Pink Lemonade Cheesecake

Pink Lemonade Cheesecake

Lemon Cookie Crust
11 lemon sandwich cream cookies, crushed
3 tablespoons butter, melted
In a small bowl stir together crushed cookies and melted butter until well combined. Press crumb mixture evenly onto the bottom of a greased 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.

Pink Lemonade Filling
24 ounces cream cheese
3/4 cup granulated sugar
5 teaspoons cornstarch
4 eggs
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 drops red food coloring (optional)

In a large bowl combine cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in lemonade concentrate, vanilla extract, and if desired, food coloring. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 200 degrees F and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until the center no longer looks wet or shiny. Remove the cake from the oven and run a knife around the inside edge of the pan. Turn the oven off; return the cake to the oven for an additional 1 hour. Chill, uncovered, overnight.

Pink Lemonade Glaze
1/3 cup frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 drop red food coloring (optional)
Lemon slices

In a small saucepan stir together lemonade concentrate, lemon juice, cornstarch, and if desired, food coloring. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Pour over cheesecake. Garnish with lemon. Chill until serving time.

Makes 12 to 18 slices.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake



Crust
2 to 3 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
4 tablespoons firmly packed golden brown sugar
Pinch of salt

Filling
32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups firmly packed golden brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 1/2 cups Reese's Peanut Butter Cups,
    cut into 3/4 inch pieces

Topping
1 (12 ounce) bag semisweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup water

For Crust: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Butter 9-inch springform pan.

Mix chocolate cookie crumbs, chopped peanuts, melted butter, brown sugar and pinch of salt in bowl until well combined. Press mixture evenly onto bottom and sides of pan. Bake until set, about 8 minutes. Set aside to cool. Reduce oven to 325 degrees F.

For Filling: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and brown sugar in large bowl until smooth. Add peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat just until blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.

Add whipping cream and beat until smooth. Stir in peanut butter cup pieces. Pour filling into crust. Bake until sides of cake are set, but center still moves slightly, about 55 min. Cool cake in pan.

For Topping: Place all ingredients in microwaveable bowl and heat at 50% power for 30 seconds. Stir. Continue to heat at 10 second intervals until chocolate is barely melted. DO NOT OVERHEAT. Stir until smooth and pour over top of cheesecake, spreading chocolate to edges. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Peanut Butter Cheesecake

Peanut Butter Cheesecake


2 pounds cream cheese
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Powdered sugar
Chopped mints

Peanut Butter Cookie Crust
10 peanut butter cookies
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons melted butter, up to 3 tablespoons
Vegetable cooking spray

Use hands to crumble peanut butter cookies in a small mixing bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of melted butter (depending upon the desired consistency). Mix all ingredients well. Spray a 9 x 3-inch springform pan with the vegetable oil. Place ingredients into the bottom of springform pan. Using fingertips or spoon, press ingredients to form crust.

Note: You can place the ingredients in a food processor.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine cream cheese and peanut butter in a large bowl. Beat the mixture in an electric mixer (using a wire whip) until smooth. Gradually add sugar and flour. Beat on medium speed until sugar and flour are incorporated well into cheese/peanut butter mixture. (Scrape ingredients from side of bowl before adding eggs).

Add eggs gradually and continue to beat on medium speed for two or three minutes until mixture is smooth. Mix in the vanilla extract.( Be careful not to over mix).

Pour mixture into prepared peanut butter cookie crust. Place cheesecake in oven on center rack. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for approximately 2 hours or until tip of a knife comes out clean when inserted in center of cake. Dust with powdered sugar or sprinkle with chopped mint.

Peanut Butter And Jelly Cheesecake

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cheesecake

1 cup old fashioned or quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons margarine, melted
16 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup chunk-style peanut butter
3 tablespoons flour
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup grape jelly

Combine oats, peanuts, brown sugar and margarine. Press onto bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 10 minutes.

Combine cream cheese, granulated sugar, peanut butter and flour, mixing at medium speed of electric mixer until well blended. (Batter will be very stiff.) Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in milk; pour over crust. Bake at 450 degrees F for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees F. Continue baking for 40 minutes. Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool before removing rim of pan.

Stir jelly until smooth. Drizzle over cheesecake in crisscross pattern to form a lattice design. Chill.

Variation
For crust, substitute 1 cup graham crackers crumbs for oats and peanuts. Substitute granulated sugar for brown sugar.