CHOCOLATE MINT CHEESECAKE BARS

Another decadent dessert for a hot  summer day that anyone I know would not turn down.  Do you love cheesecake...??   I sure do.  



1 Ingredients


2 cups finely crushed creme-filled chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon peppermint extract
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons Crisco All-Vegetable Shortening
14 creme de menthe thin candies, chopped




Directions


1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In medium bowl, combine cookie crumbs and butter; mix well. Press crumb mixture firmly on bottom of 9-inch baking pan. Bake 6 minutes. Cool. 


2. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk, eggs and peppermint extract until smooth. Pour over cooled cookie base and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool 20 minutes; chill. 


3. Just before serving, in heavy saucepan, melt chocolate chips and shortening. Drizzle over top of chilled cheesecake bars. Sprinkle chopped chocolate mint candies over the top. Cut into bars. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.


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THIN MINT CRISPY COOKIES

The other day I had a taste for chocolate and mint. Well, to my surprise, I discovered I had a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips. Many concoctions can be made out of chocolate chips. 


Ingredients - sleeve ritz crackers 
 - 1 pkg semi-sweet chocolate chips - 1 tsp peppermint extract 
 - 1/2 c crushed peppermint candies 


Directions


1.   Line up crackers on a waxed-lined cookie sheet. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. To keep your hands from getting messy, put a large mixing spoon in the pan with the chocolate, get another regular spoon. Put a cracker onto the bigger spoon and using the smaller spoon pour some chocolate over it and flip the cracker do it the same way. Scrape the excess chocolate in the pan.


2. Repeat the same method for each cracker. When all the crackers are covered with chocolate, sprinkle crushed peppermint on top of them. Then put the waxed-paper cookie sheet in the fridge until the chocolate firms up.


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