Caramel Pecan Cheesecake

The title says it all - what's not to love! My BFF in NC sent me this recipe link and I made it that night because it looked so amazing and I wanted to do a test run before Thanksgiving. Again with the cell phone pictures because I'm too lazy to break out the camera and take a nice shot, so I'm forgoing a picture of the food and posting one of me and my momma from years ago! Please do me one favor and MAKE YOUR CRUST! The pre-made graham cracker crust tastes like sawdust and a yummy homemade one is easy to whip up!  Now to get off the food topic for a minute.

This is the first Thanksgiving without my mom (December 1st will be the six month anniversary of her death) and it's proving to be a difficult time for me. The festivities do not hold the same magic they have in the past and I know my momma would not want it that way. However, it's hard...plain and simple. Gatlinburg, TN was my momma's favorite place on earth and a turn of events has landed us there for Thanksgiving weekend. I really felt God's hand in this situation because he gave me faith that I will see true joy again. For the first time in a long time, I felt that twinge of joy that had always been a part of me when I found out we'd be in Gatlinburg.....it's like I'll be with my momma in spirit because I know that's where her spirit is every day. My wish is that everyone holds the ones they love a little bit closer and takes the opportunity to get to know who their family really is. We all grow with age and those relatives who were a pain in the ass when we were young, aren't necessarily that way anymore. Get to know the family members in your life as they are today and truly embrace your relationship with them. I hope we all love a little more, forgive a little more, and appreciate what we have a little more staring right now while we have the opportunity.

Recipe Adapted from Taste of Home found HERE

Ingredients

2 C graham cracker crumbs
1/3 C sugar
1/2 C butter, melted
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1-1/4 cups chopped pecans
1 jar (12-1/4 ounces) caramel ice cream topping
Additional caramel ice cream topping, optional

Directions

Melt the butter in a bowl, and then stir in the graham cracker crumbs and sugar.  Press graham cracker mix into a pie pine and up the sides as evenly as possible.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, 1 egg and vanilla until smooth.  Spread into pastry shell; sprinkle with pecans.
In a small bowl, whisk remaining eggs; gradually whisk in caramel topping until blended. Pour slowly over pecans.

Bake at 375° for 35-40 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight before slicing. If desired, garnish with additional caramel ice cream topping.

Cheesecake and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

A picture is worth a thousand words and in some cases a thousand calories.  Cheesecake and chocolate chip cookie dough is a combination made in heaven!  The simplest recipes can be so delicious and that's the case with this recipe.  I have a confession to make - I used Pillsbury cookie dough and Ghirardelli chips!  I think there was a time when Nestle didn't melt the way I would have liked it and I've always found it to be "waxy" compared to Hershey's or other higher chocolate chips. 

Toll House Chocolate Cheesecake

Ingredients


1 pkg. (16.5 oz.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Refrigerated Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough or your favorite recipe
2 pkgs. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
4 oz unsweetened bakers chocolate, melted
2 containers (8 oz. each) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1/2 cup NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels, melted

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375º F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan.

SLICE dough into 16 pieces. Cover bottom of prepared pan with pieces. Allow to soften for 5 to 10 minutes. Using fingertips, pat dough gently to cover bottom.

BAKE for 15 to 17 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

COMBINE cream cheese, sugar and melted chocolate in a large mixing bowl until well blended. Add whipped topping; stir until just blended. Spoon over cookie crust; smooth top. Drizzle with melted chocolate. Cover; refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours or overnight. Remove sides of pan.

Grab a fork and dive in! This one is worth every single calorie - it's so tasty there is no guilt involved. 

Check out the following sites for some more sweet features:

Allie' n Son  - Sweet Tooth Friday

Sweet as Sugar Cookies - Sweets for Saturday #3

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This is my absolute favorite dip...mmmm good! It's spicy with a great blend of cheeses and oh so creamy. Unfortunately I do not have any ooey gooey good pictures because our camera decided this would be an excellent time for the battery to die. Of course our back-up battery was also dead. Trust me when I say this is an amazing dip even though the pictures we have do it no justice.

In case I have not mentioned this little tidbit before, I do not like spicy food. I love the taste, but I'm a huge wimp and cannot handle the heat. However, I can handle this dip and I calm it down by eating my dip with celery as my delivery vessel. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Buffalo Chicken Dip
2 C shredded chicken (I use rotisserie chicken which makes this super simple)
2 - 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese*
1 C GOOD ranch*
1 C buffalo wing sauce (I prefer Texas Pete)
1- 1/2 C shredded sharp cheddar

* I used light cream cheese and light ranch, and it turned out just as wonderful as the full-fat version!

• Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in the cream cheese and ranch dressing; cook, stirring until well blended and warm.
• Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer mixture to a 2 qt. Crock pot. Sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese over the top, cover, and cook on low until bubbly!
• Serve with celery, tortilla chips, corn chips, or whatever your preferred dipper is.

In the crockpot waiting to get all bubbly warm and ready for dippers!

“Don’t wish it were easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for fewer problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom.”- Earl Shoaf

Jalapeno Popper Dip

This is one of my most requested recipes, and is very adaptable with the "heat"! I love to serve this with Frito scoops, but Matt loves to use the bagel chips. Is the delivery aparatus really as important as what is being delivered? I think not. I do not have an excellent picture of this, and plan on taking a better one next time I make it. I have over a dozen recipes I need to post...I need to get better at keeping this updated. ;)

2 - 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese at room temp
1 C Helman's Mayo
1 1/2 C shredded cheddar (I prefer sharp)
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
1 - 7 oz. can chopped green chiles
2 - 4 oz. cans sliced jalapenos (for mild use two mild, medium use one mild and one hot, for hot use two hot cans)

Topping:
1 C panko bread crumbs (you can also use regular bread crumbs, but I've never tried that way)
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
1/2 stick butter, melted

In a food processor combine the cream cheese and mayo until smooth. Add in the chopped green chiles and jalapenos and pulse until the little bits of green are distributed throughout. Then add in the cheddar and parmesan cheese. Pour into a 2 quart greased cassrole dish. In a seperate bowl mix the panko crumbs, grated parm, and melted butter; sprinkle over cream cheese mixture. Bake in oven at 375 degrees until the top is brown and the edges are bubbly! ENJOY!

Reflection for the Day:

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they are right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."