Category Archives: Cheesecakes

A New Year’s Collection of Top Recipes on Easybaked!!

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Happy New Year, friends! One of my favorite parts of marking the end of one year and the beginning of the next is looking back at all the things that made the previous year wonderful! One of the really fun things to look at is my statistics for this blog. A LOT of you visited us here this year!  Thank you!!!  I am always fascinated by which recipes really took off and became HUGE hits- and I’m always a tiny bit disappointed by the ones that I thought were AMAZING, that didn’t really catch anyone’s attention.

I have lots of fun recipes lined up to share with you in January, but this week- as we welcome 2017- here are the top picks from 2016.

Just click on a photo to see the recipe- and enjoy!!! ~r

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Strawberry Lemonade layer cake

Viewed 203,655 times in one month alone! The cupcake version of these is really popular too.

Classic Cheesecake with Sour Cream topping

Seriously, that cheesecake is maybe the best recipe on this blog. You have GOT to try it!!!! 🙂

Oreo pops

When this was 1st posted, there were NO other Oreo Pops on the internet- so I like to think that the Oreo Pop craze started here! We certainly have had fun creating all sorts of them for every holiday!

Bailey's Cupcakes

This recipe was from a failed audition for The Great American Baking Show, and a new friend!

Turtle Bundt

This is the most recent big hit on Easybaked- and it is really easy to make!

So, those were the top 5 in all-time views this year… but what were my favorites from 2016? These three!

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This is the star of 2016. It is SO yummy and got rave reviews every time I made it. A massive layer of cookie dough in the middle of a cake? Does it get any better than that???

Marshmallow Stuffed Oreos

2016 was also my year to turn those healthy little Oreo Thins into amazing stuffed Oreos! These marshmallow ones… oh my! We also stuffed Oreos with Key Lime Pie, Pumpkin Pie and Cookie Butter!

Cookie Monster Oreos!

These win my personal “cutest” recipe award for 2016! I loved making them and making cute little stickers to seal the bags I gifted them in too! So fun!

I’ve been asked many times what my all-time favorite recipe on Easybaked is. I’ve got SO many favorites- but if I had to pick one, it would be my Caramel Fudge Brownies. I love them because they are my mom’s famous mint brownies with my favorite caramel added in place of the mint- and they are just the BEST chocolate fix ever.

Caramel Fudge Brownies!!

I hope you have enjoyed this round-up of recipes!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

 

Fun recipes for kids!

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Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes!!!!!Summer is almost here- and that means summer vacation! I remember spending my summer days in the kitchen with cookbooks I’d gotten out of the library, trying new things. Sometimes I baked with mom- and sometimes I ventured out on my own and learned valuable lessons like you can’t put the whole egg in when the recipe calls for just egg whites!

As an adult, I love baking with kids. I love creating recipes that make kids smile. My childhood interest turned into a lifelong hobby for me, and it’s fun to share that with a new audience.

I thought I’d share some of my favorite kid-friendly recipes that have been posted on Easybaked over the years.

Some of these are featured in my cookbook for kids, “Life is Sweet, Baking Devotions for Kids”.

As I share photos of these recipes, click on the photo to be taken to the recipe!

Easy Recipes- ones that kids can make on their own or with a little adult supervision.

Cinnamon Cheesecake Sundaes– use wonton wrappers to make crispy little cups. Fill them up with a no-bake cheesecake and sundae toppings. Kids love to make their own creative sundaes!

Cinnamon Cheesecake Sundaes

 

Nutter Butter Flip Flops- less baking and more art! Simply dip Nutter Butter cookies in Wilton’s candy melts and draw on flip-flop straps. It might take a little practice, but learning to dip things in chocolate is a skill everyone should learn!

Nutter Butter Flip Flops

Tie-Dye Cake- If your kids love color, this cake will make them smile! You color cake mix in all the shades of the rainbow and then bake it into a swirling masterpiece. With blue frosting. Everyone loves blue frosting- right?!?

Tie-Dye Cake with Blue Raspberry Frosting!

Hamburger Cookies- They look like hamburgers but taste like chocolate. What kid wouldn’t love that! Easy and quick to make- and very cute when served with those mini potato sticks as french fries!

Hamburger Cookie!

Earthworm Cupcakes- Kids will love making these jello “worms” and poking them into Oreo crumbs. Not just your USUAL dirt cupcakes- because this time the worms look REAL!

Edible Jello Earthworm Cupcakes

“Pup”cakes- If your kids are looking for someone special to bake for… try these super-easy cupcake treats for dogs! Peanut butter happiness for everyone!

Pupcakes8

Confetti Kisses- here’s that chance to learn about egg whites! A little supervision if they’ve never divided an egg before- and help with beaters- but add some Jell-O and you have such a fun treat!

Raspberry Confetti Kisses

 

Recipes for kid’s parties: These are fun ideas to surprise kids with. Maybe they help create the masterpiece- or you create it for them. These are a little more difficult, but so much fun!

Frozen S’mores Cups!

frozen s'more cups

Kool-aid Truffles

Kool-Aid Truffles!!

Candy-filled Cake

Confetti Cake Filled with Candy

A Dr. Seuss-style stack of cupcakes

Pile of Cupcakes!

Polka Dot Cake!

Polka Dot Cake!!!

Toxic Slime Cupcakes!

Toxic Slime-filled Cupcakes!

Oreo Frogs!

Frog Oreos!!

Root beer float cupcakes (one of my favorite cupcake recipes!)

Root Beer Float Cupcakes!!!!

And last…but certainly not least:

Kool Aid Pie!

KoolAid Pie

I hope I’ve inspired a little summer fun in the kitchen!  Enjoy! ~r

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One of our specialties here on Easybaked is our fun-to make (and eat!) Oreo pops! We have them for every season! (click on photo to get directions!)

Original Oreo pops!!!!!Mummy Oreo Pops!Snowman Oreo PopsLadybug Oreo Pops!

Reindeer Oreo Pops!!!Rainbow Oreo Pops!!!!Goldfish Oreo Pops!American Flag Oreo Pops!!!!

Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake!!Creamy chocolate cheesecake topped with a layer of raspberry and sour cream. Unbelievably yummy!!!

If you follow my blog on a regular basis, you will remember this cheesecake from last fall.  It is my Aunt’s recipe and it is literally the best cheesecake I’ve ever eaten.  It is so creamy and smooth…oh my.

I decided to add a few twists to the recipe by making it chocolate and adding raspberries to the topping.  It worked beautifully and added so much flavor!  It is really quite easy to make.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!!!!

Here’s the recipe (printable version):

INGREDIENTS:

Crust:
  • 1 1/4 cups Honeymaid graham cracker crumbs
  • 5 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons sugar 
Filling: 
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3 (8 oz.) Philadelphia cream cheese bars (must be the Philadelphia brand)~ softened to room temperature.
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
Topping: 
  • 1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup of canned raspberry pie filling

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
  • In a medium bowl, combine crust ingredients together until well combined.
  • Press into a 9″ spring form pan, pressing crumbs into bottom and about 1 1/2″ up sides of pan.    
  • For the filling, combine the sugar and softened cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat together until smooth.
  • Add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.
  • Add the vanilla, lemon juice and salt and beat until smooth and creamy.
  • Melt the one cup of chocolate until smooth, and add to cheesecake mixture, beating until completely incorporated.
  • Pour into crust.
  • Bake at 350F degrees for 35-45 minutes.
  • While cheesecake is baking, make topping by simply mixing together all of the topping ingredients.
  • After 35-45 minutes of baking, remove cheesecake from oven and turn oven down to 325F degrees.
  • Pour topping over hot cheesecake, gently spreading to edges.
  • Return cheesecake to oven and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes.
  • Remove cheesecake from oven and leave sides on pan while allowing cheesecake to cool to room temperature.  
  • Refrigerate several hours (or overnight)
  • Run a small knife around the edges of the pan and remove them before serving.
  • Serve with extra raspberry pie filling– YUM!
  • Enjoy!!!!

 

Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake!!
My thoughts:  You can see in my pictures that I added a cup of raspberry pie filling over the crust before I poured the cheesecake batter in.  It was really yummy, but made it hard to remove the bottom of the springform pan (which I always do before pictures).  If you don’t mind leaving the bottom on, this is a yummy addition to the recipe!  Just gently spread it out over your graham crust and pour the cheesecake over the top.
Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake!!

We love raspberries here at Easybaked!  Check out our other yummy raspberry recipes!

Raspberry Lemon Cream Cups!!!Raspberry Confetti KissesRaspberry Truffle TartRaspberry Lemon drop Cakes!!!

Classic Cheesecake with Sour Cream Topping

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Classic Cheesecake with Sour Cream Topping
Creamy classic vanilla cheesecake with a sweet and light sour cream topping.

This is the best cheesecake I’ve ever made.  That’s saying a lot because I’ve made many, many cheesecakes.

In case you missed last week’s post, Easybaked is featuring family “tried and true” recipes during the month of November.  This week our star baker is my Aunt Vonda.  She is the queen of desserts in our family and literally everything she makes is scrumptious!  This cheesecake is one of my very favorite family desserts.  I’ve wanted the recipe for years and once I finally got to make it for myself I was even more impressed.  Not only is is delicious….it is actually easier to make than most cheesecakes I’ve tried….and oh, SO good.

Vonda's Cheesecake3
This is the cheesecake for a cheesecake purist.  No crazy toppings or fillings- just plain cheesecake.  Usually I’m not a huge fan of plain cheesecake, but the flavor and texture of this one is incredible.

Vonda's Cheesecake5
Want the recipe?

Here you go: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS:

Crust:
  • 1 1/4 cups Honeymaid graham cracker crumbs
  • 5 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons sugar 
Filling: 
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3 (8 oz.) Philadelphia cream cheese bars (must be the Philadelphia brand)~ softened to room temperature.
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • pinch of salt
Topping: 
  • 1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • pinch of salt
DIRECTIONS:
  • Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
  • In a medium bowl, combine crust ingredients together until well combined.
  • Press into a 9″ spring form pan, pressing crumbs into bottom and about 1 1/2″ up sides of pan.    
  • For the filling, combine the sugar and softened cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat together until smooth.
  • Add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.
  • Add the vanilla, lemon juice and salt and beat until smooth and creamy.
  • Pour into crust.
  • Bake at 350F degrees for 35-45 minutes.
  • While cheesecake is baking, make topping by simply mixing together all of the topping ingredients.
  • After 35-45 minutes of baking, remove cheesecake from oven and turn oven down to 325F degrees.
  • Pour topping over hot cheesecake, gently spreading to edges.
  • Return cheesecake to oven and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes.
  • Remove cheesecake from oven and leave sides on pan while allowing cheesecake to cool to room temperature.  
  • Refrigerate several hours (or overnight)
  • Remove edges of spring form pan before serving and serve with fresh fruit, pie filling or a chocolate or caramel sauce.
  • Enjoy!!!!

Creamy classic cheesecake
My thoughts:  Well, you already know how much I love this cheesecake because I’ve gone on and on about it.  This is a must-try recipe.  You will love it.  A huge thanks to my Aunt Vonda for sharing her recipe with us!!!  Yum!!!  ~r

Creamy cheesecake with sour cream topping
Other cheesecake recipes we love here at Easybaked:
Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake!!Triple Chocolate Cheesecake 3Peanut butter cup cheesecakeTurtle Cheesecake

Salty Caramel Cheesecake Bars

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Creamy caramel cheesecake over a pretzel crust is topped with a layer of dulce de leche and dark chocolate.  Sweet and salty perfection!

I’ve been craving caramel lately.  Maybe because it’s fall now and caramel seems to be a fall treat.  Whatever the reason, I went on a hunt for caramel cheesecake and found this one at Bon Appetite.  I wanted to add salty to the recipe, so I used a pretzel crust instead of grahams and added dark chocolate.  It is really good.  A subtle caramel flavor with just a hint of salt from the crust.

Caramel Cheesecake5

Want to know how these are made?  Here you go:  (Printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 24 cheesecake squares)

Crust:

  • 3 cups of crushed pretzels
  • 2 Tablespoons of sugar
  • 1  stick (1/2 cup) of butter

Cheesecake:

  • 3 packages of cream cheese (8 oz.), softened to room temperature.
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons of vanilla
  • 1 can (13.4 oz) of Nestle La Lechera Dulce de Leche (or 1 cup of your own- find recipe here)

Topping:

  • 1 bag (10 oz.) Nestle Dark Chocolate Morsels.
  • 12 Tablespoons of butter

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
  • Make crust by combining crushed pretzels, butter and sugar together and pressing into a greased 9×13 pan.
  • Bake at 325F for about 10 minutes.  Cool completely.
  • In a large bowl, cream together sugar with cream cheese.
  • Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed between each one.
  • Add vanilla and 1/2 of the can (about 1/2 cup) of Dulce de Leche.
  • Beat on medium until completely combined.
  • Pour cheesecake over cooled crust and bake at 325F for 45 minutes. (Until center is set)
  • Cool at room temperature.
  • Carefully spread remaining Dulce de Leche over the top of the cooled cheesecake.
  • Melt 12 Tablespoons of butter with dark chocolate chips until smooth.
  • Pour over top, carefully spreading chocolate to cover entire cheesecake.
  • Carefully set pretzels on top of chocolate.  Each one will be in the center of one piece when it is cut, so place them according to how big you want your pieces.
  • Lightly sprinkle with coarse salt.
  • Refrigerate overnight.
  • Before serving, allow cheesecake to warm a little and then using a sharp knife, cut into squares with a pretzel centered in each.
  • Enjoy!

Salted Caramel Cheesecake

My thoughts:  These are really so yummy.  My only problem?  The crust was a little crumbly (you can see in the pictures).  I’m almost positive I didn’t get my pretzels chopped fine enough.  Make sure you chop/food process them into FINE bits- not coarse.

If you don’t want a salty crust just use graham crackers– or Oreos…oh my, caramel cheesecake over Oreos?  Yes, please!  The cheesecake is delicious.  It would be good over any crust.  I hope you enjoy trying it!!!  ~r

Salted Caramel Cheesecake!

Other caramel desserts you might enjoy:

Salted Caramel Cookie Cups (2)Inside-out Caramel Apple!!Caramel Fudge Brownies!!Turtle Cheesecake

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake!!

This rich and creamy cheesecake has bits of cinnamon roll baked inside.  Little pockets of cinnamon and sweet brown sugar make it into nearly every bite.  You will have a hard time stopping at just one piece!!!

When a craving hits I generally create a brand new recipe to satisfy my curiosity.  A craving hit me right in the middle of church last Sunday.  Right in the middle of a great sermon on Romans I suddenly thought~ “I wonder what cinnamon roll and cheesecake would taste like all together”.  I wondered if you could use refrigerated cinnamon rolls as a crust…I wondered if you could swirl a brown sugar/ cinnamon mixture into a cheesecake without getting tons of cracks…I wondered if the cinnamon cream cheese tubs would work…I also listened to the sermon.  I’m fairly good at multi-tasking 🙂

When I got home I decided two things:

1. I am taking a vacation to Peru in a few weeks and I cannot spend any extra money- so the ingredients needed to be already in my house.

2. I would google “cinnamon roll cheesecake” to see what others had done.

The googling resulted in a surprise.  Several blogs featured recipes and they were all the same recipe from the same source!  Every one of the blogs just ranted and raved about the amazing-ness of this recipe.

I looked the recipe up in Culinary Concoctions by Peabody and realized I already had all of the ingredients.

It was meant to be.

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake!!!!

It is, as all the other blogs out there have said, AMAZING.  Unbelievably good.  Exactly what I was hoping for in a combination of cheesecake and cinnamon roll.

It is also a labor of love.  Regular cheesecakes take some time.  This is a regular cheesecake and a batch of cinnamon rolls…all together.  Set aside some time and several clean mixing bowls!!

Here’s how to make it:

INGREDIENTS:

Cinnamon Roll Batter:

  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • ¼ cup butter, at room temperature
  • 1 egg
  • ½  cup  milk
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Cheesecake filling:

  • 2 pkg. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 3 eggs

Cinnamon Filling:

  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 3 tbsp butter, at room temperature
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • milk (if needed to thin frosting)

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Grease a 9-inch Springform pan.

Cinnamon Roll Batter:

  • Using a mixer,  cream together the butter and sugar.
  • Add egg, milk, and vanilla. Beat for about one minute, scraping down bowl.
  • Add flour, baking powder, and salt to the creamed ingredients. Mix on low speed until throughly combined.

Cheesecake Filling:

  • In a separate bowl, use a mixer to beat cream cheese and sugar for about 2 minutes on medium-high speed.
  • Add the eggs one at a time, beating together scraping down the bowl after each addition.
  • Add the vanilla and flour and beat for another minute.

Cinnamon Filling:

  • In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Mix until thoroughly combined.

You have three individual parts to this cheesecake now.  The batter, the cheesecake and the filling.
Here is how to put them together:

  • Spread half of the batter onto the bottom of the Springform pan. It will be sticky and thick so spray your hands with baking spray and press down. It will be a thin layer, but trust me it will rise up during baking.
  • Pour all of the cheesecake batter on top of the cinnamon roll batter that is in the prepared pan.
  • Drop spoonfuls of the cinnamon filling over the entire top of the cheesecake.
  • Take the rest of the base batter and drop spoonfuls over the entire top of cheesecake. Once finished, take a knife to swirl the ingredients together.  I say swirl, but its really just a big yummy chunky mess– just kind of gently mix all the toppings together without digging into the bottom crust.

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake - steps

  • Bake for about 50-55 minutes, cake will be puffy and lightly browned.
  • Let it cool for 20 minutes at room temperature and then cover and move to fridge for at least 4 hours (or overnight).  
  • Remove cake and let it warm up to room temperature just a bit. While you are waiting, make your cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • In a clean bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together for about 2 minutes.
  • Add remaining ingredients and beat until desired consistency is reached. If too thick, thin out with milk.
  • Pipe over the top of chilled cheesecake and serve….so yummy!

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake!!!!!My thoughts:  If you don’t mind a little extra prep time in the kitchen, this recipe is truly worth every bit of effort.  The best part?  Since it has cinnamon rolls in it you really CAN eat cheesecake for breakfast with no guilty conscience… and I can tell you that a piece of this with a cup of coffee really is a perfect way to start the day!!!!  Enjoy!!!  ~r

Is it cheesecake?  Is it cinnamon roll?It's BOTH!!!!!

Is it cheesecake? Is it cinnamon roll?
It’s BOTH!!!!!

Other cinnamon inspired treats from Easybaked:  Just click on an image to get the recipe!

Cinnamon Cheesecake SundaesMexican Chocolate MilkCinnamon Roll Cupcakes!Pumpkin Pie Dip!

Easter Mini-Cheesecakes

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Easter Cheesecake Cups

These colorful mini-cheesecakes are made with malted milk ball eggs and have a sugar cookie crust…yum!

I love seasonal candy.  I love Cadbury eggs at Easter and Tim Tams at Christmas and conversation hearts at Valentines Day….but the Whopper brand malted milk ball eggs are the best.  Did any of you use the outside shell as colorful “lipstick” as a kid?  So fun!  Crunch them up in a whipped cheesecake and put them in a fun Mini Cheesecake Pan for a dessert that will make everyone smile!

INGREDIENTS: (makes 12 mini cheesecakes)

  • One Nestle Sugar Cookie Dough Bar (the refrigerated dough that is scored into 24 squares)
  • 8 oz. of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened)
  • 1/3 c. granulated sugar
  • 2 t. vanilla
  • 1 (8 oz) container of Cool Whip
  • 2 bags (10 oz. each) of Whopper’s Robin Eggs (I used mini’s, but I’m sure the full size would work fine too.)  You could use regular Whopper candies to get the same flavors when the seasonal Robin’s Eggs are not available.

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare pan by placing the metal disks into each cup (the Mini Cheesecake Pan comes with metal disks that sit at the bottom of each cup- like the bottom of a spring form pan!)
  • Break apart 1/2 of cookie dough bar.  (This recipe makes 12 cheesecakes but the bar contains 24 cookies.  You can double this recipe and make 24 cheesecakes or just make the other 12 cookies another time.)
  • Roll each cookie dough square into a ball and put it into a greased cup in the mini cheesecake pan.
  • Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes.
  • Cool completely.
  • In a mixing bowl, cream together softened cream cheese and sugar. 
  • Add vanilla.
  • Smash one full bag of Malted Milk Chocolate Eggs.  I put them in a ziplock , placed them on a cutting board and hit them with a hammer until they were in pieces about the size of mini chocolate chips.
  • Fold about 2/3 of Cool Whip and  the one bag of smashed eggs into the cream cheese mixture.
  • Spoon cheesecake mixture into a large zip-top bag.  Clip a large piece of one corner off and pipe filling evenly over each cooled cookie crust.
  • Use a knife or spatula to smooth tops of cheesecakes flat across top of pan.
  • Freeze for about 3-4 hours (or overnight)
  • Remove from freezer, pop cheesecakes out by pushing up on the bottom of each cup. (This took a little practice for me- you have to push it up high enough to grab it by the cookie part.)
  • Remove the metal disk from the crust.
  • Pipe remaining 1/3 of Cool Whip on top of each cheesecake and decorate with  malted milk chocolate eggs as desired
  • Keep refrigerated until serving.

Easter Cheesecake Cups

My thoughts:  These are a yummy, colorful and fun Easter treat!  They go together fast too- which is always a bonus for me.  You can make these in a muffin tin, if you don’t want to invest in the mini-cheesecake pan- but mine has been a great addition to my kitchen- so many fun things to make in it!!!  Hope you enjoy these fun little treats!!!  ~r

Easter Cheesecake Cups!!

Other Easter ideas from Easybaked (click on an image to get the recipe):

Chocolate Easter Eggs with Peanut Butter FillingEasy Easter cut out cookiesOreo pops!!!!!Raspberry Confetti Kisses

Other ways to use your Mini Cheesecake Pan:

frozen s'more cupsMini Pineapple Upside Down CakesMini chocolate chip cookie cheesecakesMini Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Dulce de Leche Caramel Sauce

This creamy sweet caramel sauce couldn’t be easier to make.  Ingredients?  One can of Sweetened Condensed Milk and a very brave spirit…..

 

I had heard from several people about the “boil a can of condensed milk to make caramel” idea, and I knew someday I would try it.  That “someday” arrived when I was asked to bring a birthday cheesecake for my brother this weekend.  He likes PLAIN cheesecake.  For those of you who have followed easybaked for awhile, you know I don’t do “plain” anything.  I take plain and add peanut butter, chocolate, glazes, ganache, frosting, candy….nothing plain.  But for my wonderful brother John….I present:  a plain white cheesecake…..

so…..plain.  In case you are wondering, this recipe is the basis for almost all of my cheesecakes, and you can click on one of the following pictures to get the recipe using white chocolate (plus fun toppings!!!!) Using other chip flavors gives you chocolate, peanut butter, cinnamon or even butterscotch cheesecakes.

In any case, I made the plain cheesecake, but I wanted a fun topping sauce to serve with it.  Dulce de Leche.  Now, I don’t know about you, but in my mind boiling a can of any sort sounds like a disaster….so I looked up the technique- just to be sure I did it right and didn’t explode anything.

I found a cute blog called Not Without Salt that gave instructions….scary instructions….and I quote:

“In a large pan, completely submerge the can of sweetened condensed milk in water. Make sure it is covered by at least one inch of water and remains covered throughout the entire process – this is VERY important otherwise it could explode. Cover the pan with a lid and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for three hours. Continually check to make sure the can is completely covered with water.”

Yes, it could explode.  Needless to say, I obsessively checked my water level for 3 hours.  I never needed to add any…but I imagined lovely dulce de leche covering my ceiling and walls and I obsessed.

After 3 hours of fear, I took the pan off the stove and had a debate with my friend Danielle about if I should leave it in the hot water to cool…or take it out…?  I took it out.  And I set it outside on my sunporch to cool- or explode.

It cooled beautifully and when I opened the can….oh my.

I love it.  I would do this again in a heartbeat— it is SO good.  I’m so excited to serve it with my cheesecake in a few hours.  It would be good over ice cream or apples…so many possibilities.  ENJOY!!! (and be very careful that your water doesn’t evaporate!!)    ~r

Happy Birthday!!!

Dulce de Leche in your coffee???

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other recipes you might enjoy: Click on the image to be taken to the recipe.

 

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Butterscotch Caramel Cheesecake

Creamy butterscotch cheesecake and a thick layer of caramel sauce over a gingersnap crust .  A unique combination of delicious seasonal flavors!!!

Are you ready for Thanksgiving?  Have you decided what you’re having for dessert yet–other than the proverbial pumpkin pie?  This cheesecake combines three unique fall flavors- ginger, butterscotch and caramel- and it simply melts in your mouth.  Wow your guests with an Easybaked cheesecake!!

INGREDIENTS:

Crust:

  • One bag (13 oz.) of Archway ginger snaps, finely crushed. (approximately 2 cups)
  • 1/4 c. butter

Cheesecake:

  • 2 (8oz.) packages of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened)
  • 1/2c. sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 c. butterscotch chips (melted)
  • 1 c. heavy whipping cream
  • 3 tsp. vanilla

Caramel Topping:

  • 32 Kraft caramels (unwrapped)
  • 1/2c. butter
  • 1 can (14oz.) sweetened condensed milk

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees
  • Crush cookies into fine crumbs and add melted butter.  Combine well and press into the bottom of a 9-Inch Springform Pan
  • Beat softened cream cheese with sugar until smooth.
  • Add eggs one at a time, beating in between each one.
  • Add remaining cheesecake ingredients, beating until smooth.
  • Pour into crust and allow to sit at room temp for 30 minutes.
  • Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 60 minutes,
  • Turn off oven, open oven door a little and allow to sit for another 30 minutes.
  • Remove from oven and run knife around edge of pan.  Remove edge of pan. 
  • Allow to come to room temperature (make caramel topping during this time.)
  • Put caramels, condensed milk and margarine into a saucepan and melt over medium heat, stirring constantly until smooth (6-8 minutes)
  • Pour caramel over the top of the cooled cheesecake, spreading to edges.
  • Refrigerate overnight
  • Remove bottom of pan when cheesecake is thoroughly chilled.
  • Before serving, pipe whipped cream around edges of cheesecake if desired and sprinkle with a little cocoa powder.


My thoughts: A flavorful creamy cheesecake.  I love the gingersnap crust– that adds a lot of the fall spice to this.  I ADORE caramel- so there’s a lot of it on this cheesecake.  If you want less, simply halve the recipe and be happy!!  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends!!!!  Enjoy!  r~

One last yummy bite…..

Other cheesecake recipes from Easybaked that you might enjoy~ click on the image to be taken to the recipe:

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Mini Cookie Dough Cheesecakes

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These yummy little cheesecakes have chocolate chips in the crust and adorable little chocolate chip cookies baked right on the top.  A perfect mini party dessert!!

INGREDIENTS: (makes 12 mini cheesecakes)

  • 3/4 c. finely crushed graham crackers
  • 2 1/2 T. melted butter
  • 1/3 c. mini chocolate chips
  • 1 (8oz) bar of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened to room temperature)
  • 1/3 c. sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 t. vanilla
  • 1 tube of refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough (I use Pillsbury)

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat oven to 325.
  • Open tube of cookie dough and using a small melon baller or Mini Cookie Scoop make 12 small cookie balls (about an inch in diameter) and set aside. (You will not use much of the dough for this recipe- which means you can make cookies later!!!)
  • Combine graham cracker crumbs with butter and mix well.
  • Add mini chips, and when well combined, evenly divide into a Mini Cheesecake Pan (make sure you place your metal disks in each cup first!)
  • Press crumbs into bottom of each cup using a Mini Tart Shaper
  • Combine softened cream cheese with sugar and add egg and vanilla.  Beat until smooth.
  • Evenly divide batter into each of the 12 mini cheesecake cups.
  • Place pan on a cookie sheet and bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.
  • Remove pan from oven and gently place one cookie dough ball on the top of each mini cheesecake.
  • Return pan to the oven for 10-12 minutes- until cookies are baked on the top of each cheesecake and starting to brown.
  • Remove from oven and cool completely.
  • Refrigerate overnight, remove from pan and ENJOY!!

My thoughts:  It took me two tries to get the cookie dough to bake on the top all cute and pretty.  Its all in the timing.  My first attempt at this recipe, I put the cookie dough on top before the cheesecake was baked.  The cookie dough sank and pushed the cheesecake batter right over the top of the pans, leaving a huge mess!  Putting the dough on near the end of baking worked perfectly.  Lesson?  When at first you don’t succeed, try again! (also, stock up on cream cheese when it is on sale so it doesn’t cost a fortune to experiment!)  I really hope you love these yummy little treats!  Enjoy!!  -r