I shared a mini cheesecake recipe with you last year, but this one is a bit different. These are a hit with my family and friends and are very easy to make. They keep well in a covered container in the fridge for 4 or 5 days. You can top them with pie filling of your choice, but I simply drizzle chocolate sundae sauce over them and then shave a bit of a chocolate over the top. They also freeze well and may be frozen before or after you top them.
I was recently asked to share some recipes for cookies in a jar that would make good Christmas gifts. I have used this chocolate brownie one, but not yet tried the one for sugar cookies. When you give them as a gift simply cut up an old Christmas card and write the directions on it. Tie it around the neck of the jar with ribbon.
Oreo Cheesecake Muffin Cups
- Oreo Thins cookies
- 1 ½ pkgs. (12 oz.) cream cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- ½ cup icing sugar
- Topping as desired
Let eggs, sour cream, and cream cheese all come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 325. Line muffin tin with paper liners and put an Oreo thin into each cup. In a large bowl mix cream cheese, sour cream, icing sugar, vanilla, and beaten eggs together until light and fluffy. Using a small scoop, put some of the mixture into each cup, filling about three quarters full. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes until the centres no longer jiggle when you gently shake the pan. Let cool completely before adding the topping.
Brownie Mix in a Jar
- 1 ¼ cups white sugar
- ½ cup cocoa
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup chocolate chips
Sift cocoa if it is lumpy. Layer all 8 ingredients in the order given in a large jar with a tight-fitting lid. Makes about 4 cups.
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Empty contents of jar into a large bowl. Add 1 tsp. vanilla, 2/3 cup vegetable oil, 3 large eggs, and ¼ cup water. Mix for about 15 strokes. Turn into a greased 8-inch square pan. Bake for about 40 minutes until a wooden pick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool and serve.
Sugar Cookie Mix
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp. salt
- 1 1/3 cups white sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable shortening
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the shortening until crumbly. Spoon into a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Makes 6 cups.
Directions: Preheat oven to 400. Beat 1 large egg, ½ tsp. almond or lemon flavouring, and 2 Tbsp. milk together in a medium bowl. Add 2 cups of the sugar cookie mix. Stir and form into a ball. Chill dough for easier rolling. Turn out onto a generously floured or sugared surface. Roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters into desired shapes. Sprinkle with coloured sugar and bake on greased cookie sheet in centre of oven for about 7 minutes until the edges start to brown. Remove cookies to rack and allow them to cool. Decorate them with icing if desired. Makes about 24.
Icing
- 2 tsp. water
- ½ cup icing sugar
- 1 to 3 drops of food colouring
Stir water into icing sugar in a small bowl until smooth. Add more water or icing sugar as needed to make a barely pourable consistency.
Mix in food colouring, 1 drop at a time, until desired colour has been reached. Paint icing on cookies with a small paintbrush.
For swirls, dip a wooden pick into different coloured icing. Make circular pattern in first layer of icing on cookie while it is still wet. Make a design on cookie by dabbing different coloured icing onto the first layer of wet icing.
HINT: When frying an egg, break it into an onion ring or sweet pepper ring on the pan to keep it intact and add crunch.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind.
