Holiday Delight Cheesecake (Low-Fat)

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp margarine, melted
3 package fat-free cream cheese (8oz)
3/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp cholesterol-free egg product
1 carton non-fat lemon yogurt
1 lite whipped topping
1 can cherry pie filling

1. Heat oven to 350øF. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and margarine; mix well. Pat onto bottom of 9" or 10" springform pan. Set aside.

2. Beat cream cheese, sugar and flour together until light, fluffy and smooth. Gradually add lemon juice and egg product; beat well. Add lemon yogurt and mix thoroughly. Pour over prepared crust.

3. Loosely place aluminum foil over springform pan.

4. Bake at 350øF 60 to 70 minutes or until center of cake is set.

5. Gently run tip of knife between cake and edge of pan. Cool to room temperature before removing from pan. Chill.

Served topped with cherry pie filling and whipped topping.

Cranberry Phyllo Baskets

Phyllo Baskets:
8 phyllo pastry sheets
20 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
6 tablespoons finely ground dry breadcrumbs

Cranberry Topping:
1 (12 ounce package cranberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons water

Cream Cheese Filling
10 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
8 1/2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 1/4 tablespoons grated lemon peel
2 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup coarsely chopped toasted husked hazelnuts (or sliced almonds )

FOR BASKETS:
Place 1 phyllo sheet on work surface. (Cover remaining sheets with damp towel to prevent drying). Brush with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon breadcrumbs. Repeat with 3 more sheets. Do not sprinkle fourth sheet with breadcrumbs. Repeat entire process 1 more time for a total of 2 stacks of 4 sheets each. Mark off twenty 3 inch squares on each stack using ruler. Cut into squares using scissors or pizza cutter.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush 40 miniature muffin cups with remaining butter. Press 1 stacked phyllo square into each muffin cup, forming basket. Bake until lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Transfer baskets to rack and cool to room temperature. (Can be prepared 2 weeks ahead. Store at room temperature)

FOR TOPPING:
Cook cranberries, sugar and water in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves, swirling pan occasionally. Increase heat and bring to boil. Reduce heat and cook until berries pop, about 10 minutes. Refrigerate until cool. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead)

FOR FILLING:
Blend cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add peel and juice.

TO ASSEMBLE:
Divide cream cheese, filling among phyllo baskets, spreading evenly. Spoon about 1 teaspoon cranberry topping over filling. Sprinkle with hazelnuts. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead and refrigerated) Bring to room temperature before serving).

Cranberry Cheesecake With Walnut Crust

1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup (1 stick) butter -- melted
1 can (16 oz.) whole cranberry
sauce
3 package (8 oz. each) cream cheese
softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup flour
3 eggs
8 ounce dairy sour cream
2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a small bowl combine crumbs, walnuts and butter. In the bottom of a 9-inch spring-form pan firmly press crumb mixture. Bake until golden, 5 to 6 minutes; remove from oven; cool slightly. Spread with cranberry sauce; set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer beat cream cheese, sugar and flour until smooth. Beat in eggs, sour cream and vanilla until well blended; spread evenly over cranberry sauce.

Bake until a knife inserted 1-1/2-inches from the edge comes out clean, about 1 hour; turn off oven; leave cheesecake in oven with door ajar until top is firm to the touch, about 30 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack, about 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate until cold, about 4 hours. Just before serving, remove cheesecake from pan to a serving plate. Garnish with sugared cranberries, kiwi slices and mint leaves, if desired.

NOTE: To make sugared cranberries: In a small bowl place a small amount of white corn syrup. Add fresh cranberries, a few at a time, turning to coat; then place in a bowl of granulated sugar. Using a fork, remove cranberries from sugar and place on a plate until ready to use.

Cranberry Orange Cheesecake

CRUST

1 c Graham crumbs
1 tb Margarine; light, melted

FILLING

2 c Cottage cheese
1 pk Light cream cheese; 8oz
2/3 c Sugar
1/2 c Plain yogurt
1/4 c Flour; all-purpose
2 Egg whites
1 Egg
1 tb Orange rind; grated
1 ts Vanilla

TOPPING

2 c Cranberries
1/2 c Orange juice
1/3 c Sugar
2 ts Cornstarch

Combine crust ingredients. Press over bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 5 minutes. In food processor, blend cottage cheese until smooth. Add cream cheese and process until smooth. Add remaining filling ingredients; process until smooth. Pour into pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 50 to 60 minutes or until almost set in centre. Run knife around edge of cake to loosen from rim. Cool on rack. Chill.

Combine cranberries, orange juice, and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Then simmer 3 minutes or until cranberries start to pop. Dissolve cornstarch in 1 tbsp water. Add to pan, cook and stir 2 minutes. Chill topping, and spread over cake before serving.

Homemade Mincemeat

2 pounds lean stew meat
1-1/2 cups suet or shortening
4 cups apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
2-1/2 cups raisins
1-1/2 cups currants, chopped
2-1/2 cups sugar
3 cups pie cherries, pitted
1-1/2 pints strong cold coffee
1 pint cider
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
6 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 Tablespoon mace
1 Tablespoon allspice

Cook meat until tender. In large pan, add all ingredients except meat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add meat and stir well.

Makes: 4 quarts

Christmas Trifle

2 packages instant pistachio pudding (5 oz)
1 angel food cake
12 ounces cool whip
2 cans cherry pie filling

Make pudding as directed. In a glass bowl with high sides. layer the 4 ingredient. First spoon a few tablespoons of pistachio pudding in the bottom of the bowl. Second rip small pieces off of the cake and drop on top of pudding.

Spread some cool whip on top of the cake and the cherries on top of that. What you will create is a green, red and white layer effect for Christmas. Do 2 or 3 layers depending on how much of your ingredients you have already used.

Finish the top with a solid layer of whipped topping and a few cherries in the center. Refrigerate.

Christmas Trifle

2 packages instant pistachio pudding (5 oz)
1 angel food cake
12 ounces cool whip
2 cans cherry pie filling

Make pudding as directed. In a glass bowl with high sides. layer the 4 ingredient. First spoon a few tablespoons of pistachio pudding in the bottom of the bowl. Second rip small pieces off of the cake and drop on top of pudding.

Spread some cool whip on top of the cake and the cherries on top of that. What you will create is a green, red and white layer effect for Christmas. Do 2 or 3 layers depending on how much of your ingredients you have already used.

Finish the top with a solid layer of whipped topping and a few cherries in the center. Refrigerate.

Lemon Cranberry Popovers

4 eggs
2 cups milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1 Tablespoon crushed "Beaujolais Herbs"
1/4 stick of butter
Fresh berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries) - optional

Whipped Lemon Cream:
1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar
Juice of 2 lemons
3 Tablespoons butter
1/2 to 1 cup whipped cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs. Add milk and whisk together. Mix in flour, herbs, and salt, whisking as you add to liquid. Spray 12 popover pans or heavy muffin tins with canola oil. Dab approximately 1/3 teaspoon butter in each cup. Place in oven for 2 minutes to melt butter. Immediately fill 1/2 full with batter. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes for popover pans (20 to 25 minutes for regular muffin pan) until puffed and browned. Serve immediately.

Fresh Berry: Make as above, but add berries (3 to 4) once batter is in pan. Drop on top of each popover. May take 2 to 3 minutes longer to cook.

Whipped Lemon Cream: Heat sugar and lemon juice, stirring constantly. Add butter in chunks. Cook over low heat until creamy. Cool. Just before serving, fold in whipped cream. Can refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Cranberry Swirled White Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

For the crust:
2 1/2 C. gingersnap crumbs
1/2 C. sugar
1 T. orange zest
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 C. unsalted butter, melted

For the cranberry swirl:
2 C. fresh or frozen, thawed cranberries
3/4 C. fresh orange juice
2/3 C. sugar
2 T. orange zest
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
4 t. vanilla extract

For the filling:
1/2 C. whipping cream
12 oz. white chocolate, chopped
2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
6 T. sugar
2 T. cornstarch
2 T. vanilla extract
1/4 t. salt
1 C. sour cream
3 eggs

Directions: Heat oven to 350° F. For crust, combine gingersnap crumbs, sugar, orange zest and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Pour melted butter over; mix well. Pat mixture into the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake crust 10 minutes. Remove from oven; set aside to cool.

For cranberry swirl, combine the cranberries, orange juice, sugar, orange zest, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring, until cranberries pop and mixture begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Transfer mixture to a food processor or blender; puree until smooth. Strain into a mixing bowl. Cool to room temperature.

For the filling, place the cream in a large, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; heat to a boil. Remove from heat; stir in white chocolate. Stir until melted. Let cool. Place the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat until smooth. Add cornstarch, vanilla and salt; beat until well combined. Mix in sour cream. Beat in eggs one at a time. Fold in chocolate mixture.

Reduce oven temperature to 325° F. Pour filling over crust; spread evenly. Drop cranberry mixture in dollops over filling. Draw swirls of cranberry mixture through filling with a knife.

Place a pan filled with water on the lower rack of the oven. Place cheesecake on middle rack. Bake until center of cheesecake is set, about 45 minutes. Turn off oven; let cheesecake sit 1 hour. Remove from oven. Let cool. Chill at least 2 hours before cutting into bars.

Makes 32 small bars.

Fresh Fruit Tart

Dough
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cup sugar
Zest of 2 oranges
8 ounces unsalted butter, chilled, cut into small cubes
2 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons heavy cream

Vanilla bean pastry cream
1 vanilla bean
2 cups whole milk
8 egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar

Other ingredients
Assorted fresh fruit, such as strawberries, blackberries or raspberries, to taste
Apricot preserves to taste

To prepare dough: In a food processor, process together the flour, sugar and zest. Add the butter and process until mixture resembles cornmeal. Add the egg yolks, water and cream and process just until dough comes together. Divide the dough in half, wrap each piece in plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours.

Unwrap one of the pieces, roll it out and fit into a 10-inch tart pan, or 2 to 4 individual tart pans. Freeze 1 hour. Reserve the other piece for another use. It can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove the tart shell from freezer. Score the bottom of the dough with a fork and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden. Cool completely.

To prepare pastry cream: Split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the inside and add to the milk along with the vanilla bean. Bring the milk to a simmer. While the milk is simmering, whisk together the egg yolks, cornstarch and sugar in a large bowl.

Remove the milk from the heat and strain out the vanilla bean. Add a little of the hot milk to the egg mixture just to warm it, whisking constantly. Then pour the egg mixture into the remaining hot milk, whisking constantly.

Return the mixture to the stove and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, still whisking. The mixture will become very thick. Remove from heat, pour into a clean bowl, let cool slightly, then cover the surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

After the pastry cream has chilled, place in a food processor and process until smooth, then fill the tart shell with pastry cream.

To finish it off, arrange the assorted fresh fruit on top of the pastry cream in a decorative pattern. Warm the apricot preserves until melted. With a pastry brush, glaze the fruit with the melted preserves.

Makes 4 servings.

Approximate values per serving: 734 calories, 40 g fat, 562 mg cholesterol, 13 g protein, 82 g carbohydrates, 0 fiber, 82 mg sodium, 49 percent calories from fat.

French Silk Pie

1 cup whipping cream
1 package (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate pieces
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 beaten egg yolks
3 tablespoons creme de cacao or whipping cream
1 baked 8- or 9-inch pastry shell
Whipped cream or pressurized whipped dessert topping, optional
Chocolate curls or miniature chocolate pieces, optional

In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, combine 1 cup whipping cream, semisweet chocolate pieces, butter and sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the chocolate is melted, about 10 minutes.

Remove saucepan from heat. Gradually stir about half the hot mixture into the beaten egg yolks.

Return egg mixture to saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is slightly thickened and nearly bubbly, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Remove saucepan from heat. Mixture may appear to separate.

Stir in creme de cacao or 3 tablespoons of whipping cream.

Place saucepan in a bowl of ice water. Stir occasionally until mixture stiffens and becomes hard to stir, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the cooled chocolate mixture to medium mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 2 or 3 minutes or until light and fluffy.

Spread filling in a baked pastry shell. Cover and chill pie about 5 hours or until set, or for up to 24 hours.

To serve, top with whipped cream and sprinkle with chocolate curls or miniature chocolate pieces, if desired.

Makes 10 servings.

Approximate values per serving: 350 calories, 26 g fat, 92 mg cholesterol, 3 g protein, 28 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 191 mg sodium, 65 percent calories from fat.