You’ve heard the song, “A Bicycle Built for Two,” here’s a caramel cherry cheesecake made for two. In fact, this cheesecake tastes so good, there may not be enough for 2. The definition of cheesecake is a sweet dessert consisting of one or more layers. Typically, the main and thickest layer consists of a mixture of soft, fresh cheese (typically cream cheese or ricotta), eggs, and sugar. If a bottom layer is used in the cheesecake, it will be a crust made of crushed cookies with added butter and sugar. The top layer can consists of a sour cream layer or typically fruit or chocolate. Today, there are literally hundreds of different recipes for cheesecakes.

The recipe that I have chosen for today is a very rustic cheesecake. The look is darker due to the coconut sugar. I wanted a cheesecake that wouldn’t spike blood sugar and coconut sugar has a lower glycemic index. I also wanted a small cheesecake to enjoy but not be tempted with too many sweets. If you are looking for a small cheesecake to celebrate a holiday, birthday, or anniversary, try this recipe. The taste is amazing. By using the coconut sugar, the hint of caramel is delightful. The fresh taste of cherries pairs a truly yummy flavor. You will want to make this recipe over and over again as a favorite in your recipe toolbox.

Rustic Caramel Cherry Cheesecake for Two

For the crust:

¼ cup crushed graham crackers, or crushed walnuts or pecans
1 tablespoon sugar, either granulated or coconut
1 tablespoon butter, melted

(NOTE – some options for a crust variety are Nilla wafers, animal crackers, pretzels, Oreos, and chocolate cookies)

For the filling:

8 ounces cream cheese, full fat, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar, either granulated or coconut
1 egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla, either dark or clear

For the cherry sauce:

½ cup water or apple juice
¼ cup sugar, either granulated or coconut
1 tablespoon tapioca flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1 (12 ounce) package frozen cherries, thawed

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Give a springform pan a light spray of nonstick spray. If desired, cut a piece of parchment for the sides of the springform pan.
Mix the three ingredients together for the crust until well combined. Pat into the bottom of the springform pan. Either press with back of spoon, bottom of small jelly jar, or by hand.
Beat the cream cheese either with a hand mixer or a stand mixer until smooth. Scrape down the sides, and beat for another 30 seconds. Beat in the sugar, then the vanilla, and then the egg. (NOTE: If coconut sugar is used, the filling will have a slight brown color. The finished cheesecake has a slight coconut / caramel flavor when coconut sugar is used.)
Pour the filling over the crust layer into a 4-inch springform pan. Bake for 30 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the middle still has a wiggle to it. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in with the door closed for one hour. Take the cheesecake out and leave it on the counter for 10 minutes. Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours before serving.
Before serving the cheesecake, combine the water, sugar, tapioca flour, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir continuously until fully combined.
Add the almond extract and cherries. Continue to cook, breaking up the cherries slightly until the sauce is a deep dark red color.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool sightly before topping the cheesecake and serving. To really show off this cheesecake, serve the cheesecake on one plate with two forks. If serving for Valentine’s Day, sprinkle conversation hearts around the base of the cheesecake and a few on the top of the cherry topping.

Making a new recipe can be a bit intimidating. I challenge you to try a new recipe this month. You will feel empowered as well have created a new recipe. Enjoy!! Send us a picture of your cheesecake!!

Valentine’s Day is coming and it’ll be here before you know it. How to Make Chocolate Covered strawberries is something that I am asked about every February.

It’s one of those things that just feels right, you know? Dipping those red berries in smooth chocolate. I mean, aside from them being a very traditional Valentine’s Day treat, they’re also a seasonal treat, Valentine’s Day or not.

So today I’m going to show you how easy it is to make these yourself at home.

First of all, you need some strawberries. Try to find the reddest ones you can. For me, unfortunately, I’m a little early buying strawberries, so mine doesn’t look super awesome. They have a little white at the tops and their leafy tops are a bit on the dried out side. So never mind that. They still taste super yummy.

Second, you’ll need some good quality dipping chocolate. We have so many different and delicious varieties for you to choose from. Okay, so maybe our selection is a bit overwhelming and you don’t know which one to choose.

Just be aware that chocolate is totally a matter of preference. So you may love one type and another person may be totally all over another type. But, that aside, I’ll make a few recommendations for you.

If you’re looking for milk chocolate, our best-selling and staff favorite is Blommer’s Spring Milk. It’s super creamy with a delicate flavor. My personal favorite, however, is Peter’s Venitian Milk Chocolate. I love this one because it’s still super creamy, but it has a slightly more robust chocolate flavor. If it’s dark chocolate you’re looking for, let me recommend Blommer’s Lafayette Dark Chocolate.

Now, to clarify something about dark chocolate. If it’s not milk or white, it’s considered dark. So, semi-sweet and bittersweet fall into the dark category. Our Lafayette chocolate is actually a semi-sweet and let me tell you, it’s absolutely delicious. It’s our best-selling dark chocolate. I always tell people that its flavor reminds me of the cookie part of an Oreo. So there you have it.

How to Make Chocolate Covered Strawberries:

Prep your strawberries by washing them and allowing them to dry completely.
Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Melt and temper your chocolate. Tempering chocolate really isn’t hard and I’ve laid it all out here in this blog post. Go check that out. Take the time to properly temper your chocolate and it will reward you with a nice shiny surface and a perfect snap when you bite into it.
To dip the strawberries, pull all the leafy greens carefully into your fingers, then submerge the strawberry into the chocolate. Gently swirl the strawberry around the pool of chocolate, making sure all sides are evenly coated. Allow any excess chocolate to drip off.
Place on parchment paper and allow to completely set.
If you’d like to add a little decoration, you can melt some white chocolate and drizzle that over each strawberry. This can be done before the chocolate is set or after. It really doesn’t matter.

And there you have it. Perfectly dipped chocolate strawberries for your Valentine’s Day. Place them on a pretty platter and share with your special people. Or hide them and eat them all yourself. Whichever you’d prefer. Haha!

Dessert is the best part of any Valentine’s Day dinner, right? (wink) Who can say no to dessert, especially when it’s a Raspberry Ganache Tart? But Valentine’s Day desserts should be fancy, right? Yup, I agree. But that doesn’t mean they need to be difficult and time consuming to make. This pie has a handful of ingredients and just a few simple steps later, you have yourself a nice fancy, delicious Valentine’s Day dessert.

It is so smooth and chocolatey and the tartness of the raspberries cuts through the sweetness of the chocolate, creating a perfect combination.

A word to the wise: Don’t use chocolate chips. Chocolate chips taste like chocolate chips, if you know what I mean. Don’t get me wrong, chocolate chips definitely have their place, but when you’re making a fancy dessert, opt for a high quality chocolate. The flavor difference is very noticeable. If you use chocolate chips, your tart will taste like chocolate chips. I used our staff and customer favorite Midnight Delight. It’s a semi-sweet chocolate that (to me) tastes like the cookie part of an Oreo. It’s delicious, trust me.