Bake or Break

Black Hole Chocolate Cheesecake {Plus a Cookbook Giveaway}

Many of us likely depend upon desserts to make us feel better after a bad day. Whether you get joy from baking them or eating them or both, there is no comparable comfort.

Recently, I was given a copy of Marian Keyes’ Saved by Cake. I’ve been a fan of Marian Keyes’ fiction books for many years. She has such a unique and witty voice that it’s hard not to enjoy her writing.

When Ms. Keyes was recently dealing with depression that far exceeded just a bad day, she found happiness in baking. Now, she has this wonderful book that is both memoir and cookbook. It’s filled with many delicious recipes and plenty of her trademark wit. Just reading the notes and recipe directions is entertainment on its own.

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Peanut Butter Mini Cheesecakes with Chocolate Cookie Crust {and a Giveaway}

I have a long-standing love of cheesecake. It started in my childhood with cheesecake from a box and grew from there. It was usually my go-to dessert choice when we went out. Then, I realized how simple they are to make, and now I love them even even more.

Philadelphia Cream Cheese is celebrating Easter this year with Bring Out the Silver, a virtual recipe swap among selected food bloggers who are bringing out the silver by baking cheesecakes using Philadelphia Cream Cheese in its unmistakable silver package. When they asked me to be part of that campaign, I knew that I couldn’t pass up that chance to celebrate with one of my favorite baking ingredients.

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars

Do you ever find yourself wavering when faced with a choice of desserts? Do I want cookies? Do I want cheesecake? With this dessert, you can have both.

Rather than a traditional graham cracker crust, I decided to up the chocolate chip ante and make a chocolate chip cookie crust. So, underneath all that cheesecake goodness, there’s a big, thick layer of chocolate chip cookie.

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Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars

Recently, I was asked which I would be more willing to give up forever – cheese or chocolate? My first instinct was cheese, but then I thought to ask if cream cheese would be included. I have to tell you, cream cheese would be a pretty tough thing to give up, even for a short time.

The most cream cheese for your baking money is, of course, cheesecake. In the case of this dessert, we’re talking cheesecake bars. You still get the awesomeness of cheesecake, but in a slightly simpler form.

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Vanilla Bean Mini Cheesecakes with Blueberry Sauce

I think baking cheesecake is a bit intimidating to a lot of people. I used to be one of those people. But, after diving in and making a few, I realized that they really aren’t that hard to bake.

If you’re still on the fence, mini cheesecakes can be a bit less intimidating. If nothing else, there’s a lot less baking time involved. And, a lot less surface for those annoying cracks.

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Chocolate Cookie Dough No-Bake Cheesecake

I’ve eaten probably more than my share of cookie dough in my lifetime. If I’m making cookies, you can safely wager that I’ll be trying at least a bite of unbaked dough. Of course, we all know that eating cookie dough is not the best of ideas. But, I bet I’m not the only one who’s guilty.

There’s some great news for those of us who like to sample from the mixing bowl. Lindsay of the fabulous Love and Olive Oil has a brand new cookbook just for us. It’s called The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook, and it’s packed with recipes for cookies, cakes, and other treats. Every recipe has a cookie dough component that’s made without eggs. So, we get to have our cookie dough fix the right way.

Keep reading for a chance to win your own copy of The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook.

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