Lemon Cheesecake Bars ~ By Victoria

Happy spring!!!

I love lemon bars and cheesecake,  so when I came across this recipe that included both... of course I had to try it. :) My whole family loves these and they are perfect for welcoming in spring!

Ingredients:

 

Crust:

• ¾ cup butter, chilled
• 2 cups flour
• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ tsp. salt

Cheesecake:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp. milk
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• ½ tsp. vanilla

Lemon Layer:

• 4 large eggs
• 1½ cups sugar
• ¾ cup lemon juice
• ⅓ cup flour

Instructions:

 

Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Cut butter into pieces.
3. In a food processor (or blender on low, pulse setting) Process all ingredients until mixture becomes tiny and fine pieces.
4. Sprinkle mixture into a 9 x 13 baking pan and press evenly into bottom of pan.
5. Bake for 12 minutes and remove from oven.

Cheesecake:

1. In medium bowl, blend cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add sugar and mix well.
3. Cream together the rest of the ingredients until smooth.
4. Pour cheesecake evenly over hot crust.
5. Bake 15 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 300.

Lemon layer:

1. In a bowl whisk together eggs and sugar until combined well.
2. Stir in lemon juice and flour.
3. Pour gently and smoothly over semi-baked cheesecake.
4. Bake at 300 for 25-30 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and sprinkle powdered sugar over top if desired.
6. Cool for an hour and then refrigerate.
7. Can be served warm but better after it has chilled.
8. I let it sit out of the fridge 20-30 minutes before I serve it.
9. For families, it will probably be eaten as soon as they are out of the fridge.
10. Makes 24 bars

Source: Your Homebased Mom Blog

3.2.2925

Pumpkin Roll ~ By Victoria

This is definitely a favorite fall dessert! I like to make two and freeze one for another occasion.  If you want to frost the whole cake as shown in the picture, double the cream cheese filling and use half for the top and half for the middle.

Cake:

1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup pure pumpkin

1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

 

Cream Cheese Filling:

8oz  cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar, sifted

6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

 

FOR CAKE:

Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts. 

Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.

Cream Cheese Filling:
Beat cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Be sure to put enough powdered sugar on the towel when rolling up the cake so it will not stick.

Strawberry Cream Crepes

This very rich and sweet breakfast recipe has been a long-time family favorite.  A big giant batch is normally cooked in the Bowes house on special occasions such as birthdays, holidays, and sometimes even for visiting friends and family.  It could easily double as dessert, too!

Batter:

1 1/2 C milk

3 eggs

2TB melted butter

1/2 tsp. lemon extract

1 1/4 C flour

2 TB sugar

1/8 tsp. salt 

Combine dry and wet ingredients separately and then mix them together.  Pour about a 2/3 c of batter onto a heated, greased, frying pan and cook until the top is "dry."  (Set your burner on a medium-high setting.)  Layer crepes between wax paper or fill and serve immediately because they will all stick together!

 

Filling:

1 C. whipping cream, whipped (fold into the following ingredients)

 8oz softened cream cheese

2 C. powdered sugar

1 tps. vanilla

Topping:

Berry sauce of any sort!  I like to mix about 3c fresh raspberries and blueberries with 1/4 c sugar, bring to a boil for 5 minutes.  Ready to serve!

You can also add a dollop of whipped cream to the top, if you feel like over-indulging :-)

Sour Cream Rhubarb Cupcakes

    These were FANTASTIC!  I made a few changes, but did not stray far from the original recipe.  I wanted half apple and half rhubarb, so threw in some chopped apple along with the prescribed amount of rhubarb in the recipe.

THEN.  I stumbled across the most perfect butter-cream frosting in history.  Absolutely un-healthy, fattening, artery-clogging...etc.  But I was looking for something really firm and buttery, and this recipe fit the bill.  Nothing wrong with a small splurge for special occasions, in my opinion :-) I'll post the frosting recipe later.

 Sour Cream Rhubarb Cupcakes

Makes 12-16 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups all purpose flour( I used half whole-wheat)

¾ cup  granulated sugar

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 stick softened butter

2 medium eggs

½ cup sour cream

1tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup rhubarb, trimmed and chopped 

3/4 cup pealed apple chunks

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a baking pan for normal size cupcakes with 12 cupcake liners, or a mini cupcake pan with 24 liners

2. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

3. Add butter, eggs, sour cream and vanilla and beat until smooth. Stir in chopped rhubarb.

4. Divide batter amongst the cupcake liners and bake for 20-23 minutes for normal size cupcake, 18 minutes for medium and 15 minutes for mini. Check doneness with a toothpick before removing from the oven. Let cool.

 Source: Call Me Cupcake