Brownie Bottom Twix Cheesecake Bars

Last year for National Cheesecake Day, I made this Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake. It was my first time making a cheesecake and it was so much fun, everyone loved it! It even won an honorable mention ribbon at the Orange County Fair this year.

I decided to celebrate the national day of cheesecake again this year, but a little differently. I wanted to make bars this year instead of a full cake this year and wanted to incorporate some kind of candy. I decided on Twix bars.. and this is what I came up with!

For the "crust", I made a fudge brownie layer. Then I topped it with a Twix bite filled cream cheese topping and finally, drizzled with caramel and fudge. The brownie bottom is a great crust for the smooth cream cheese topping - perfectly fudgy and chewy.

Brownie Bottom Twix Cheesecake Bars

makes one 13x9 pan

Ingredients

• 1 package cream cheese (8 oz)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup fudge topping
• 1/2 cup caramel topping
• 1 package miniature Twix bites
• 1 package brownie mix

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325F Degrees. Prepare brownie mix as directed on package. Add 3 tablespoons of fudge topping and mix well. Pour into a well-greased 13x9 baking pan. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the center is almost set, then remove from oven.

2. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla together until well mixed. Add sour cream and continue to mix. Beat in eggs, one egg at a time. Stir in miniature Twix bites. 

3. Pour cream cheese mixture over the brownie crust layer. Return pan to the oven for 40 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the sides and let cool in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

4. Once cool, drizzle caramel and remaining fudge topping over the cheesecake bars. Feel free to top with more crumbled Twix bars as well and enjoy!

Lemon Blueberry Coconut Pound Cake

My mom's garden has been bursting with fresh blueberries this summer and I wanted to make a recipe to incorporate them as an ingredient!

I came up with this Lemon Blueberry Coconut Pound Cake. Lemon & blueberry makes a wonderful summer combination and I had some shredded coconut laying around - so I thought, why not!

The cake is super moist with the perfect amount of blueberries, just the right amount of lemon and a hint of coconut. I under baked mine a tad so really make sure that knife comes out clean from the center of the cake when removing it from the oven!

Lemon Blueberry Coconut Pound Cake

makes one 10-inch Bundt cake

Ingredients

• 3 cups sifted flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 package (7 ounces) shredded coconut
• 1 tsp coconut extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 cups blueberries
• zest and juice of 2 lemons
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice (for glaze)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F Degrees. Stir together flour and salt and set aside. In a sepearate bowl, beat together butter, shortening and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.

2. Beat in flour mixture and milk, alternating between the two, beginning and ending with flour mixture. 

3. Stir in coconut extract, almond extract, lemon juice and zest and blueberries. Pour into a well-greased 10-inch Bundt pan.

4. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Cool in pan for at least ten minutes.

5. Whisk together 1 cup confectioner's sugar and two tablespoons lemon juice for the glaze. Pour over the bundt cake and top with fresh blueberries. I also topped it with toasted coconut!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Pound Cake Blondies

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches have been a favorite of mine since...well always (Uncrustables...yum). And I have been wondering what kind of baked good I could make to bring together the flavors besides the classic between two slices of bread. I did some research...cookies, pies, etc. but I wasn't really feeling it.

Then, I thought of blondies. Blondies are one of my favorite treats to bake, 1) because they are delicious, 2) they kind of taste healthy in a way that doesn't make you feel horrible about yourself for eating sweets, and 3) they are just so simple! I already had a recipe for blondies using cake mix with my Birthday Cake Remix Blondies, so I thought why not just tweak it a little bit..and what kind of cake would go with PB&J? Pound cake! So I came up with these Peanut Butter and Jelly Pound Cake Blondies.

They are gooey and wonderful and like a warm, melty peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The cake is perfectly moist and crumbly, with a top layer of swirled peanut butter and strawberry jelly. Unfortunately I accidentally deleted most of the photos of these, so this is all I've got and this photo certainly does not do these delicious treats justice. 

Peanut Butter and Jelly Pound Cake Blondies

makes one 13x9 inch pan

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 package pound cake mix
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup strawberry jelly

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

2. Mix together melted butter and brown sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time, into mixture. Stir in water, cake mix and vanilla until smooth.

3. Spread mixture into a 13x9 baking pan. Add tablespoon sized mounds of peanut butter and jelly to the top of the batter, spreading them around evenly. Marble the peanut butter and jelly with a knife to create a swirl effect on top. 

4. Bake for 22-27 minutes.