Slutty Cheesecake Bars

This recipe is so easy to make, and everyone enjoyed them.  I've made them 3 times.  I don't know if Kraft changed the recipe for lowfat cream cheese, which I have always found creamier, but don't use it.  I could taste the chemically-ness of it.  Full Fat...I didn't taste it.  Anyway, chocolate chip cookies, Oreos, and cheesecake? Yes, please.

Slutty Cheesecake Bars

Picture by ALB

by Delish US

YIELDS: 9 SERVINGS Depending on the slice
PREP TIME: 0 HOURS 10 MINS
TOTAL TIME: 3 HOURS 55 MINS

INGREDIENTS
1 (16.5-oz.) log refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough (such as Pillsbury)
20 Oreo cookies, plus more for topping (I didn't count, I just layered)
2 (8-oz.) blocks cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Pinch of kosher salt
Warm caramel, for drizzling (get that sundae squeeze bottle to keep it simple)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325°. Line an 8"-x-8" baking dish with parchment paper with a 2" overhang (or spray pan with PAM). Press cookie dough into bottom of baking dish.

Top with a single layer of Oreos, breaking them up to fit, if necessary, and set aside.
Make cheesecake layer: In a medium bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt until fully combined. Pour over Oreo layer and smooth top.

Top with broken Oreo pieces and bake until the center is only slightly jiggly, 30 to 35 minutes.

Refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 3 hours and up to overnight.

Remove cheesecake bar from baking dish and slice.

Drizzle with warm caramel before serving.

Toffee, Peanut Butter and Caramel Cookie Bars

So I found this recipe sometime between September and November, and they have been talking to me.  Since I don't like having sweets in the house, I thought I'd make them for Thanksgiving, except it was just me and D.  Then I thought I would make them for my work's cookie swap, but someone was diagnosed with meningitis and the days after, I noticed how many women don't wash their hands after using the rest room.  So I didn't want to participate in the Great Meningitis Cookie Swap.

Christmas rolled around and my back started acting up, so cheesecake was out (requires getting out of a chair a lot).  So back to these.

They were really simple to make.  But man was the pan heavy!   I was going to only eat just 1.  I ate 4 over the week. I gave 2 away.  D had some. My brother had some. My dad had some.

I would make again.

I used my hand mixer (seriously, am I the only person who finds a hand mixer easier to use than the Kitchen Aid Heavy As Shit Stand Mixer?).  The butter/sugar takes a bit to blend that way.

Toffee, Peanut Butter and Caramel Cookie Bars

Photo by ALB

Ingredients
12 Tablespoons salted butter, softened
2 c light brown sugar (or dark...whatever you have)
½ c creamy peanut butter (or crunchy...whatever you have)
2 eggs, room temperature
1 Tablespoon vanilla
2 c all-purpose flour
1 c old fashioned oats (not quick cooking)
2½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt (used Kosher...it's what I had)
2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet)
1 cup Reese's peanut butter chips
1 cup Heath toffee bits
Cooking Spray

Caramel Filling
11 oz bag Kraft caramel bits (or unwrapped caramel squares)- unwrapping them is a PITA
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
4 Tablespoons butter, doesn't matter if it is softened

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with nonstick foil (or spray the hell out of the pan with cooking spray).

Cream butter and sugar together in mixer. Add peanut butter and beat. Add eggs and vanilla.

Add flour, oats, baking powder, and salt.

Stir in chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and toffee.

Cookie Dough 

Press 2/3 of the cookie dough on the bottom of the pan.

Place all filling ingredients in a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second increments until smooth. Stir in between! (this took 5 30 second/stir increments for me)

Pour caramel mixture evenly over the dough.

Drop the remaining dough on top using your hands. (Like a crumble, a little here, a little there)

Ready for the Oven

Bake for about 30 minutes (mine were 35... next time I'm trying 33).

Fresh out of the Oven

Let cool completely and cut into bars.

From Hugs and Cookies XOXO, with my comments

Training Treats Recipe

So McM and I are back in training. After the first session, he had gone through 3/4 of a bag of $7 training treats. Now I know where I can get said treats for cheaper or even use other treats, but I'm weird when it comes to feeding the dogs. I don't want anything not made in the USA. (If you ever read about dog food recalls, a large part come from China). I don't want to spend 30 minutes figuring out where the dog food was made. Finally there are 2 Mom & Pop shops near us, so I like to support the community. But even still, $7 is too much. The treats at least need to be supplemented with something else.

So off to the Googles I went and found this recipe. I had all of the ingredients except the bananas, so I bought those and made some treats. They are easy, but take a bit of time. This could also be that I was feeling sort of lazy in that I didn't feel like getting a mixer out so I mashed/mixed everything by hand.

The result...McM likes them for about 20 minutes of training and then he wants something else. The other 2 don't get 30-40 minutes of training, so they are fine with the 10 minutes a day of instruction they get.

I doubled the below recipe and it made a lot. I would make again.

This is the recipe as written.  I had another tray like this.  Photo by ALB

Training Treats Recipe

Recipe from Love my Puppy Dog

Ingredients
1/2 Cup All Natural Peanut Butter (I used Creamy Jif)
1/4 Cup Warm Water
1/2 Cup Mashed or Pureed Banana (1/2C = ~1.5 bananas)
1 Tblsp. Honey
1 Egg
1 3/4 Cups Wheat Flour

Parchment Paper
Pizza Cutter

Instructions
Mix the peanut butter and warm water in a large bowl with a fork until completely smooth.

With a food processor or by hand (by smashing with a fork), puree the banana until fairly smooth.

Add banana, honey and egg to peanut butter and warm water bowl, mix until well blended.

Mix in 1 cup of the flour until well blended.

Add remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time until a stiff dough forms. I find it easier to blend in the remainder of the flour with my hands because the dough is stiff.

Chill for approximately 20 minutes before rolling.

Once chilled, then place dough on one piece of parchment paper and cover the dough with a second piece of parchment paper for rolling.

Flatten a bit with your hand to make rolling a little easier.

Roll dough out to desired thickness, about 3/8" or so.

Place the rolled dough with parchment on a cookie sheet to cut into pieces for training treats. Using a pizza cutter, roll across the dough to cut long strips into the dough. Approx. 1/2" space between cuts.

Then go back across in the other direction cutting thru the dough to make small kibble sized pieces. Approx. 1/2" space between cuts.

Place the entire slab of cut dough with parchment paper on a cookie sheet and place into a pre-heated oven at 300 degrees and bake for 30 minutes and cook.

After I finish cooking I shut off the oven and leave the home made dog treats in the oven for a couple of hours to make sure they are completely dry and crunchy.

Once they are hard and crunchy, remove from the oven and break apart the pieces. This way they can be stored for a long time without worrying about them spoiling. If you have them that long that is!

The treats finished.  Photo by ALB

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

If you have an hour, and a lasagna/brownie pan, you can make this (and if someone is home while you are on your work commute home so they can take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator).

First, do not use fat-free cream cheese.  Personally, I hate the stuff because it has a chemical tang to it that doesn't taste right.  However, I had opened the 3rd box of CC when I noticed all the boxes said Fat Free.  I may have said a few expletives.  I thought about where this dish was going and should I go to the store and get regular or reduced fat, and decided at a tailgate where lots of beer is consumed, that FF would be ok.

After they were done baking, I tasted one to make sure the tang wasn't too bad.  I could taste it, but decided they were definitely edible and would be 10000 times better had I used the right cream cheese.  I came back from the tailgate with 2 left.  So they couldn't have been all that bad.

Photo by ALB

Because of the incredible ease, I will definitely make these again.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

A classic! A favorite! And incredibly delicious! This simple Chocolate Chip Cheesecake is sure to become your standard.

Photo by ALB

From Mr. Food
Serves: 15

Cooking Time: 45 min

Ingredients
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 (16.5-ounce) rolls refrigerator chocolate chip cookie dough

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract until well mixed; set aside.

Slice cookie dough rolls into 1/4-inch slices. Arrange slices from one roll on bottom of a greased 9- x 13-inch glass baking dish (I used a metal pan and sprayed the hell out of it with PAM); press together so there are no holes in dough. Spoon cream cheese mixture evenly over dough; top with remaining slices of cookie dough (this part was a bitch...cut slices, and then roll them into balls and press them in the palms of your hands and then put them on the cheesecake.  Made it much easier.)

Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until golden and center is slightly firm.

Remove from oven, let cool, then refrigerate. Cut into slices when well chilled.

Death by Oreo Cupcakes

I saw these in January by blogger Lisa.  I put them on my list to try.  I usually make Oreo Balls when I bake with Oreos but decided to try something different.  Yes, you should try these.  But invite me over first.

Death by Oreo Cupcakes

Photo by ALB

by Lisa

CUPCAKES: Enough of you asked for more info on the death by Oreo cupcakes that I mentioned, so I am passing on the recipe. Be warned, they are addicting!! Recipe make 24 cupcakes. What you'll need:

1 pkg regular oreos
cupcake liners

1 pkg chocolate cake mix (and the ingredients that go on the back of the box)

For Frosting: Do not use this full recipe. Either make it all, use half and save the rest for later, or make half a recipe. Trust me on this.  (AL's Note: Used the whole recipe, because I like frosting)
8 oz cream cheese - room temp
8 T butter (1 stick) - room temp
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1 t vanilla
2-3 T milk

Add cupcake liners to cupcake pan. Place an Oreo at the bottom of each liner.

Coarsely crush half remaining oreos (I break them up by hand). Prepare cake mix per instructions. Add Oreo pieces to mix. Fill cupcake liners with mix.

Note: I cook for 15 min at 350 deg even though the boxed mix instructions say to cook longer. Not sure if that is a high altitude thing or because of that added cookies to the mix. In any event, I suggest checking after 15 mins. (AL's Note: Baked them according to the back of the box).

Finely crush remaining Oreos (or, if you make half a recipe of frosting, eat 3 cookies and finely crush the rest. just kidding. sort of.). I do this in a food processor.

For frosting, mix cream cheese and butter with vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar. Add milk as needed to get desired consistency. blend in crushed oreos.

Frost cupcakes when cool. Enjoy!!

Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies

So whenever you are PMSing you probably shouldn't get on Facebook and look at a bakery's photo album.  I did and I saw these cookies.  The picture sent me to Evil Chef Mom's Blog.  My friend J invited us to his house for the Fourth of July so I decided to make these.

I hadn't made chocolate chip cookies with a real batter (Peanut Butter Quickies batter is odd) since High School. Back then nothing in our house was real, so my cookies were never crisp since I only had fake butter available back then.  These cookies were crisp.  They were good. I was glad I had a place to take them to so my pants would still fit today.

I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of them.

I made them exactly like the recipe.

Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies

From Evil Chef Mom's Blog and  adapted from the Cookiepedia; Mixing, Baking, and Reinventing the classics by Stacy Adimando

Yield: Makes 1 1/2 dozen cookies

Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg, plus 1 egg white
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup of chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups of pretzels, broken into cookie friendly pieces

Preparation
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside. Cream the butter and both sugars in medium speed until they are light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs and continue to beat on low speed until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in two batches, beating slowly after each addition, until fully incorporated. Pour the chocolate chips and pretzels in the mixer bowl. Use a spatula to stir them together.

 Portion 2 heaping tablespoons of dough at a time into imperfect balls and place them at least 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets.Bake rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are golden brown, about 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Sweet Potato Molasses Dog Treats

So I made these for Scuttlebutt and McMenamin. I got it from Doggy Dessert Chef. Except for burning my hands on the sweet potatoes, they were easy to make. I used the KitchenAid which I rarely use. The dough seemed really crumbly until I picked up a section. Then it was fine.

It made 3 cookie sheets worth.

The dogs loved them. D and I thought they didn't have much taste.

Sweet Potato Molasses Dog Treats

Photo by ALB

This recipe for sweet potato molasses dog biscuits make a lot so make sure you have plenty of room in your freezer, or a lot of hungry dogs around!

Ingredients
2 medium Sweet Potatoes, cooked and mashed (approximately 3 cups mashed)...I used 4.
1/4 cup Molasses
1/2 cup Whole Oats
3 tablespoons Butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
3 cups Whole Wheat Flour

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet (or 3) with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. In a large bowl mix all ingredients one at a time, kneading well after each addition.
3. Knead dough into several 5 inch balls and roll each onto a very well floured surface 1/2 inch thick. Cut with the cookie cutter of your choice. (As this recipe makes so many biscuits it’s just easier to roll it out in sections)
4. Place on your prepared cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 15 minutes. Cool and refrigerate. ... I baked for 13 and they were soft, so I baked for 5 more minutes.

Makes 3 cookie sheets full

Chocolate Peanut Butter Breakfast Cookies

So I always liked Erin Baker's Breakfast Cookies but the past few times I got them they were moldy. So I decided to try these (from various websites).

Making them was easy but when I got to making cookie balls, there was no way in hell. The mix was all powdery. So I added 3 TBSP of oil. Then albeit dry they formed.
They taste like what I remember the EBBC's taste like, with no mold.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Breakfast Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsweetened dark cocoa (such as Hershey's Cocoa)
1-1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1-1/4 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup Ghiradelli 60% Cocoa Chips
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup natural peanut butter (I used Jif Chunky)
3TBSP Vegetable Oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk together the first nine ingredients (through the chocolate chips) in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the egg, vanilla, applesauce and peanut butter together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.

Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper (this is optional, but it makes for easier clean-up). Roll dough into 18 balls, pressing down to flatten in the shape of a cookie. Place dough on prepared cookie sheets one inch apart. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes.

Makes 18 breakfast cookies.

Number of Servings: 18 (I got 18)

Nutritional Info
Fat: 8.5g
Carbohydrates: 26.0g
Calories: 184.8
Protein: 5.0g
Fiber: 3.6g

Peanut Butter Quickies

Apparently, you either like this cookie or you don't. Me, I love them. They are so easy to make, you can eat the batter, and they have peanut butter and chocolate chips. Yum!

Peanut Butter Quickies

1 14 oz Can sweeetened condensed milk
1/2 C Peanut Butter, smooth or crunchy
2 C of graham cracker crumbs (I have never measured...I use 2 sleeves of Nabisco GC and pulverize in the food processor. If I double the recipe, I use the whole box)
6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven at 350.
Add milk and peanut butter and mix until smooth.
Add chocolate chips and graham cracker crumbs to mix and mix.

Spoon out and put on greased cookie sheets. You can either just spoon out and make them look messy or roll them and smush them out to make them look smooth. Either way they don't spread on the sheet, so you can pack them on a sheet.

Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Makes about 3 dozen.

Oreo Balls

I have no clue what Internet site I got this recipe.

Oreo Balls

Photo by ALB

Ingredients
1 Package of Oreos
8 oz Kraft Philadelphia Light Cream Cheese (You can use regular, but I find this is creamier)
2 Ghiardellhi White Chocolate Bars
1 Ghiardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Bar

Crush Oreos in food processor and add cream cheese until massive ball.

Roll into balls (I use a cookie scoop, so they are sort of uniform size). Freeze for 30 minutes.

Melt White Chocolate in the Microwave according to direction. Dip Balls into chocolate and set on drying rack to dry.
(About 30 minutes)

Melt Bittersweet Chocolate in a ziplock bag in the microwave. Cut off a corner of the bag. Drizzle all over the white chocolate balls. Let dry.

Refrigerate or serve at room temperature.