A Kitchen Keeper Original - Pumpkin Cheesecake with Orange Caramel Sauce

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I know that all families have holiday traditions. Ours are probably different than yours. While we'll be having turkey with all the trimmings this year, the bird has never been the focus of our Thanksgiving feast. Thanksgiving was, is, and probably always will be about dessert in this house. When the children were home, everyone got to pick the dessert they wanted to end the meal. There was always a pumpkin, an apple, a mincemeat and a lemon meringue pie sitting on the sideboard, and because they were so popular back in the day, you'd also find loaves of cranberry and pumpkin bead waiting to be sliced. This year I'm updating some of those traditional desserts, so I'm going to serve a luscious pumpkin and orange cheesecake instead of pumpkin pie. It's a bit of a pother to make, but one bite of this rich and creamy cake will have your socks going up and down. Despite what you may have heard, I do not have nerves of steel, so I make and freeze the cake the weekend before the holiday. I move it to the refrigerator to thaw the night before I want to serve it, so while it takes up valuable space, it makes the cook's life much easier come the big day. This cake has a lovely creamy texture and its faintly orange flavor is enhanced with a caramel sauce that is also orange flavored. It's a lovely riff on an old favorite and I know those of you who try the recipe will love the cake. Here is how it is made.

Effortless Nutella Cheesecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...If you have 15 minutes, you can make a dessert that will impress all who gather at your table. This cheesecake is child's play to make, and if it is served to folks who are fans of hazelnut spread, they'll sing praises to you and your prowess in the kitchen. There is no need to tell them this rich cheesecake can be made by a ten year old. If you take a quick look at the recipe, you'll see how easily this cheesecake comes together, so there is no need for me to go on and on about its preparation. I know those of you who make the cheesecake will love it. Here is how it's made.

An Encore Performance - Lemon Cheesecake Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Tucked into my bag of garden tricks is the use of pansies to span the seasons. I plant them as soon as the fall mums fade and our window boxes are begging for spots of color to break the monotony of winter gray. I've done this for years and actually keep cardboard boxes to cover them when temperatures drop to freezing levels. We've lived lots of places and, except for areas of heavy ice and snow, I've found I can protect them from most of winter's vagaries. My goal is to keep them alive until my favorite red begonias become available for summer planting. As a child, I loved pansies. Their vibrant colors and soft velvet touch fascinated me. The moth-like imprint on their petals opened other doors for me as well and for a time I was a bug-brat with a pretty impressive collection of insects and spiders. I was the pansy person in the family and from the time I was four or so, I was responsible for their planting and general care. In those early years, I'm sure my stature was nearly dwarfed by the size of the watering can, but I refused to use the hose because it beat my beauties down. I was convinced they thrived because of the care I gave them. It never dawned on me that they were nearly to impossible to kill.

This cheesecake pie is not unlike my pansies. It is easy to make and it has a soft velvet texture that is hard to beat. However, I must be honest and tell you that if it weren't for those two qualities, I wouldn't bother making this cheesecake again. I found the cake on Pinterest and was charmed by its appearance. The original recipe came from the Real Simple site, so I was fairly certain the cake would be fine, if not top drawer. It uses a pre-baked pie crust and the filling can be made in 5 minutes if you have your ingredients at room temperature. The filling is quite tangy due to the lemon juice and cheeses that are used to make it, but I think the addition of lemon zest would have greatly improved the flavor. I also think you'll enjoy the cake more if you allow it to ripen for a full day before you serve it. I am keeping the recipe because the cake is so easy to make and I have been known to have days when time forces something less than ambrosia from my kitchen, There is nothing wrong with this cake, but it is not a standout. I let you decide for yourself. Here is the recipe.

Triple Play - My Recipe Rotation - Layered Mocha Cheesecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a truly outstanding dessert. It is not difficult to make but it is time consuming. I would like to suggest that those of you who plan to make it for guests or special occasions, bake and freeze it well ahead of time. That way you'll feel no last minute pressure to get it done. If you like neat pieces of cheesecake, cut the cake while it is frozen and you'll have slices that are worthy of a magazine spread. I hope you try this one. Here's what I had to say when the cake was first featured.

I've been testing new recipes for Mother's Day and I've found a handful that I think are good enough to share with you. The cheesecake I'm featuring tonight is truly a keeper, but I must warn you that it is extraordinarily rich. The cake is not hard to make, but it is time consuming and, as these things go, expensive to make. That being said, if you have time and money, and weigh in between 100 to 110 pounds, you owe it to yourself to give this recipe a try. The cake is absolutely delicious. Normally, I send test recipe results down the hill to our teenage neighbors. The Silver Fox, who can put squirrels to shame when it comes to hoarding, nixed that plan and commandeered the cake for God,  country and himself. It's best not to ask about order of preference. At any rate,  he has frozen the cake, and convinced himself that it is for sustenance.  He'll be able to live for months off the girth that "sustenance"  adds to his midsection.  Calories aside, if you enjoy the coffee and chocolate combo. you'll really love this cheesecake.. Here is how it's made.

Layered Mocha Cheesecake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of taste of Home Baking Cookbook

Ingredients:
Crust
1-1/2 cups Oreo cookie crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted
Filling
2 tablespoons + 1-1/2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1 tablespoon hot water
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 packages (8 ounces each) cream chesse, softened
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled
Glaze
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter
Chocolate-covered coffee beans, optional

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan. Place it on a double thickness of heavy-duty  foil (about 18-inches square). Carefully wrap foil around pan.
2) Mix cookie crumbs and melted butter together in a small bowl.  Press crumbs onto bottom of prepared pan.
3) Mix  coffee granules, hot water and cinnamon in another small bowl. Set aside.
4) Combine cream cheese, sugar, flour and vanilla in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Beat until smooth. Add eggs and beat on low speed just until combined.
5) Divide batter in half. Stir melted chocolate into one portion and pour over crust.  Stir coffee mixture into remaining batter and spoon it over chocolate layer.
6) Place springform pan in a large baking pan. Transfer to oven rack. Add 1-inch of hot water to larger pan. Bake for 60 to 65 minutes or until center is just set and top appears dull. Remove springform from water bath to a wire cooling rack. Carefully remove foil and let cake sit for 10 minutes. Loosen sides of cake  with a knife, but do not release spring or remove cake from pan. Let cool for  1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight.
7) Just before serving, melt chocolate chips and butter in microwave and stir until smooth. Release sides of pan and remove ring. Spread glaze over top of cake. Decorate rim with coffee beans if desired. Yield: 16 servings.

                    

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Lemon Cheesecake Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Tucked into my bag of garden tricks is the use of pansies to span the seasons. I plant them as soon as the fall mums fade and our window boxes are begging for spots of color to break the monotony of winter gray. I've done this for years and actually keep cardboard boxes to cover them when temperatures drop to freezing levels. We've lived lots of places and, except for areas of heavy ice and snow, I've found I can protect them from most of winter's vagaries. My goal is to keep them alive until my favorite red begonias become available for summer planting. As a child, I loved pansies. Their vibrant colors and soft velvet touch fascinated me. The moth-like imprint on their petals opened other doors for me as well and for a time I was a bug-brat with a pretty impressive collection of insects and spiders. I was the pansy person in the family and from the time I was four or so, I was responsible for their planting and general care. In those early years, I'm sure my stature was nearly dwarfed by the size of the watering can, but I refused to use the hose because it beat my beauties down. I was convinced they thrived because of the care I gave them. It never dawned on me that they were nearly to impossible to kill.

This cheesecake pie is not unlike my pansies. It is easy to make and it has a soft velvet texture that is hard to beat. However, I must be honest and tell you that if it weren't for those two qualities, I wouldn't bother making this cheesecake again. I found the cake on Pinterest and was charmed by its appearance. The original recipe came from the Real Simple site, so I was fairly certain the cake would be fine, if not top drawer. It uses a pre-baked pie crust and the filling can be made in 5 minutes if you have your ingredients at room temperature. The filling is quite tangy due to the lemon juice and cheeses that are used to make it, but I think the addition of lemon zest would have greatly improved the flavor. I also think you'll enjoy the cake more if you allow it to ripen for a full day before you serve it. I am keeping the recipe because the cake is so easy to make and I have been known to have days when time forces something less than ambrosia from my kitchen, There is nothing wrong with this cake, but it is not a standout. I let you decide for yourself. Here is the recipe.

Irish Coffee Cheesecake Bars

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...These cheesecake bars were one of two kitchen surprises this holiday season. They, along with the Poteca cake, proved to be delicious and what began as an attempt to find something different for holiday meals, ended up with the addition of two new recipes to my holiday repertoire. These bars are simply wonderful and I recommend them to you without reservation. They were inspired by a recipe I found in an old issue of Bon Appetit magazine, and, to be honest, I decided to make the bars only because I had whiskey left from the provisions for Irish coffee that we served at get-together earlier in the week. I closely followed the original recipe, but I added whiskey to the ingredient list and decided to "frost" the bars with whipped cream rather than dollop it over them. I also decided to freeze the cheesecake prior to cutting it into bars. This makes for neat slices which help improve their appearance. Once cut, I returned the bars the freezer where they could be extracted in any quantity needed for a specific occasion. I cannot be trusted when there is a ready-to-eat cheesecake in the house, so the freezing step is an absolute necessity in our house. The bars can be thawed in the refrigerator in an hour or so, but when pressed for time, they can be thawed at room temperature in about 20 minutes. This is not an overly sweet dessert and if you enjoy coffee flavored desserts, you will love these bars. They are truly espresso flavored, and, it goes without saying, that more whiskey can be added should you feel it's needed. Here is how the bars are made.

Cranberry Layered Cheesecake - Away A While Recipe Favorites

Cranberry Layered Cheesecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I was seduced by its color and because I'm weak, this five layered cranberry confection ended up on my table. I normally don't make desserts that are this involved. As a matter of fact, I rarely make cheesecakes at all. I love them, mind you. I just can't convince myself that the protein packed into all that cream cheese offsets the fat and calories that keep the protein company. The first time I saw this cake was on the table of an accomplished cake decorator. It was gorgeous and its garnet glow snared me before reason could take hold. I made a homely version of the cake, one precious time consuming layer at a time, and thought that would be the end of it. I never dreamed Bob would like it. He did and now I'm dealing with a case of unintended consequences. I'll have to make the cake again. The cake begins with an almond flavored crust that is partially filled with a sweetened cheese custard and then topped with a cranberry filling. The garnet layer is then smothered with the rest of the custard before being topped with sweetened sour cream. The cake bakes a considerable while, and then is cooled and chilled for a considerable while, before a final layer of cranberries crown the cake and decorations of almond whipped cream are applied. It is a lovely tangy cake that provides irresistible color on the holiday table. The recipe was developed by Teri Rasey for Taste of Home magazine. I've made some changes to that recipe and I suggest that in addition to adding  salt and almond extract to the crust, you eliminate the ground almonds from the whipped cream. It's also imperative that the cake chill for 24 hours before serving if you have any hope of serving neat slices. This is a very nice recipe and, if you like cheesecake, it will be a great addition to your files. The recipe can be found here.

                    

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