[ Mama's Cherry Berries on a Cloud ]

                                       

Ingredients:

6 large egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 tsp salt

2 and 3/4 cup sugar (divided)

2 cups whipping cream

1 pkg cream cheese

1tsp vanilla

2 cups marshmellows

Meringue Directions:

1. Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt til foamy

2. Beat in 1 3/4 cup of sugar til stiff or glassy.  Do not underbeat

3. Butter 13x9 pan

4. Bake at 275F for 1 hour

5. Turn oven off - leave 12hrs

6. Beat whipping cream stiff

7. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar and vanilla 

8.  Gently fold in whipped cream and marshmellows into cream cheese.

9. Spread over meringue. 

10.  Top with strawberries + juice when serving slices. 

[ Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting ]

Pretty sure this doesn't need an explanation on WHY I'm drooling over this ... it was good on the cake.   Even better on a spoon.  YUM.

Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting.

½ cup butter, softened
8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. coconut extract
1 bag powdered sugar
milk (as needed)
toasted coconut (if desired)

1.  beat butter, cream cheese and coconut extract together.
2.  add powdered sugar, little by little, until reaching desired consistency.
3.  if too stiff, add 1 tsp of milk at a time ... (milk to thin, powdered sugar to thicken)

[White Spot Cheesecake.]

If you're from Vancouver, BC - you know all about White Spot.  Legendary Burgers with Triple O sauce ... zoo sticks and Pirate Packs.  But back in the day, they had the BEST cheesecake.  Light, fluffy, unbaked yumminess ... and there are TWO secrets to this amazing recipe.  One - the pastry base.  And two, the raspberry jam layer.  Mmmmm.

My mom used to make it for company, and I have meant to post it here.  Thank you, Auntie Ruth, for letting me scour through your recipes the other day and be reminded of this gem!!  It will be on our Christmas Dinner meal plan this year.

White Spot Cheesecake

Layer 1:

Tenderflake frozen pie crust *OR homemade pie crust*
4tbsp raspberry jam

Directions:

1. place Tenderflake pastry crust in a 9" springform pan, allowing a little to go up the sides.
2. bake as per the instructions.
3. cool, and spread with raspberry jam when cooled

Layer 2 :

16oz (500ml) soft cream cheese
1 cup white sugar
3 large eggs
2tbsp (1oz) lemon juice

Directions:

1.  combine and boil on top of double boiler until thick.  Stir constantly.
2.  cool and pour into shell.

Layer 3:

1tsp gelatine
1pint whipping cream
1/4cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. add gelatine to whipping cream.
2. whip until stiff.
3. pour over cream cheese mixture.
4. sprinkle with chopped walnuts as a garnish.

Serve with strawberries or other fruit.

[Skinny Italian Creamy Chicken]

Gonna try this one this week ...


6 chicken breasts
1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix
1/3 cup warm water
8 oz pkg reduced-fat cream cheese - softened
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Spray a large slow cooker with non-stick vege spray.
2. Place chicken in slow cooker.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together salad dressing mix and warm water; pour over chicken
4. In a separate bowl, beat together cream cheese, yogurt and soup.  Spoon over chicken.
5. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
6. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Serve with rice or pasta (egg noodles).

[Whoopie. In a Pan]

Can you go wrong with Sex in A Pan??  I think not.  Feeds a small army - or just one *wink*.

Sex In a Pan

Crust
• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• 3 tbsp white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup flour
Cream cheese layer
• 1 8 oz package cream cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar (use 1/2 cup for less sweetness)
• 1 cup whipped cream or cool whip
Vanilla pudding
• 1 package of instant vanilla pudding (5.1 oz or 144 g)
• 3 cups milk (use 2 cups if you want a firmer pudding)
Chocolate Pudding
• 1 package of instant chocolate pudding (5.1 oz or 144 g)
• 3 cups milk (use 2 cups if you want a firmer pudding)
Last layer
• 2 cups whipped cream or cool whip
• shaved chocolate

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
2. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
3. In a mixer mix all the crust ingredients together and press the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
4. Bake it for about 20 minutes.
5. Prepare the vanilla pudding as per the instructions on the package.
6. Prepare the chocolate pudding as per the instructions on the package.
7. In a mixer add the cream cheese, powdered sugar and the cup of whipped cream. Mix until light and fluffy.
8. Let the crust cool. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the crust evenly. Spread the chocolate pudding over the bottom crust, then the vanilla pudding. Top with the whipped cream and sprinkle with the chocolate.
9. Refrigerate for a couple hours so that it sets.

[Cream Cheese Frosting]

I found this on Pinterest ... I have made the vanilla, but not the chocolate or other variations ... YET.  It. Was. Yummy.  For Karrot's Cake.


Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

½ cup (1 stick/8 Tablespoons) butter (set at room temp about 10 minutes, but should still be cool)
8 oz. cream cheese (directly from fridge)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (always use pure vanilla extract if possible)
4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
1 to 4 Tablespoons heavy cream, heavy whipping cream (or milk- although I do like the richness that cream adds)

Directions:
- Place butter in a large mixing bowl and blend slightly. Add cream cheese and blend until combined, about 30 seconds.
- Add vanilla extract and powdered sugar and blend on low speed until combined. Increase to medium speed and beat until it begins to get fluffy.
- Slowly add the heavy cream, a little bit at a time until desired consistency is met. (Don't add too much if you want the frosting to stay in place when piped on cupcakes.)
- Beat until fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Use at once or keep refrigerated. (This frosting will keep well in the refrigerator for several days, but you may need to re-beat it for the best texture.)

The recipe above will produce a delicious VANILLA flavored frosting, here are a couple of other options to try...

For a Stronger Cream Cheese Flavor: Use an additional 4 oz. (½ block) of cream cheese. This is good for any cake/cupcake recipe that is traditionally topped with Cream Cheese Frosting, like Carrot Cake, or Red Velvet Cake.

For Chocolate Frosting: (my favorite!) add ½ cup unsweetened cocoa (I use Ghirardelli brand, it's really good). Add the cocoa powder before adding the powdered sugar, so it gets fully incorporated into the butter and cream cheese.

Strawberry, Blackberry, etc: Add 2-4 tablespoons of preserves. Depending on how chunky or seedy the preserves are, you may want to blend it in the food processor, and/or strain it through a fine strainer before adding it to the frosting. Add the preserves to the frosting mixture before adding the heavy cream. Depending on the amount of preserves you add you may need very little or no cream, especially if you want the frosting thick enough to pipe. A final option would be to add a drop of food coloring to add to the color of the preserves (for example, pink coloring for the Strawberry flavor).

* This recipe will frost about 22-24 cupcakes if you are piping a nice swirl, or even more if you just spread it on. If you're making a cake, this will frost and fill a two layer 9" cake.

[Karrot's Cake]

From the Best of Bridge series, and THE VERY best carrot cake you will ever consume.  No raisins, no pineapple, no walnuts.  

Karrot's Cake

3/4 cup corn oil
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1+1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1+1/3 tsp baking soda
1+1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups finely grated carrots (4or5)

Directions:

- beat together oil and sugar
- add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition
- combine dry ingredients and add to egg mixture
- beat all together until well blended
- fold in raw carrots
- bake for 1hr at 300F ina GREASED 9x13 pan (I use a bundt pan)

[Trisha's Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies]

Chad asked me to make these for the hockey team ... they're his wife, Trisha's, specialty.  She gladly gave me the recipe, and I gladly made them.  They are crispy on the outside and gooey-like-a-brownie on the inside.  I ate about a good 1/2 dozen of them in the first sitting ... 


Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 package mini chocolate chips divided

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup softened butter

1 package softened cream cheese

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 egg1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional) 

- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- In a saucepan over very low heat, melt 1 cup chocolate chips.
- In a bowl, mix together flour and baking soda.
- In another bowl, beat butter, cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy. 
- Beat in egg until well incorporated. 
- Beat in melted chocolate until well combined. 
- Add flour mixture and mix well. 
- Fold in remaining chocolate chips and nuts.
- Drop by tablespoonfuls, about 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheet. 
- Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are firm around the edges. Immediately transfer to wire rack to cool. 
- If desired, melt additional chocolate chips to drizzle onto of cookies as soon as they come out of the oven.