Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

If you are looking to satisfy your cheese cake yearnings with fewer calories this is the end of your search. This yummy delight was made for me by Aishwarya and Jai for Mother's Day.
Recipe source:The comfort of cooking
Ingredients:
1 lb. fresh strawberries, rinsed and pat dry
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Graham cracker crumbs, optional

Method:
Cut off the strawberry stems. Hollow out the strawberry and create a well for the cheese filling
 (You can also do this with a small melon baller). Cut off a small portion of the pointy strawberry tip, so that each strawberry can stand.
Whip cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until fluffy, about 2 minutes on medium speed. Place mixture in a pastry bag and pipe into each strawberry, adding a little extra to the top. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

When ready to serve sprinkle graham cracker crumbs on top of each stuffed strawberry.


TIP: Don’t make more than 5 hours in advance, or your strawberries will sweat and may become a bit soggy.

Dulce De Leche Cheesecake

Today being the Valentine's Day and the fifth blog anniversary of Sugar'N Spice, I present to you a special treat - the Dulce De Leche Cheesecake.
Dulce De Leche Cheesecake combines three delicious flavors - the saltiness and sourness of creamcheese and the sweetness of Dulce De Leche. Dulce De Leche is condensed milk made almost to a jam consistency. Dulce De Leche is commercially available under different brand names, but if you prefer to make your own from scratch, here is a recipe for that. In my recipe, I used a store bought can of Dulce De Leche.

Ingredients:
Crust:
2 1/4 cups finely crushed graham crackers
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10 tablespoons unsalted, melted butter
Filling:
3 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup dulce de leche
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Glaze:
2/3 cup dulce de leche
Method:
Crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of a 9x13 inch metal baking dish. Mix graham crackers crumbs, butter, sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Pour crumb mixture into the baking pan and press evenly onto the bottom of the pan. Bake for about 10 minutes, until crust is golden. Cool completely on a rack.
Filling:
Blend cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy with a mixer or food processor. Add eggs, one at a time, blending well between additions. Add dulce de leche and vanilla and blend well. Spread the batter evenly over the cooled crust. Bake until the center is slightly jiggly and the edges are puffed and slightly cracked. Bake about 30 to 35 minutes. Mine were done in 32 minutes, so start checking your pan at about 30 minutes to be safe. Cool completely on a wire rack.
Glaze:
Heat duce de leche in a microwave safe bowl. Heat at about 10 second intervals until melted. Stir well,  Pour it or drizzle it  over the cooled cheesecake  Refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.

5 Minute-5 Ingredient, no bake Cheesecake

Even though I love cheesecakes, I don't make this that often, thinking of the calories that I need to burn if I have it. But during the weekend when I went shopping to the local supermarket they were handing out some cheesecake samples which tasted very delicious. I was feeling like buying it, but again, the thought of all those calories prevented me.. Still I could not get over the craving for it. So I searched for any options out there for a less calorie cheesecake and found this one. Not only that the calories are less, this was such a breeze to make and tasted as good as the best ones.
Recipe source: HubPages
Ingredients
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 8 ounce tub of cool whip
1/3 cup of lemon or lime juice
1 8 ounce package of cream cheese
1 graham cracker crust
(If you want to make it even lighter, you may substitute with light condensed milk, cool whip lite and lite cream cheese)

Method:
The key to this recipe is to make sure that the cream cheese is softened to room temperature. If it's still too cool, it will cause icky lumps.Cream the cool whip, cream cheese, and sweetened condensed milk until smooth. Add the lemon juice and blend until just combined. Pour mixture immediately to a  graham crust. Refrigerate for an hour to and hour and a half or even better overnight.

Cheese Cake

"Yahoo! I am turning ONE today! Don't I look more mature - and am I not cute with my new looks, thanks to my mom and dad!"
"Hey, Bloggie, you are too small to do all these stuff. You go and enjoy the cheese cake I made for you."
Whew! That was a takeover attempt by my Bloggie as it turned ONE!.
I can't believe it is an year since I started this. Thanks to all you readers who keeps me motivated to keep this going on a regular manner, through your comments and suggestions. I look forward to your support in future too!
I thought of putting this New York style cheese cake as this is one simple recipe that I had tried out during the initial days of my baking. The good thing about cheese cakes are that you can make them ahead of time, if you have a party or something and they actually tastes better the more you keep them in the refrigerator.
Wishing all my readers a wonderful Valentine's day with your loved ones!

Serves 8
Ingredients:
12 oz cream cheese, softened
4 oz sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
For making a 9" crust:
1 cup Graham cracker crumbs (I used glucose biscuits instead - Brittania "Tiger" biscuits I got from the Indian grocery store)
2 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp melted butter
Instructions:
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Mix the Graham cracker(or glucose biscuit) crumbs, sugar and butter well in a bowl. Press this mix into the bottom of a 9" baking pan(I used a springform pan) to form a thick layer.Pour the well beaten mix into this crust and bake 350 degrees F. Remove from the oven after 45 minutes and let cool.
(It would be better if you can bake this in a water bath as this would ensure that the cheese cake remains moist and won't crack. But you have to be cautious not to have any water seep into the crust if you are using a springform pan. The best way is to cover the bottom pan in a few layers of aluminium foil before putting it into another pan filled with water.)

This tastes best if you keep it in the refrigerator for a few hours or even couple of days before serving. Top with the fruit topping liking, whipped cream or you can eat it plain.

Thanks for coming for my Birthday! I saved this slice for YOU!