Yummy Chili Dip

This is such an easy dip...always a hit wherever I bring it.

In a square pyrex dish or a deep dish pie plate spread 1 pkg of cream cheese (250g/8oz). Spread 1 - 1.5 cups of chili (your own or canned) topped with shredded cheese (I shred a few different kinds). Place in oven at 375-400 for about 15 minutes (until things are bubbly). Let stand about 5 minutes. Serve with nachos (I find the scoops work best).

Toblerone Cheesecake

1-1/4 cups OREO Baking Crumbs

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 pkg. (250 g each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup KRAFT Smooth Peanut Butter

1 cup sugar

2 bars (100 g each) TOBLERONE Swiss Milk Chocolate, chopped, divided

1-1/2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, divided
MIX crumbs and butter; press firmly onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Refrigerate 10 min.
BEAT cream cheese, peanut butter and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Stir half of the chocolate into cream cheese mixture. Gently stir in 1 cup of the whipped topping. Spoon over crust. Refrigerate 3 hours.
MICROWAVE remaining 1/2 cup whipped topping and chocolate in small microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min.; cool slightly. Pour over cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup yogurt (I usually use strawberry or mixed berry)
1 mashed banana
1/2 cup chopped strawberries (although these are optional in the recipe, I NEVER leave them out)

preheat oven to 350
combine 4 dry ingredients
melt butter in microwave, add to dry ingredients. Add the last 4 ingredients, mixing just to incorporate (don't over mix)

divide batter into twelve muffin tins, bake 20-25 minutes

For emma-rose i make 24 mini-muffins, baking them for about 10-15 minutes

White Bread

(This is the best white bread recipe ever, I try not to make it too often because it dissapears too quickly--it does freeze well, when there's some left)

2 cups warm water
2/3 cups white sugar (this sounds like a lot to me, so I usually reduce the amount to 1/2 cup)
1 1/2 tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 vegetable oil (I usually use canola)
6 cups flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.

Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.

Best Apple Pie Crust

1 cup cream cheese
1 cup butter
3 cups flour

blend all three ingredients together with pastry blender OR place all three ingredients in large food processor and blend. leave in fridge up to two weeks or put in freezer

No Fail Pie Crust

5 cups flour
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 lb lard

1 egg
2 tbsp vinegar
cold water to make 1 cup (with egg and vinegar)

Combine the first four ingredients in large bowl. Cut in lard until pea-sized (use pastry blender).
Add combined 1 cup egg, vinegar and water, pour into lard mixture. Shape into balls (4 usually). Wrap and put in frige. Can stay in fridge 2 weeks or can be frozen.

Cheesecake Recipes

CHEESECAKE RECIPES
For either recipe use a 9 or 10 inch spring foam pan

1. Philadelphia Cream Cheese recipe

3 bricks of cream cheese (250g)
3 eggs
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla

crust: follow the recipe on the box of graham or oreo cookie crumbs

cream together cream cheese and sugar, beat in eggs one at a time, add vanilla. bake at 350 until the top is set (about 45 mins- an hour)....to avoid cracks on the top of the cheesecake bring cream cheese and eggs to room temperature before mixing together.

2. My favourite recipe (which i combined a few different recipes to create--although I'm sure it already existed somewhere out there)
3 packages cream cheese (250g)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (i think they're somewhere between 11-14 oz)
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

crust: follow recipe on box of graham or oreo cookie crumbs

cream together cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk, beat in eggs one at a time, add in vanilla. bake at 350 for 45 minutes (approx). for best results cream cheese and eggs should be at room temperature

VARIATIONS:

vanilla--leave recipe as is (duh)chocolate--melt 4 squares of semi-sweet chocolate in microwave and add to cream cheese mixture (i usually top a chocolate cheesecake with cherry pie filling and chocolate shavings OR fresh/frozen raspberries)

chocolate chip-- add 1-2 cups of milk chocolate chips (depending how many chocolate chips you want in)

marble--divide cream cheese mixture in two, melt 2 squares of semi-sweet chocolate and add to one of the bowls. Pour the vanilla cream cheese mixture into pan, add the chocolate mix in dollops on top of vanilla mix, use a knife to swirl it around...

There are other variations and other recipes....let me know if there's something specific you want to try (flavour wise) and I'll let you know if I have a recipe. Enjoy!