If you're looking for an extra-special dessert to feed a crowd, then look no further than cheesecake. You can make a very large cheesecake to feed about 16 people — the cake is so rich you can serve up smaller slices. Add a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of decadent sauce, and you will impress even the most discerning guest.

If you've never used a water bath, or bain marie, to bake your cheesecakes before, I encourage you to try it!  I have found it successful in preventing cracks and ensuring even baking. Plus, it has a fancy french name; so it must be good, right?

White Chocolate Cheesecake with Salted Caramel Sauce (Serves 16)

Based on a recipe from Not So Humble Pie (link: http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com/2010/04/white-chocolate-caramel-cheesecake.html)

Ingredients

• Crust
• 10 ounces chocolate cookie crumbs
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling

• 1/2 cup heavy cream (I use un-whipped whipping cream)
• 8 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped
• 3 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• Boiling water

Caramel Sauce

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup heavy cream (I use un-whipped whipping cream)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Generous pinch of salt

Special Tools Required: 10" spring form pan, roasting pan, pastry brush


Method

Cheesecake:

• Pre-heat the oven to 375°F. Combine the cookie crumbs with the melted butter and press into the bottom and part of the way up the side of a 10 inch spring form pan.
• Bake for 10 minutes, then let cool on a wire rack.
• Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.
• Chop the white chocolate finely and place in a heat-safe bowl. Bring the 1/2 cup cream to a simmer, but not quite boiling, over medium heat in a small pot. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for a few minutes. Stir the chocolate-cream mixture with a spatula until the chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth and glossy.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar, and beat until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until combined. Add vanilla and salt and stir until combined.
• Add white chocolate mixture to cream cheese on low speed slowly, until thoroughly combined. Pour cheesecake filling mixture onto baked crust.
• Wrap the bottom and sides of the spring form pan with aluminum foil, and place in a large roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough boiling water to come half way up the spring form pan, and place in the oven. Bake for 60 minutes at 325°F. Reduce the oven again, to 300°F, and bake for another 60-90 minutes or until centre is just set.
• Cool completely on a wire rack before storing covered in the refrigerator.

To Make the Sauce:

• In a large sauce pan, combine sugar and water over medium heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved.
• Once sugar is dissolved, stop stirring and allow sugar to bubble over medium heat until mixture reaches a medium amber colour. Occasionally use a pastry brush dipped in water to brush the insides of the saucepan to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Be patient, this takes a few minutes! When the mixture starts to darken, it goes from perfect to burnt very fast, so don't wander away.
• When the sugar reaches the colour you want, remove from heat and immediately pour in the cream carefully, as mixture will bubble up quite violently. Add vanilla and salt and stir until bubbles are gone and sauce is smooth.
• Store sauce in the refrigerator. Warm the sauce over medium low heat or in the microwave before serving over the cheesecake.

by Linda Horn
Blogger at Let Them Eat Cake & Ice Cream and Stimuli Magazine Contributor
Follow Linda on Twitter at @luluhorn

Pink. It's not just a singer with a sassy attitude and flamboyant style. It's also the colour that fills my mind when I think of Valentine's Day. Swirls of colour — shades of pink and red, pretty and girly in a heart-shaped package.

I wanted to make the quintessential pink cupcake — pink cake, pink frosting, pink flavour! I found these Pink Lemonade Cupcakes here and tweaked them a little to make them even more pink and lemonadey. I decorated them with heart-shaped confetti sprinkles and pink sanding sugar. The pink lemonade is tart and sweet and rich, all at the same time. The cupcakes would be perfect for a bridal shower, or refreshing at a summer picnic. I hope you like them!
 

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
Based on a recipe by Cast Sugar
Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 5 egg whites
• 3/4 cup frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
• Red food colouring

Method

• Pre-heat oven to 350° F.
• In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well blended. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer with whisk attachment, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites, pink lemonade concentrate and vanilla until well blended.
• Add about 1/3 of the flour mixture; whisk until blended.
• Add half the buttermilk, whisk until blended.
• Continue alternately adding flour mixture and buttermilk until everything is mixed together. Do not over mix.
• Add food colouring, one drop at a time, until you get a nice pink colour.
• Pour batter into paper cupcake cups in a muffin pan so that the cups is about 3/4 full of batter.
• Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.
• Cool completely before frosting with Pink Lemonade Buttercream (recipe below).

Pink Lemonade Buttercream
Makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 4 cups icing sugar
• 6 tablespoons frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Water, if needed
• Red food colouring

Method

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter on medium high speed until pale and fluffy.
• Add icing sugar, vanilla and pink lemonade concentrate and beat on low speed until completely mixed together. If the icing is still too thick, add water one teaspoon at a time, beating after each addition, until you get a spreadable consistency.
• Add food colouring, a drop at a time, beating after each addition, until you get a pink colour you like.
• Pipe or spread onto cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles.

by Linda Horn
Blogger at Let Them Eat Cake & Ice Cream and Stimuli Magazine Contributor
Follow Linda on Twitter at @luluhorn

Happy New Year! If you are like me, you may have included "eating healthier" in your New Year's resolutions. Eating healthier meals doesn't necessarily mean that you need to stop enjoying dessert! Besides including lots of fresh fruit in your diet, you can easily whip up some of these heart healthy cookies for special treat.

Health Benefits

Dried Cherries: I used dried Montmorency cherries in my cookies. Montmorencies are tart or sour.. Cherries are high in the powerful antioxidant anthocyanin, which has been shown to be beneficial in preventing many diseases, including cancer. Dried tart cherries also contain high levels of melatonin, which can help regulate sleep and slow the aging process.

Dark Chocolate: Dark chocolate is also high in antioxidants. Chocolate increases blood flow to your brain and heart. It can help control blood sugar. Chocolate is high in the minerals potassium, copper, magnesium and iron. It also makes you feel happier by elevating your mood. And it tastes great!

Oatmeal: Oatmeal contains a fiber called beta-glucan. Including more oatmeal in your diet can lower cholesterol, boost immunity, and stabilize blood sugar. Oatmeal also is high in magnesium, which can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Almonds: Almonds are high in the antioxidant Vitamin E, cholesterol-lowering monounsaturated fats and are a good source of protein. Almonds also contain Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), manganese and copper. Don't care for almonds? Substitute walnuts, pecans or chestnuts; all of which are also high in good fats and antioxidants.

I found these cookies to be a little too mounded, so I flattened them with a spatula slightly before baking. The dried cherries I bought were really huge; next time I will chop them up. I'm not a fan of chopping chocolate, so I might use dark chocolate chips next time.

I hope you enjoy these heart-healthy cookies!

Heart-Healthy Chocolate Cherry Cookies Recipe

Makes 42 small cookies

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup dried cherries (chopped up if you like smaller bits)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips)
• 1/2 cup slivered blanched almonds

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Combine flours, oats, baking soda and salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk
3. Melt butter in a small bowl. Mix in brown sugar, stirring until smooth. Add sugar mixture to flour mixture; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add cherries, vanilla, and egg; beat until combined. Fold in chocolate and almonds. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 8 minutes. Cool on pans 3 minutes or until almost firm. Remove cookies from pans; cool on wire racks

Nutritional Information
Amount per cookie (based on 42 cookies)
Calories: 67
Fat: 2.3g
Saturated fat: 1.1g
Monounsaturated fat: 0.43g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.14g
Protein: 1.2g
Carbohydrate: 11.2g
Fiber: 0.9g
Cholesterol: 7.1mg

by Linda Horn
Blogger at Let Them Eat Cake & Ice Cream and Stimuli Magazine Contributor
Follow Linda on Twitter at @luluhorn

This is the very best gingerbread I have ever tasted. It is spicy and flavourful, with a nice chewy texture. The baking cookies will fill your house with a warm, spicy fragrance that will lure passers-by and neighbours to your door. Decorate the cookies any way you like; or leave them bare, to dip in steaming cups of tea. I decorated mine with simple lines of royal icing, sprinkled with sugar crystals sprinkles. Royal icing dries hard, making the cookies easy to stack in a gift box for a unique gift from your kitchen.

You can use this recipe for gingerbread house-building too; bake it a little longer to make it more crispy.

Gingerbread Cookies
Based on a recipe from Martha Stewart Living

Ingredients

Cookies:

1 egg
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup fancy molasses

Royal Icing:
2 1/2 cups icing sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons meringue powder
A tiny bit less than 1/4 cup water

Method

Cookies:

• In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and baking powder; set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in spices and salt until combined. Add egg and molasses and stir until combined.
• Add flour mixture on low speed. Chill dough for about an hour.
• Pre-heat oven to 350° F.  On a counter or board lightly sprinkled with flour, roll out dough to about 1/8" thick and cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Place cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes. Cool completely before decorating.

Icing:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, blend icing sugar and meringue powder until combined. Slowly add water until combined. Beat for 10 minutes.
• Put icing into piping bag with a small round tip. Pipe designs onto cookies, then sprinkle with decorative sugar or sprinkles.

Makes 2-3 dozen cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.

This recipe doubles well.

by Linda Horn
Blogger at Let Them Eat Cake & Ice Cream and Stimuli Magazine Contributor
Follow Linda on Twitter at @luluhorn

When we were growing up, my sister and I had a specific Christmas baking duty:  Stir The Fudge Pot.

We had a special pot for it and everything: The Fudge Pot. An ancient, heavy-bottomed stock pot — whose bakelite handles had long-since shattered and flaked away; ancient burnt sugar stains flecked the pitted bottom. And a special Fudge Spoon — a warped but very sturdy wooden spoon.

We would stand on chairs, stirring and stirring, while the fudge got thicker and thicker, until our tiny arms were burning. It was only six minutes, but it seemed to take forever. Time stood still and it was the NOWness of the bubbling sugar, and the endless, endless, stirring, that filled my whole frontal lobe.

"Is it time yet?" we would call. "No, four minutes left," Mom would say patiently.

The sugary mixture got darker and darker. Bubbles blatted their way to the surface, one after the other.

Three minutes, two minutes, one minute left. Sweat on our brows, we would whine, "I can't do it!" and suddenly the fudge would be done. Quickly! Quickly! Throw in butter, chocolate and vanilla. Quickly! Stir, stir, stir. Quickly! Pour that stiffening chocolate wonderfulness into the pan. It smelled like some kind of heaven.

The best part? We always got to lick the spoon. Always.

Chocolate Marshmallow Fudge
by Barbara Rogalsky

Ingredients
3/4 cup evaporated milk
2 cups granulated sugar
About 20 large marshmallows (5.5 oz)
1/2 cup butter
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla

Method

1. In a large, heavy-bottomed stock pot, mix together evaporated milk, sugar and marshmallows.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is bubbling and marshmallows begin to melt.
3. Once bubbling, allow turn heat down to just below medium and continue boiling for exactly 6 minutes. Mixture will start to turn golden.
4. Remove from heat and immediately stir in butter, chocolate and vanilla.
5. Pour into an 8 x 8 inch pan lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Chill to firm up in refrigerator. Cut into 1 inch squares, serve at room temperature.

Options
Swap bittersweet chocolate for dark chocolate, mint chocolate, etc. Add different flavorings instead of vanilla, for example, maple or coffee.

by Linda Horn
Blogger at Let Them Eat Cake & Ice Cream and Stimuli Magazine Contributor
Follow Linda on Twitter at @luluhorn