Walnut Pumpkin Cheesecake

This recipe was shared by a friend a few years ago. She brought it into work for us to try and we were all in heaven. Not to mention we all had to have the recipe. This is a showstopper. If you want to impress your guests...this is it! What really surprises is that it is relatively easy to make! The cheesecake is so delicious, but it should be with the addition of heavy cream!! While there is nothing low in calories in this recipe, if you have several guests, this goes a long way. Because of its richness, the slices don't have to be big to be satisfying. (Nothing has to be the size of what you get at the Cheesecake Factory!) Want to dazzle up the presentation? Drizzle some melted white chocolate on the plate before serving and dust with a little nutmeg. You'll be a rock star when you serve this. It is also a great recipe to bring along to a fall dinner party when you are asked to bring a dessert.

Walnut Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust:

1 6-oz pkg zwieback crackers, crushed (1 ½ cups)

¼ cup sugar

6 Tbsp butter, melted

Cheesecake:

3 8-oz. Pkgs cream cheese, softened

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

5 eggs

1 16-oz can mashed pumpkin

1 ¼ tsp. Pumpkin pie spice

¼ cup heavy whipping cream

Walnut Topping:

6 Tbsp butter, softened

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Crust: Blend crumbs with sugar and butter in bowl. Press over bottom and up sides of a lightly buttered springform pan. Chill.

Cheesecake: Beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add sugars, beating to mix well. Beat in eggs one at a time till light and fluffy. Beat in pie spice, cream and pumpkin at low speed. Pour into prepared crust. Bake in oven at 325 degrees F. for 1 ½ hours.

Walnut Topping: Mix butter, brown sugar and walnuts; sprinkle over cheesecake and bake 10 more minutes. Chill and serve.

MINI CHEESECAKES

Who can resist thick, creamy, decadent cheesecake? This is a low-fat version in the single serving size. Oh yeah...that's what I'm talking about...treating yourself without lots of guilt! And you can change this up a bit if you want. Add a teaspoon of cocoa for some chocolate cheesecakes! The recipe calls for cherry filling on top. I'm not a fan of that as for the sweetness which seems excessive to me. But put a couple of fresh blueberries or raspberries on top of each one! Or drizzle some low fat caramel sauce on top of each one and sprinkle with a few toffee chips! Whatever your pleasure these are a little bite of heaven!

Mini Cheesecakes

INGREDIENTS
12 low-fat vanilla wafers
3 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
12 oz. fat-free cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
cherry pie filling

DIRECTIONS1. Preheat oven to 350° F.

Line muffin tins with 12 foil cupcake papers.

1. Place a vanilla wafer in the bottom of each cupcake paper.

2. In mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and fat-free cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and mix well. Add eggs and beat until smooth.

3. Pour cheesecake mixture into muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes or until centers are almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.

4. Decorate cheesecake tops with cherry pie filling.

Makes 12 cheesecakes/servings.

Snickers Cheesecake

My daughter is crazy for Snickers Bars. But if you are going to tumble, tumble BIG! Mix those Snickers into a cheesecake! This is a very different cheesecake and it will serve several because it is so rich. I really like making my own cheesecakes because to buy a plain one costs so much. This way, I can experiment and try different versions and the cost is insignificant as to what you would pay at a bakery. The Snickers cheesecake is an especially nice way to dispose of Snickers bars after Halloween! It makes a cool company dessert when you drizzle your dessert plates with chocolate syrup or caramel sauce before serving.

Snickers Cheesecake

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 tablespoon white sugar

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese

3 eggs

3/4 cup white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 (2.16 ounce) Snickers candy bars, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, graham cracker crumbs and 1 tablespoon sugar. Press into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Allow to cool.

In a large bowl, cream the 3/4 cup of sugar and cream cheese together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Stir in chopped candy bar, and pour into baked crust.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes. Let cool and carefully remove the springform pans side. Makes 1 - 9 inch springform pan.