Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

These are so heavenly!  A combination of my favorites-- strawberries and cheesecake.  Oh wow, I could really eat a million of them!  So good!  Although I would advise eating them soon after making them [or at least the same day].  The second time I made these, I saved quite a few for the next few days, and even just the next day, they weren't nearly as good.  Definitely best fresh!  Mmm...
Time:  About 20 min
Enjoy!


Ingredients:
1 lb large strawberries
8 oz. cream cheese, softened (can use 1/3 less fat)
3-4 tbsp powdered sugar (4 tbsp for a sweeter filling)
1 tsp vanilla extract
graham cracker crumbs


Directions:
Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry.  Remove the top and clean out with a paring knife, if necessary (some may already be hollow inside).  Prep all strawberries and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until creamy.  Add cream cheese mix to a piping bag or ziploc with the corner snipped off.  Fill strawberries with cheesecake mixture. Once strawberries are filled, dip the top in graham cracker crumbs.  If not serving immediately, refrigerate until serving. 

Frozen Reese's Peanut Butter Pie

Can I just tell you...  This is even better than it looks.  Oh my goodness.  I made this with a friend for another friend's [his gf] birthday and we had a blast making them!  They are really fun to make, and even more fun to eat!  Makes either one 9 inch pie or three 4 inch mini pies.  Yep, I'm definitely making these again this weekend...
Time:  About 25 min [NOT including freeze time!]
Enjoy!


Ingredients:
24 oreo cookies, crushed
4 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
2 ½ cups Cool Whip
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup confectioner sugar
½ cup crushed Reeses Peanut Butter Cups


Directions:
Oreo Crust: 
Place Oreos in a food processor or blender and pulse until cookies are finely crumbed. Alternatively, place Oreos in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin.  Mix in the melted butter and then firmly press crumbs into pan to create a crust. Bake crust at 350 degrees F for 7-10 minutes.

Reese Peanut Butter Pie Filling:
Place peanut butter and confectioner sugar in a pan over low heat and stir until combined and peanut butter is melted. Set aside for five minutes to cool. Gently fold in peanut butter mixture into Cool Whip until combined. Gently fold in crushed Reese’s pieces into peanut butter Cool Whip mixture. 

Pour mixture into Oreo crust and freeze for 3 hours. Garnish with caramel and chocolate drizzle (for added decadence rim with chopped Reese’s pieces).

Cookies & Cream Cupcakes

Who doesn't like Oreos?!  These cupcakes were delish!  And my favorite part is there's a whole Oreo lining the bottom :) Pretty easy and fun to make!
Time:  About 30-40 min.
Enjoy!


Ingredients:

24 Oreo halves, with cream filling attached
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 2/3 cup sugar
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk
20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped (I quarter them)
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tbsp. heavy cream
Oreo cookie crumbs
24 Oreo cookie halves

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line the wells of two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners. Place an Oreo halve in the bottom of each liner, cream side up. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir together with a fork to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Blend in the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add the milk and beat just until combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients. Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.

Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Blend in the vanilla extract. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar until incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes. Add the heavy cream to the bowl and beat on medium-low speed just until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip for 4 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired. Sprinkle with Oreo crumbs and garnish with Oreo halves.

Chocolate Covered Cookie Dough Balls

These little things are a-mazing!  Seriously!  I first made these for Jared's birthday last month, and they were very popular!  I've had several people ask me for the recipe.  They are oh so good!  They're kind of time consuming to make, but it makes lots!  And don't you worry, there are no raw eggs in this one! [not like that would stop me...]
Time:  About 2 hours.
Enjoy!


Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup milk or soy milk
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
14 oz dark chocolate candy coating

Directions:

Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt and mix on low speed (or stir by hand) until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

Cover and chill dough for 1 hour.

When dough is firm enough to handle, form dough into 1″ balls and arrange on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Place sheets in freezer and let chill for 30 minutes.

Melt chocolate candy coating in microwave according to package directions. Using toothpicks as a dipping tool, dip cookie balls into candy coating to cover. Tap on side of pan to remove any excess coating, and return to waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Chill until set. Store, chilled, in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Chocolate Oreo Cream Cake

I made this cake for a dinner we were having with some friends and honestly I was shocked how easy it was!  You just bake the cake, slab on the filling, put on the top layer, and frost!  SO simple!  And OH, so delicious... 

Time:  About 40-60 min.  [but probably less... I AM a perfectionist!]

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg chocolate cake mix [I used triple chocolate]
• ingredients need to make the cake on the back of the box

Filling:

• 8 oz. reduced fat cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 cups Cool whip [I used the extra creamy kind]
• 12 oreo cookies, coarsely crushed

Frosting:

• 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp. cocoa powder
• 6 Tbsp. butter, softened
• 4 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 5 to 6 Tbsp milk or more if needed

Directions:

Prepare cake mix according to package directions for 2 9-inch round cakes.  For easy removal from the pan, grease the bottom of the pan, then line it with a piece of parchment that has been cut to fit the bottom of the pan.  Place the parchment in the pan and then grease the parchment and sides of the pan.  Cook cake according to the package.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes and remove from the pan.  Then allow cake to cool completely.

Once cakes are completely cooled, prepare the filling by beating the cream cheese and sugar together with a hand mixer until well blended.  Fold in the cool whip until almost blended then fold in the crushed oreos.

In another bowl, make the frosting by whisking together the cocoa powder and powdered sugar.  Then add the butter, vanilla, and milk.  Blend with a mixture until smooth.  Add additional milk if needed to make the frosting spreadable. [I added a little more milk, I like my frosting a little softer]

Now it’s time to assemble the cake.  With a serrated knife,  cut off the domed top of each of the rounds to make the cake even and level [I didn't have to do this, my cake had deflated just enough to make it level].  Place one round on your serving platter or cake plate.  Top with half of the filling mixture and spread evenly.  Top with the other cake round.

Now use the remaining filling to fill in the center filling section of the cake so that the filling layer is completely even with the cake layers.  You may not need all of the filling.  Then cover the top and sides of the cake with the chocolate frosting.  You may have some leftover frosting.

Before frosting, evening out the filling

After ;) Everyone loved it!

Chocolate Cream Pie

This pie was pretty good!  Especially for being my first pie!  The original recipe is called Mexican chocolate cream pie because they added red pepper and espresso powder, but since I'm not a huge fan of either of those [at least not in my chocolate pie...? weird.] I just left those out.  And it turned out pretty yummy!
Time:  About 45 min. + 3 hr chill time
Enjoy!


Ingredients:

Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 10 cookie sheets), divided
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons egg white
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Cooking spray

Filling:

1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 3/4 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups frozen reduced-calorie whipped topping, thawed


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°.

To prepare the crust, reserve 1 tablespoon crumbs for topping. Combine the remaining crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a bowl, stirring well. Stir in egg white and butter. Press crumb mixture into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 9 minutes or until lightly toasted; cool completely on a wire rack.

To prepare filling, combine 1/2 cup sugar and the next 6 ingredients (through egg yolk) in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Place the milk in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until milk reaches 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Gradually add hot milk to egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return milk mixture to pan; cook over medium heat 10 minutes or until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add chocolate; stir until smooth.

Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl for 10 minutes or until mixture cools, stirring occasionally. Spoon filling into crust, and cover surface of filling with plastic wrap. Chill for 3 hours or until set; remove plastic wrap. Spread the whipped topping over filling; sprinkle with reserved cracker crumbs.