Berry Cheesecake Tart

This is my PRIZE WINNING DESSERT!!

I found it in "Taste of Home" magazine and made it this summer, and Ian declared, "This is what I want for my birthday!"

When I found out the neighborhood was having a Dessert contest at the annual Chili Cook-Off, I knew exactly what I wanted to make. Lo and behold, I won first prize!

With the combination of a shortbread crust, cheesecake, mixed berries, and an oatmeal crisp top, it is the best of every possible dessert. (Oops, pardon me. It is missing chocolate - so it's almost the best of every possible dessert!)

So, there are a few steps, but don't let that scare you off. It is actually pretty easy.

Berry Cheesecake Tart

Crust:

2 cups flour

2/3 cup sugar

1 cup cold butter

1/2 cup strawberry jam (added after crust is cooked...you'll see!)

Cheesecake Filling:

2 80z. packages cream cheese, softened

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups fresh or frozen mixed berries (if frozen, thaw and drain them)

Topping:

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup butter

In a small bowl, combine flour and sugar (crust ingredients). Cut in butter until crumbly. Press onto the bottom and sides of a greased 10 inch springform pan.

Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Once crust is cooled, spread jam over the bottom of it.

Beat cream cheese and sugar (cheesecake ingredients) until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and beat just until combined. Pour over jam.

Sprinkle berries evenly over the cheesecake.

In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour and oats (topping ingredients). Cut in the butter. Sprinkle over berries and gently press down evenly.

Bake tart at 375 for 45-50 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Be sure to place a cookie sheet either directly under the pan, or on the rack underneath. It gets quite juicy and it drips down.

Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a knife between the tart and the pan to loosen the edges. Cool for another 30 minutes.

Run the knife around again and release the sides of the pan.

Serve warm or cold. (I prefer cold.)

**Note: The original recipe is a little different than what I have posted above. I changed it by doubling the quantities of the ingredients for the crust and the cheesecake filling. All of the other ingredients are the same as the original. I have made it all three times like this because I wanted more cheesecake than just a thin layer, and the crust wasn't covering my pan. If you want the dessert to be a little less rich, simply halve the amounts of the ingredients in the crust and cheesecake filling.

Chocolate Mousse Trifle

This recipe is a recent discovery, and has become a favorite 'Death By Chocolate' dessert. The trick is to use a brownie mix with chocolate chips in it, and use Real Whipping Cream - not Cool Whip. Trust me - it takes it to a whole new level. The chocolate layer goes from chocolate pudding to chocolate mousse, and it is Divine!

This dessert is rich - it may just kill you - but what a way to go!

Chocolate Mousse Trifle adapted from Allrecipes

1 19.8 oz. package brownie mix (use one with chocolate chips in it!)

16 oz. heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 3.9 oz. package instant chocolate pudding mix.

1/2 cup water

1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

Chocolate Candy Bar, to shave and put on top

Make brownies according to package directions. Cool completely and cut into 1 inch squares.

Whip heavy cream with sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form.

In a large bowl, combine pudding mix, water and sweetened condensed milk. Fold in half of the whipped cream.

In a trifle bowl, make a layer of brownies. Spread 1/3 of the chocolate mixture on top of the brownies, and then 1/3 of the whipped cream on top of that. Repeat the layers until you fill the bowl. Top with the shaved chocolate. Chill overnight. (Overnight will allow the mouse to reach it's most sublime texture!)

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

I found HUGE strawberries at Costco and made the BEST treat! (The picture above isn't of the ginormous berries, these were average size, but tasted great too!)

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

2 Tbs. Shortening

16 oz. Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chips

1 lb. fresh strawberries

Toothpicks & Styrofoam

Wash strawberries, leaving the stems on. Dry thoroughly - they can't be wet at all.

Melt the shortening in the top of a double-boiler.

(Or, do what I did and put about 2 inches of water in a pot. Put a glass bowl so it fits over the top of the pan, but doesn't touch the water. Put the Shortening, etc. in the glass bowl. Bring the water to just a boil, then turn it off or keep it on low. If it gets too hot, it will ruin the consistency. You can turn the heat on occasionally as you're dipping strawberries to keep the chocolate melty.)

Add the chocolate and stir constantly until the chocolate is melted.

Push a toothpick in the green stem of the strawberry. Dip strawberry into the chocolate. Place toothpick into Styrofoam. Strawberry will be upside-down, which allows it to dry perfectly. If you're not serving them right away, place the Styrofoam with the dipped strawberries in the fridge to allow everything to stay cold.

Take strawberries out of fridge about 30 minutes before serving.

The chocolate is such a great texture. It doesn't all break off as you bite into the strawberry, which is the comment I got most when I served these - besides "These are SOOOOOO good!"

Pina Colada Punch

Despite the less-than-appetizing picture, this drink is so yummy! Just make sure you puree the crushed pineapple well so the texture isn't funky! Put leftovers in a pitcher in the fridge and when you're ready to serve again, put it in a blender with a bunch of ice, and it is as good as fresh!

Pina Colada Punch (from Allrecipes)

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened

1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple, pureed

1 8 oz. can coconut cream - I think mine was 16 oz. but the more the better, actually!

1 46 oz. can pineapple juice

1 2 liter bottle lemon-lime soda, chilled

Find a large bowl that will fit in your freezer. Combine ice cream, pureed pineapple, coconut cream and pineapple juice in the bowl. If there is room, add the soda. If not, you can add the soda right before serving.

Place bowl in freezer. Freeze for 4-6 hours, stirring every hour. Pour into punch bowl and add the soda - if you haven't already.

Oreo Truffles

No, I'm not kidding. Yes, they are as good as they sound. And yes, they go straight to your hips/butt/belly. But, you can eat one and then run around the block. See...no harm done! (Just don't come crying to me when you gained five pounds because you couldn't stop at just one!) These are from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Oreo Truffles

1 package (18 oz.) Oreo cookies, crushed into small pieces

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

1 package Almond Bark

Chocolate chips for drizzling or sprinkles for decoration

Mix crushed Oreos and cream cheese until well-combined. (Use your hands - it mixes best this way - plus clean up is yummy!)

Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a baking sheet or tray. Refrigerate until firm - 3-4 hours (Or freeze for about 1 hour.) After licking your hands clean, run around the block while the truffles chill. ;-)

Melt white Almond Bark according to package directions. Dip truffles in almond bark and put on wax paper to harden.

If using sprinkles, use them right away - the almond bark hardens quickly. Alternately, melt chocolate with a little bit of shortening and drizzle over truffles.

Chill truffles in the fridge - they taste best cold!

S'mores

Everyone knows how to make S'mores, right? Roasted Marshmallow, Hershey's Chocolate Bar, Graham Crackers - it isn't complicated...until you have a boy who may be allergic to graham crackers. I thought he was just going to have to miss out this time.

I even thought I was clever by buying Nutella to smear on the crackers instead of using the chocolate bar that NEVER melts.

Then, along comes Julie who says using Fudge Striped Cookies is the way to go for S'mores. Indeed, she has it right! Simple and yummy!

Even Shaylor thinks so!

P.S. Try them with Coconut marshmallows - YUM!

P.P.S. Sorry for the blurry picture up top, I was shivering!

Samoas Bars

These bars taste just like the Samoas Girl Scout Cookies. I love anything with chocolate, caramel or coconut - so to have all three in one dessert was awesome! I got this recipe from My Kitchen Cafe

Samoas Bars

Cookie Base:

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350.. Grease a 9x13 pan.

In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter until fluffy.

Beat in egg and vanilla extract.

At a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly.

Pour crumbly dough (it won't stick together.) into prepared pan and press into an even layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a rack before topping.

Topping:

3 cups shredded coconut

14 oz. bag caramels

1/4 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. milk

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Spread coconut on a baking sheet and toast for 20 minutes, stirring very 5 minutes until it is golden. (Or microwave it in batches, stirring every so often.) Cool and set aside.

Unwrap caramels and microwave with milk and salt at 50% power for 1-2 minutes, stirring a few times to help the caramel melt.

When smooth, stir in toasted coconut. Drop by spoonfuls onto the cookie base. Spread the topping into an even layer.

Let cool and then cut into bars.

Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave and then drizzle over the cut bars.

Enjoy your sugar rush!

Pumpkin Fudge

This treat is really yummy - tastes just like pumpkin pie! There is about 30 minutes of standing by the stove stirring - but if you have the ingredients measured and ready and follow the recipe exactly, it will turn out great for you! The fudge is creamy - but not gooey - and very sweet. A small piece definitely satisfies a sugar craving! (Recipe is from Allrecipes)

Here's to my favorite season of the year: Autumn!

Pumpkin Fudge

2 Tbs. Butter

2 1/2 cups white sugar

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 cup white chocolate chips

7 oz. marshmallow cream

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Line a 9x9 pan with aluminum foil and set aside.

In a 3 qt. saucepan, heat milk and sugar over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.

Mix in pumpkin and cinnamon; bring back to a boil.

Stir in marshmallow and butter. Bring to a rolling boil.

Cook, stirring occasionally, for 18 minutes.

Remove from heat and add white chocolate chips and vanilla. Stir quickly until chips are melted and mixture is creamy.

Pour into prepared pan.

Cool (about 2 hours) and cut into squares.

Store in a cool dry place.

Too Much Chocolate Cake

This is my absolute FAVORITE chocolate cake. It is very rich - it definitely lives up to it's name! I got the recipe from AllRecipes.com.




Too Much Chocolate Cake


1 (18.25 oz.) box Devil's Food Cake mix
1 (5.9 oz.) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips.


Preheat oven to 350.


In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs, and water. stir in chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bunt pan. (For other pans, follow the time on the cake mix box. You may need to cook a bit longer, start checking it at the time specified on the box. A clean toothpick means it's ready - just don't hit a melted chocolate chip!)


Bake for 50-55 minutes until top is springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in the pan for at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate.

Carrot Cake

This is a fantastic recipe from My Kitchen Cafe. I made it as part of our Easter feast and everyone gobbled it up! Don't let the lengthy instructions scare you away! This is well worth every step, and it really wasn't hard.

Carrot Cake

2 1/2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp table salt

1 lb. medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. packed light brown sugar

4 large eggs

1 1/2 c. vegetable oil, safflower oil, or canola oil

Frosting:

8 oz cream cheese, softened but still cool

5 Tbsp unsalted butter softened, but still cool

1 Tbsp sour cream

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 c. confectioners' sugar

Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13 by 9-inch baking pan (I used a bundt pan).

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt in large bowl; set aside.

Shred carrots (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside.In a large bowl beat granulated and brown sugars and eggs on medium-high until thoroughly combined, about 45 seconds.

Reduce speed to medium; with mixer running, add oil in slow, steady stream, being careful to pour oil against inside of bowl (if oil begins to splatter, reduce speed to low until oil is incorporated, then resume adding oil). Increase speed to high and mix until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 45 seconds to 1 minute longer.

Turn off mixer and stir in carrots and dry ingredients by hand until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain.

Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours .

When cake is cool, mix cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla at medium high speed until well combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add confectioners’ sugar and mix until very fluffy, about 1 minute.

Frost and eat!

Soft Sugar Cookies with Butter Frosting

Noelle brought these cookies home about a year ago from a friend's house and I had to call and get the recipe right away. I really like how soft these are. They aren't too sweet, and the frosting is so good...it's butter, how could it not be good! We make these for just about every holiday as a fun activity for the kids. This recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Soft Sugar Cookies
Cream Together:
1 cup margarine or butter
1 cup sugar
2 beaten eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Sift and Add:
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder

Add: 1/2 cup sour cream

Dough will be very sticky. Knead on floured counter, adding 1-2 cups more flour until not sticky.
Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 375. Roll out, cut into shapes, bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 8 minutes.


Butter Frosting
(frosts about 3 dozen cookies)

1/3 cup butter
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

In a mixing bowl, beat butter until fluffy. Gradually add 2 cups of powdered sugar. Beat in milk and vanilla. Slowly beat in the remaining powdered sugar. Add more milk if needed to reach spreading consistency. Add food coloring if desired.

Easiest Brownies in the World

I finally got the day right to bring treats to Activity Days! I made this quick pan of brownies for it and I have to admit, I tried one. I wanted to eat the entire pan. SO YUMMY! I adapted it from a recipe off My Kitchen Cafe - the chocolate chips are my addition! The picture makes it look like they aren't done in the middle. They are cooked through, they were just that moist. Of course, it wouldn't be me if there weren't some little mishap involved in the making of any treat! Someone turned off the oven before they were done and when I came down to check on them, I found that I had to put them back in for another 20 minutes. So, they went late to Ashlyn's Activity and they didn't cool all the way. Whatever...they were awesome!

Easiest Brownies in the World

1 12oz bag of chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet, but use whatever suits your tastes)

1 cup butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 large eggs @ room temperature

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup chocolate chips

Heat the oven to 350.

Melt butter and 12 oz. chocolate chips in a saucepan. Stir constantly and remove from heat when melted.

Pour into a large bowl.

Blend in sugar.

Add eggs, blending fully one at a time.

Add flour and beat well for 3 or 4 minutes.

Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips.

Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350.

Reduce heat to 325 and cook 10 minutes more.

Frosted Banana Bars

I made these yesterday for a friend's birthday and thought it was a great new way to use up some ripe bananas! This recipe comes from Allrecipes. I've never seen my kids squeal for another piece of anything quite so frantically! Well, Gracie did that the first time she had jello - but it was her first real taste of sugar and she couldn't get enough!...ah, but I digress. The point is, they couldn't get enough!

I used up the remainder of the Cream Cheese Frosting I made for the cinnamon rolls a few days ago. This was quick to whip together - even with my best little man "helping!"

Frosted Banana Bars

½ cup butter, softened

1 ½ cups white sugar

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (I used four ripe bananas)

Frosting (use store-bought cream cheese frosting or make your own from the version below)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a jellyroll pan.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the sour cream and vanilla.

Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; stir into the batter.

Finally, mix in the mashed banana.

Spread evenly into the prepared pan(s). Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow bars to cool completely (or as long as you can stand it!) before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting ( from My Kitchen Cafe)

8 ounces cream cheese

½ cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups confectioner’s sugar

2-3 tablespoons milk

Combine butter and cream cheese and mix well, then add vanilla and sugar and mix again, then add milk for desired consistency.

Oatmeal Cookie Bars

I made these as a Treat for Ashlyn's Activity Days...too bad my brain doesn't work anymore and I made them a week early! (Hopefully the neighbor kids appreciated the mistake!)

Oh well, I'll just have to bake something yummy again this week! ;)

This recipe is adapted from the "Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Bars" from My Kitchen Cafe. I merely substituted Reeses Pieces Baking chips for the chocolate chunks. The peanut butter flavor was just right!

I'm sure you could substitute all kinds of things to create different variations: dried cranberries and white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, etc.

Oatmeal Cookie Bars

1 3/4 cup flour

3/4 tsp soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup oatmeal

3/4 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

12 ounces semi sweet chocolate chunks (I used Reeses Pieces from the baking aisle)

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional - I left these out)

Preheat oven to 375.

Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside.

Beat butter, sugars, egg and vanilla till fluffy and add dry ingredients.

Stir in chocolate chunks and walnuts.

Press into a greased 9x13 inch pan and bake for 18-20 minutes until light golden brown.

I have pressed it into a small sheet pan and baked for 18 minutes.

Basic Sweet Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting

I actually got up at 5:30 this morning to make these for Ian to take to work for his team. I love this recipe and the cream cheese frosting makes these cinnamon rolls
A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!




It took me 2 hours from start to drool (wish I could eat them!).




Basic Sweet Rolls (from Bosch)



1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cup milk
1/2 pound butter or margarine
6 cups flour
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. SAF yeast (heaping)
aprox. half stick of butter or margarine, melted
brown sugar
cinnamon
Frosting (see below)


In small saucepan, melt butter with milk and water over low heat. Put into mixing bowl and add 4 cups flour, eggs, sugar and salt. Mix well. Add 2 cups flour and yeast. Mix well. Scrape down sides of bowl and then mix in more flour until sides of the bowl come clean.


Knead for 3-4 minutes.Place dough in greased bowl and let raise until doubled (about 30-40 minutes).


Punch down and turn out onto oiled counter. Roll out 3/4 inch thick (about 12"x24"), spread with melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.


Start at longer edge and roll. Cut into 24 rolls and place in 2 9x13 pans (greased).

Let rise for additional 30 minutes and bake at 375 for about 20 minutes.





Cream Cheese Frosting ( from My Kitchen Cafe)



8 ounces cream cheese
½ cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
2-3 tablespoons milk

Combine butter and cream cheese and mix well, then add vanilla and sugar and mix again, then add milk for desired consistency.