Turtle Cheesecake

I made this for my Hubby's birthday and it turned out rich and DELICIOUS!  I was looking for a cheesecake that was different that I hadn't tried before.  It was very rich.  I found it on allrecipes.com here.  I made some changes, so I'll make note of them below.  If you're looking for something for a special occasion this is perfect. 

TURTLE CHEESECAKE

 

Ingredients:

2 cups vanilla wafers crumbs (I used oreos, about 20 in a food processor worked) 

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (I think this was a little too much for oreos, so I would cut it down by a couple of Tablespoons next time) 

14 ounces individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped (I used Hershey's Caramel Topping) 

1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk

1 cup chopped pecans

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate chips)  


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter one 9 inch springform pan. 

Toast the pecans at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 6 minutes. Remove pecans and set aside. Leave oven at 350 degrees C (175 degrees C). In a small saucepan, melt the unsalted butter. 

Combine vanilla wafer crumbs (or oreos) with the melted butter then press into the bottom of the prepared springform pan. Place the pan onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove and allow to cool. 

In a double boiler, or a bowl set over barely simmering water, melt the caramels in the evaporated milk. (** see note) Stir until smooth. Pour this over the cooled crust. Sprinkle the nuts over the top. 

In a bowl, combine the cheese, sugar, and vanilla and beat until smooth, scraping down the bowl several times. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until smooth. Melt the chocolate chips in the double boiler and mix into the cheese mixture (Instead of mixing the chocolate in, I poured it over the top of the cheesecake mixture and swirled it in with a toothpick making designs.) Pour the batter over the caramel layer. 

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 minutes or until barely set. (This took a lot longer on mine.  Just keep an eye on it.)  Chill over night in the refrigerator before serving. 

**if you use caramel ice cream topping, do not add in evaporated milk, unless you want it to turn out different.  I added the evaporated milk and the layer of caramel wasn’t really a layer at all and just came up around the cheesecake mixture.  It wasn’t bad, just messier.  Next time I will probably go with melting caramels.

 

ENJOY!

2 Hour Rolls

Last night I was looking for a quick roll recipe to go with the roast and veggies my Hubby had put in the crock pot.  It was only 2 hours before dinner, so I needed to find something quick.  I found this recipe and adapted it a little and they turned out great!  I love homemade rolls!

 2-HOUR ROLLS

Ingredients:

 

1 1/2 cups warm water

4 Tbsp. white sugar

3 Tbsp. olive oil

1 egg

1/2 Tbsp. salt

1 Tbsp. yeast

4 cups flour (I used 2 cups white and 2 cups wheat)

Directions:

Place all ingredients, except flour, in a large bowl in the order listed and let sit for a few minutes.  Mix in flour and knead until combine.  If too sticky, add a little more flour.  Cover with damp cloth and let rise 15 minutes.  Punch down then let rise another 15 minutes.  Punch down and make into balls (I did a little bigger than a golf ball) and place on lightly greased cookie sheet.  If you'd like, you can melt butter and lightly brush it over the top of them.  Cover with dry cloth and let rise for 1/2 hour.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Makes 24 rolls.

 ENJOY!

Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna (Crockpot)

I found this recipe on Parents.com a while back and never actually got around to making it until last week.  I followed the directions really closely, not really making any changes, so you can just follow the original.  It was really good.  You really couldn't tell that it was vegetarian.  I guess that you could add chicken or beef and it would work will in this recipe, but it really doesn't need them.  Sorry for the bad picture.  The one on parents.com is so much better!

The Best Chili...

My husband and I both agree this is the best chili I have ever made (my hubby says it's the best he's ever had).  It was so easy and delicious!  It makes plenty and I seriously ate it for lunch every day afterward until it was all gone.  I got it from Moms Who Think.  They have a great list of easy and delicious recipes, of which I have tried quite a few.  Here's the link to the recipe.  I made some minor changes and I will make note of them below.

BLUE RIBBON CHILI

 

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef (I actually just used 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey)

1/2 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
2 1/2 cups tomato sauce (I used one small can tomato sauce and 2 cups chopped tomatoes pureed together in blender; healthier and delicious!)
1 (8 ounce) jar salsa
4 Tablespoons chili seasoning mix (I used this recipe)
1 (15 ounce) can light red kidney beans (I used all light kidney beans and once used 1 of light kidney beans and one of black beans.  Both times it turned out great!)
1 (15 ounce) can dark red kidney beans

Directions:

1.  In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the ground beef and the onion and sauté for 10 minutes, or until meat is browned and onion is tender. Drain grease, if desired.
2. Add the ground black pepper, garlic salt, tomato sauce, salsa, chili seasoning mix and kidney beans.
3. Mix well, reduce heat to low and simmer for at least an hour. 

Taco Pizza, yum!

I got this idea a while ago and have been wanting to try it.  We love homemade pizza and like to try lots of different toppings.  It turned out really well!  Really simple too!  Little B liked helping sprinkle the toppings and gobbled it up!

Taco Pizza

Ingredients:

1 pizza crust (my recipe)
1 lb.ground meat (I like turkey best)
Taco Seasoning (either from a packet or I use this recipe)
2 cups shredded cheese of choice
2 Plum tomatoes, chopped
1/2 head of iceberg lettuce, chopped
1 avacado
sour cream
chopped olives

Directions:
Prepare pizza crust.  While it's rising, cook meat and add in taco seasoning.  When dough is done rising, roll out and place on greased pizza pan.  Spread meat over crust and top with cheese.  Bake in preheated 450* oven for 12 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese in melted.  Spread remaining ingredients over pizza, slice, and ENJOY!