Award winning recipe: Mascarpone Cheesecake

To the left is the actual picture of my cheesecake that was published in Taste of Home Magazine! My "Mascarpone Cheesecake" was published in the August/September (2009) issue of TOH (pages 35 & 37). It had also been published in three of their cookbooks, 2009 TOH Annual Recipes (page 122) and Best of TOH, Volume 2 (page 152 are two of them.

You know, when I entered the contest, my reason for entering was to win a free issue of the 2009 TOH Cookbook. Not only did I win the book, I won the Best of TOH book and I also received a check for $150.00 for a dinner for 4 at the restaurant of my choice. Sometimes we can only see a small part of the big picture!

Following is the winning recipe!

Mascarpone Cheesecake

Crust:

• 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

• 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
• 2 cartons (8 ounces each) Mascarpone cheese
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten

Topping:

• 1 envelope whipped topping mix
• 1 tablespoon caramel ice cream topping

Directions:

Place a greased 9-in. springform pan on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan.

In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs and sugar; stir in butter.

Press onto the bottom of prepared pan.

Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 325° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

For filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cheeses, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Pour over crust. Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan.

Bake at 325° for 50-60 minutes or until center is just set and top appears dull.

Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around the edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.

Refrigerate overnight. Remove sides of pan. Before serving, prepare topping mix according to package directions. Garnish cheesecake with whipped topping; drizzle with caramel. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 12 servings.