Bake or Break

German Chocolate Cheesecake

I’m a little late with this, but I had to brag on my birthday cake. I think many bakers are left to make their own birthday cakes. I, however, have Quinn, who always comes through at the end of August.

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Cookies and Cream Cheesecakes

I’m not a huge fan of Oreos or, really, any kind of store-bought cookie. I have spoiled myself with the homemade variety. That being said, I am not the least bit hesitant to use store-bought cookies as an ingredient, like with these cheesecakes.

The crust of these little treats is actually a whole Oreo, not crumbs. Leaving the cookie intact makes for a thick crust that gets nice and soft after they’ve baked and chilled. Topping off those Oreos is one of my favorite things – cheesecake. Of course, it wouldn’t meet the legal definition of a cookies and cream cheesecake without even more Oreos mixed into the cheesecake. I especially like the addition of sour cream to the cheesecake filling. It offsets all that sweet with just a little bit of tartness.

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Pecan and Salted Caramel Cheesecake

Recently, I read somewhere that 2008 was a big year for salted caramel. I don’t think I’m in any position to agree or disagree with that, but I will say that I had a little love affair with it myself. (Hello, salted caramel hot chocolate!)

This cheesecake is a prime example of salted caramel at its finest. I actually found the recipe while looking for something else. Of course, once I found this I was immediately so smitten that whatever I was looking for was quickly forgotten.

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Chocolate Pecan Cheesecake Bars

Some of you may have noticed that I’ve been absent of late from BoB. I have many excuses, but I won’t get into all of that. The important thing is that I finally share with all of you some of the things I’ve been baking.

First up are these amazingly delicious bars. Imagine a buttery pecan crust. Now, let’s put some cheesecake on top of that. But not just any cheesecake – chocolate cheesecake. Sounds good, huh? Well, how about a pecan pie layer on top of that? I know!!!

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

If the title of these alone doesn’t win you over, then I will have to shut down BoB. Really, there’s no hope if these don’t appeal to you.

These delicious bars begin with a graham cracker crust. While that usually means graham cracker crumbs and butter, this crust also contains miniature chocolate chips. Then, there is a cheesecake layer, which has been topped with dollops of chocolate chip cookie. If that weren’t enough, the whole thing is drizzled with even more chocolate.

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Vanilla Bean Cheesecake Bars

As most people do these days, I have an obscene number of blogs that I follow. My feed reader is insane. The majority of those feeds are from food blogs. I am always finding recipes that pique my interest. Even with the best of intentions, I never seem to get around to making those recipes. In an effort to remedy that, I made these cheesecake bars from Nicole’s blog, Baking Bites.

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