Chocolate Chunk Cheesecake Bars

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

Are you one of those people who, like me, had thought that cheesecake and chocolate are not possible together?

Well, then I have something to tell you.

Something very important.

Something enlightening!

Dear friends, cheesecake and chocolate ARE possible to exist together.

SO possible.

Beyond possible!

Finger-licking possible!

Let me show you…

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

These are our lovely ingredients.
chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

1. First, place the first three ingredients in the bowl of your electric mixer…

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

2. …and beat them at medium-low speed until combined.

Then increase the speed to medium, and beat until well blended and crumbly.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

3. Pat the mixture into a lightly greased 13 x 9-inch (33 x 22 cm) pan.

A good trick is to use the bottom part of a measuring cup or a glass to do that.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

4. Preheat your oven to 350 °F (175 °C) and bake for 13-15 minutes or until lightly browned.

This is a lovely, delicious and easy substitute for crushed wafers that are often used in cheesecake recipes.

Cool, huh?

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, cheesecake filling

5. Now, let’s make the cheesecake filling.

Place the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of your electric mixer and beat at medium speed until creamy.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, add the eggs

6. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating at low speed just until blended after each addition.

7. Finally, add the sour cream, vanilla, and one cup of the chocolate chunks.

Beat just until blended.

Of course, you can use chocolate chips instead of the chunks.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, pour the cheesecake mixture over the baked crust

8. Pour the cheesecake mixture over the baked crust.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, using a spoon or an offset spatula, even out the surface

9. And using a spoon or an offset spatula, even out the surface.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, bake

10. Bake at 350 °F (175 °C) for about 25 minutes or until set.

 

11. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, melt the rest of your chocolate chunks

12. Then melt the rest of your chocolate chunks.

Microwave oven will work just fine.

(Oh, and use microwave friendly dishes, please. The one in the picture hadn’t gone to the microwave oven. If it had, things would have gotten sparkly… I guess. Don’t ask me how I know. Please.)

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures, stir the melted chocolate until smooth, then drizzle the chocolate over the cheesecake

13. Stir the melted chocolate until smooth. Then drizzle the chocolate over the cheesecake.

 

14. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours. Then cut into bars.

Also, I’ve found out that it’s fine to reheat the bars in the microwave oven for a little while before serving. That way the chocolate will melt slightly making the whole eating experience even more divine.

chocolate chunk cheesecake bars recipe with step by step pictures

Enjoy, dear friends.

 

(This lovely recipe was adapted from here. The recipe makes about 14 3×1.5-inch (8 x 4 cm) bars. The recipe takes about 1 hour to prepare and about 4 hours to chill. And the whole thing takes about 10 minutes to eat. Funny but true.)

Tea Cookies

These bite-sized cookies are perfect for having with tea.

(Psst, coffee is all right too.)

They taste wonderful and are very, very simple to make.

I like to prepare them when my sugar craving strikes out of the blue. Or when friends call unexpectedly saying they will come soon.

These cookies just save lives.

Here’s the list of ingredients.

1. To make your own Tea Cookies, first preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

2. Sift the flour and sugars into a larger bowl.
 

3. Add the softened butter, two egg yolks and lemon zest…
 

4. …and use pastry cutter or just a plain fork to turn the ingredients into a crumbly mixture.

 

5. Then use your hands to form a ball.

Like this one.

Though creating a face is not necessary.

But it helps.

Kidding!

But it really does.

Kidding again!

 

Now I’d like to tell you this: Please, be patient when you find yourself in the phase in-between the crumbs and the dough ball. It only takes patience and trust that those crumbs will eventually come together. Give it five minutes or so and you’ll see success!
 

6. Place the dough ball on a very, very lightly floured surface.

This dough is almost not sticky at all so you really need very little flour, if any.

And besides that, the more flour you’d be using the firmer the cookies would get. And we don’t need that.

 

7. Using the palms of your hands, roll the dough until you form a log which is about 1.5 inches (3.5 cm) wide in diameter.

 

8. Then cut the log into about 1/2-inch (1 cm) thick rounds.

9. Place the rounds onto the sheet and bake in the preheated oven (350 °F – 175 °C) for 10 minutes.

The cookies should still be very pale in color when baked.

10. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.

Enjoy, dear friends.

(This recipe makes about 30 cookies and will take you about 40 minutes to make.)

The Perfect Bundt Cake

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

I heart bundt cakes.

You can clearly see it in the above picture and also in the picture below.

Hearts overload.

 

Bundt cakes are cute, bundt cakes are fun and they also are super-easy to make.

In addition, this one is also perfect.

I promise.

It’s moist but not too moist,  it’s sweet but not too sweet and it tastes just like heaven.

Actually, I’d so love to give you a slice right now.

But I think it will be more useful to give you the recipe…

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

Here are the ingredients.

Six of them.

I love simple recipes.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

1. First preheat the oven to 347 °F (175 °C).
2. Then butter and flour thoroughly a 9 x 4 inches (23 x 10 cm) bundt pan.

Instead of buttering the pan you can use a vegetable spray.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

3. Now separate the eggs into two larger bowls.

Set the egg whites aside. Their time will come a little later.
4. Add the sugar and the vegetable oil into the bowl with the egg yolks and using a hand mixer mix them for about three minutes.
5. Then add the milk and mix for another three minutes.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

6. Now pour the flour and the baking powder into a smaller bowl and combine them with a spoon.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

7. Add the flour mixture into the beaten egg-yolk mixture…

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

8. …and using a spatula stir it to combine.

First there will be lumps. But don’t give up, keep stirring and kill them all.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

9. Finally, grab the bowl containing the egg whites and whip them until firm.
the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

10. Using a spatula again, gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter just until blended.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

11. Pour the batter into the pan.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

12. And into the oven it goes for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick (or a wooden skewer) inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

When you do the toothpick/skewer test you might find dry crumbs adhering to the skewer. That’s all right. The cake is done.

But when you find raw batter on it that means that the cake needs some more baking.
13. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

Then place it on your Mom’s old cake stand (which is actually older than you) and admire the beauty for a while.

the perfect bundt cake recipe with step by step pictures

Then make a nice cuppa tea or coffee, cut a big fat slice of the cake (or three) and have the best time ever.

Enjoy, dear friends.

And, please, make this soon.

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