I am ahead of the game so far. The tree is up and decorated and today was spent, mixing, rolling, freezing, melting and dipping a few truffles and balls.
This is a new recipe that I wanted to try and I have tweaked to suit my needs. I mean who doesn't love cookie dough, brownies or chocolate?   

Cookie Dough Brownie Bombs
Ingredients¾ cup butter, softened
¾ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
Pinch salt
2 cups miniature chocolate chips, divided (1 cup for dough and one cup for decorating)
1 pkg. Fudge brownie mix, baked and cooled.
1 pkg. chocolate melts

Instructions
Mix the brownies as directed on the box and bake and cool. 

Make the cookie dough in the stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugars until creamy. Add the milk and vanilla; beat to combine. Lastly, beat in the flour and pinch of salt until a soft dough forms. Stir in one cup of the mini chips.

Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Using the smallest cookie scoop you can find. Scoop dough out in even increments and set on wax paper lined cookie sheet. Once dough is all scooped, roll each dough into a ball. Freeze the dough balls for about an hour to firm up.

Cut the brownies leaving a ½ inch edge around the pan. Place center of brownies into a Ziploc bag and smoosh together to mix evenly. Freeze for 30 minutes. Scoop out balls of dough with smallest cookie scoop and place on cookie sheet. Roll all into balls and flatten.    

Place a cookie dough ball in the middle of the flattened brownie and very gently, wrap the brownie around the cookie dough ball. Set back on waxed lined cookie sheet. Repeat until all cookie dough balls are covered, and then return to the freezer for 30 minutes.






Melt chocolate into a tall narrow mug, according to package directions. Using a toothpick, dip each brownie truffle into the chocolate, coat completely, and allow excess to drip off. Return to the foil-line sheet and sprinkle the tops with the remaining cup of mini chips, for garnish. Store chocolates in the fridge or freezer, in an airtight container.




Notes/Swaps
You need to have moist brownies to do these. If the brownies you have are to dry. Put them in the food processor and pulse until they look like fine crumbs. Then trickle in Hershey’s syrup and run processor until a soft dough forms. You will be able to tell when this happens as the dough will pull away from the sides of the processor.

I usually make several kinds of truffles or balls at this time of year. Because they can be similar in size and often dipped in the same type of chocolate, I often choose something small to place on the top of each individual ball. In this case I used a small sugar snowflake, because I had already used the chocolate chips on the plain cookie dough balls. When I make Oreo truffles I top them with chocolate jimmies and I used crushed gingersnaps to top the gingersnap truffles.

Get the printable recipe here.   

Add caption

Click on recipe to open photo.  Click on photo to save to computer for printing.




Oreo Truffles





 Cookie Dough Balls





Gingersnap Truffles




For more recipes, click the button below:



Follow me on Facebook
 

Or find me on Pinterest

 Click this image to subscribe

Join me on Google+

From the bottom of my heart.............. 

You're my Cuppycake, Gumdrop

You're my Honeybunch, Sugarplum

Pumpy-umpy-umpkin, You're my Sweetie Pie

You're my Cuppycake, Gumdrop

Snoogums-Boogums, You're the Apple of my Eye

And I love you so and I want you to know

That I'll always be right here

And I love to sing sweet songs to you

Because you are so dear

Two of my Favorite Cupcakes are  Oreo Fudge.........

and Red velvet Cream Cheesecake.............

I can promise you neither of these are or ever will a disappointment.    They are moist and delicious.   and the recipes are similar but lead your tastes buds down entirely different paths.   Who wants dessert?    You should make a batch of each and host your own cupcake wars.    

Oreo Fudge Cupcakes

1 Devils Food Cake Mix (mixed and baked as directed for cupcakes)

1 Jar of Hershey's Hot Fudge Sauce (to frost cupcakes when cooled)

1 8 oz. pkg Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups of Cool whip, thawed

1 tsp. vanilla extract/flavoring

12 regular sized Oreos

1 can miniature Oreos or decoration of your choice

Mix cake mix and bake as directed for cupcakes.   Let cool.  When cooled frost with small amount of hot fudge sauce.   Place 12 regular sized Oreos into food processer and whir until it looks like sand.  Set aside. Mix together in mixing bowl:  cream cheese (beat until creamy), sugar, vanilla, and cool whip.  Once it is all mixed you can stir in the crushed Oreos.   Pipe onto fudge frosted cupcakes.  Top with mini Oreo.   Keep in frig.  

Red Velvet Cheesecake Cuppy's 

1 Red Velvet Cake Mix (mixed and baked with the following swap)

Replace water with Moscato Wine

1 8 oz. pkg Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups of Cool whip, thawed

1 tsp. vanilla extract/flavoring

1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips

1 jar Maraschino cherries with stems (drained and patted dry)

Mix the cake mix as directed but swap out the water and replace it with Moscato wine.  Put into cupcake liners bake and cool.

When cupcakes are cool.  Mix the softened cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and cool whip until creamy.   Stir in 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips.   Pipe onto cooled cupcakes, top with a maraschino cherry.

 

 



For more recipes, click the button below:



 

Follow me on Facebook
 

Or find me on Pinterest

 

 Click this image to subscribe

 

 

Join me on Google+

 

 

 

 

From the bottom of my heart.............. 

 

To Stuff or Not to Stuff?

So I like to search web for recipes. The copy cat LeVain Chocolate Chip cookie is one of the best recipes I have ever tried for a chocolate chip cookie. Once I saw it on TV I searched and searched the internet until I found the original recipe that had been posted in the Times. Only to find it still had to be tweaked. Thank god for the DVR. This cookie does not flatten out when you bake it. It stays nice and plump. It texture makes your mouth water. It gets nice and crispy on the outside and stays oh so chewy in the center. It is a really nice cookie. A few days ago my daughter sent me a message on Facebook asking me to make her these S'more stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies. Again, I searched the internet. I seen the stuffed cookie recipe floating around the web and was able to track it back to the Picky Palate. However, I had to try making these by combining the two recipes and experimenting with the item to be stuffed. You can look at the photos and judge for yourself how they might be. My family and friends enjoyed them immensely.

Stuffed Le Vain Bakery Copycat Chocolate Chip Cookies
(Yield- 1 dozen very large cookies)

Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar – not packed
2 eggs
3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups All Purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
2 cups good quality semisweet chocolate chips or chunks
1 cup walnuts toasted

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1. In bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle, cream together butter and sugars until well blended and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and beat until well incorporated.

2. Add flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and mix until just combined. Gently fold in chocolate chunks and nuts.

3. Transfer dough to clean work surface and gently mix dough by hand to ensure even distribution of ingredients. Divide into 12 equal portions.

4. Place each on sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake in the preheated oven 16-23 minutes depending on how gooey you like the middles or until very lightly browned, taking care not to over bake. Let cool on rack and store what you don’t immediately eat, in an airtight container. Place a slice of bread in the container to keep them from getting hard.

Stuffing the cookie: Take one of the 12 balls of dough, break it in half and cover the stuffing of your choice. Place on cookie sheet and bake until golden brown.

Store in an airtight container and place a slice of bread in the container to keep the cookies fresh.


Chocolate Chip stuffed with a Peanut Butter Cup

Chocolate Chip Cookie stuffed with an Oreo




Chocolate Chip stuffed with a S’more



For more recipes, click the button below:



 

Follow me on Facebook
 

Or find me on Pinterest

 

 Click this image to subscribe

 

 

Join me on Google+

 

 

 

 

From the bottom of my heart..............