White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

I have such a sweet tooth and my favorite - roll my eyes in the back of my head - dessert is cheesecake. I'm always looking for different flavors to create in a cheesecake and it seemed that white chocolate and raspberry go together perfectly.

Ingredients:

1 cup chocolate cookie crumbs
3 tablespoons white sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
2 cups white chocolate chips
1/2 cup half-and-half cream
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, mix together cookie crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar, and melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. In a saucepan, combine raspberries, 2 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch, and water. Bring to boil, and continue boiling 5 minutes, or until sauce is thick. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer to remove seeds. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt white chocolate chips with half-and-half, stirring occasionally until smooth. In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in vanilla and melted white chocolate. Pour half of batter over crust. Spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over batter. Pour remaining cheesecake batter into pan, and again spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over the top. Swirl batter with the tip of a knife to create a marbled effect.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until filling is set. Cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8 hours before removing from pan. Serve with remaining raspberry sauce.

Linguini with Clam Sauce

As the weather starts to warm we tend to want a lighter fare. Linguini with Clam sauce is a perfect way to stay elegant but light. It's perfect for those warm nights when you want to eat a nice meal on the deck by candlelight. Over the years I have made this dish as simple as possible so that it can be perfectly created on a weeknight.....

Ingredients:
2 T. olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
dash red pepper flakes
1/4 white wine
1 can white clam sauce
1 can whole clams, with juice
1 can chopped clams, with juice
6 T. butter
chopped fresh parsley
1 lb. cooked linguini
1 lb. little neck clams (optional)

Heat olive oil in saute pan and add garlic cloves and red pepper flakes to taste. Be careful not to burn, garlic cooks quickly. Add can of clam sauce and clams with juices. Once it begins to boil bring down to simmer. Add wine and 4 T. butter. Cover and simmer until pasta is done. Just before tossing with pasta, add 2 T. butter to round out flavor and chopped fresh parsley. Toss with linguini and serve.

Note: for a more romantic flare, add fresh littleneck clams to sauce 5 minutes before finished. Allow to steam open and toss with pasta.