Marble Cheesecake Squares

If you've forgotten to set out the cream cheese to soften, arrange the unwrapped blocks in a single layer in a large bowl, and microwave at HIGH a minute or until slightly soft.

Yield 12 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup chocolate graham cracker crumbs (about 9 cookie sheets)
• Cooking spray
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 2 (8-ounce) blocks fat-free cream cheese, softened
• 1 (8-ounce) block 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 large egg whites
• 1 large egg
• 1 ounce semisweet chocolate

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325°.

Place crumbs in a 9-inch square baking pan coated with cooking spray; drizzle with butter. Toss with a fork until moist. Press into bottom of pan. Bake at 325° for 8 minutes; cool on a wire rack.

Place cheeses in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until smooth. Add sugar and flour; beat well. Add vanilla, egg whites, and egg; beat until well blended. Pour cheese mixture into prepared pan.

Place chocolate in a small microwave-safe bowl; microwave at high 1 1/2 minutes or until soft, stirring after 45 seconds (chocolate should not completely melt). Stir until smooth. Drop melted chocolate onto cheese mixture to form 9 mounds. Swirl chocolate into batter using the tip of a knife. Bake at 325° for 35 minutes or until almost set. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and chill at least 4 hours.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 239 (29% from fat)

Fat: 7.6g (sat 4.1g,mono 2.1g,poly 0.2g)

Protein: 9.7g

Carbohydrate: 31.4g

Fiber: 0.6g

Cholesterol: 41mg

Iron: 0.6mg

Sodium: 355mg

Calcium: 124mg

Patricia Baird, Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2004

Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake

This is one of my favorite low fat dessert recipes. This and the Key Lime Pie satisfy most of my dessert cravings and they are gooooood.

Weight Watchers Recipe

6 squares (2 1/2 inches each) chocolate graham crackers made into crumbs

2 1/3 cups part-skim ricotta cheese

4 oz. nonfat cream cheese

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 egg

3 tbsp. all-purpose flour

2 tbsp. Amaretto liqueur

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tbsp. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300° F. Spray an 8-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle the cracker crumbs evenly over the bottom of the pan.

(If you don't have an 8-inch springform pan, make cheesecake in an 8-inch aluminum foil baking pan. Using a scissors, cut sides away before serving.)

In a blender or food processor, puree the ricotta and cream cheeses, sugar, cocoa, egg, flour, liqueur and vanilla; stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour the mixture over the crumbs. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1d hours. Cool completely on a rack. Refrigerate, covered, until chilled, at least 3 hours.

Serves 12, with each serving having 99 calories, 2 g fat, and 17 g carbohydrates. Weight Watchers count is 2 points per serving.

Source: Simply the Best, 250 Prizewinning Family Recipes by Weight Watchers

Cheesecake Swirl Bars

Yield 1 dozen
Ingredients

* 55 vanilla wafers, crushed
* 6 tablespoons butter, melted
* 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted
* 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons rum extract
* 2 large eggs
* 1/4 cup refrigerated eggnog
* 1/2 cup white chocolate morsels, melted
* 1/2 cup double chocolate morsels, melted (we tested with Ghirardelli), or regular semisweet morsels

Preparation

Combine first 3 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring until blended. Press crumb mixture into bottom of a lightly greased 8" or 9" square pan. Bake at 350° for 8 minutes. Cool.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and rum extract at medium speed with an electric mixer just until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended. Pour 1 1/2 cups cream cheese batter evenly over baked crust.

Stir eggnog into remaining batter. Divide batter in half; stir melted white chocolate into 1 portion. Spoon evenly over cream cheese batter. Stir melted semisweet chocolate into remaining batter. Drop spoonfuls of chocolate batter evenly over white chocolate layer; gently swirl batters with a knife.

Bake at 350° for 30 to 33 minutes or until almost set. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and chill at least 1 hour before serving. Cut into bars.

Christmas with Southern Living, 2005, Oxmoor House, JUNE 2005

Guava Swirled Cheesecake

Guava paste is found in Latin markets and gourmet stores, often in slabs larger than 12 ounces. Slice leftover paste, and serve it with cream cheese or Manchego and crackers as a simple appetizer. Garnish the cheesecake with mint sprigs, if desired.

Yield 14 servings (serving size: 1 wedge)

Ingredients

* 1 2/3 cups sugar, divided
* 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 6 cookie sheets)
* 1 tablespoon butter, melted
* Cooking spray
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
* 12 ounces guava paste, cut into small pieces
* 5 large egg whites, divided
* 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
* 2 (8-ounce) packages 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1/8 teaspoon salt

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Combine 1/3 cup sugar, crumbs, and butter. Press mixture into bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 7 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

3. Reduce oven temperature to 325°.

4. Combine 1/3 cup sugar, 1/2 cup water, juice, and guava paste in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly. Pour mixture into a blender, and process until smooth. Cool completely. Stir in 1 egg white.

5. Combine remaining 1 cup sugar, sour cream, and cheese in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at low speed until smooth. Beat in vanilla and salt. Gradually add remaining 4 egg whites, beating well after each addition. Pour cheese mixture into prepared pan. Drizzle guava mixture over cheese mixture; swirl mixtures using the tip of a knife. Bake at 325° for 45 minutes or until cheesecake center barely moves when touched.

6. Turn oven off; cool cheesecake in closed oven 30 minutes. Remove cheesecake from oven. Run a knife around outside edge. Cool to room temperature. Cover and chill at least 8 hours before serving.
Nutritional Information

Calories:295 (29% from fat)
Fat:9.4g (sat 5.6g,mono 2.9g,poly 0.5g)
Protein:5.5g
Carbohydrate:48.5g
Fiber:0.5g
Cholesterol:29mg
Iron:0.3mg
Sodium:87mg
Calcium:37mg

Julianna Grimes, Cooking Light, JUNE 2008

Black & White Cheescake Inside

In a small saucepan melt 2 squares (2 oz) unsweetened chocolate over hot water, remove the pan from the heat & let chocolate cool (not cold). In a bowl beat four 8-oz pkgs cream cheese, softened, until the cheese is smooth, beat in 1 3/4 cups sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, 1 tsp vanilla, & 1/4 tsp almond extract, & add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, beating. Transfer 1/3 of mixture to a bowl & stir in the chocolate.

Alternate T’s of the vanilla mixture & tsps of the chocolate mixture around the rim of a well buttered 8-in round cake tin, 3 ins deep & continue to fill the tin in the same manner.

Set the tin a baking pan, add enough boiling water to reach 2/3 of thew ay up the sides of the tin and bake the cake on the lowest rack of a preheated moderately slow oven (325 deg.) for 1 hr & 30 mins or until the top is golden.

Turn off oven & let cake standin the oven for 30 mins more. Transfer the cake to a rack & let it cool completely. Invert cake onto a flat, buttered dish.