Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you,.......to my niece, Happy Birthday to you!

Since it is a special niece's 12th birthday today, I thought I would devote todays blog to her!  

Happy Birthday J!!!   

On Tuesday of this week, my niece invited me to be a part of her baking sensation of a most yummy confection recipe taken from the Taste of Home Winning Recipes Cookbook called "Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars".  These are every bit as sweet and rich as they sound!

Prior to Tuesday, she has made this recipe a couple of times.  Once with her Grandma, and then she tried once on her own.  Her dad absolutely loves this recipe!
In the past for about 5 years, I had co-hosted a summer Bible study for girls in grades 6 through 9.  During this time together we would meet to do a Bible study for approximately an hour and then for the last hour we would do some creating of art projects, or cooking projects!  My niece had waited for her chance to be a part of this group called the Appleseeds for quite a while.  Last year was her first year!  She learned some fun things, one being how to make individual Apple Pies and each girl also got to learn how to make pie crust.  Each time we got together, whatever the project was, they either took the craft home, or as in the case of the Apple Pie making time, each girl got her very own apron with the word Appleseeds embroidered on the front with neon green thread.  Each girl wore their apron proudly that day as they were making their pie crust and apple pies!!

When I arrived on Tuesday to Grandma and Grandpa's house, my niece was once again wearing her Appleseeds apron proudly!!!  She had also already read her recipe

and had all her ingredients measured out and in containers.  She learned this technique from her experience in making this particular recipe the time she made it on her own.  Believe me, all good cooks, bakers, chefs, professional cooks have had this experience one or more times in their lives, if not, they wouldn't be where they are today.  After all I believe I once heard someone say,

"Failure is the key to success; each mistake teaches us something."

 After I arrived and sat down at the bar to watch I could tell she had been cooking a little bit more since our fun time last summer.

That is because of how she used the utensils with ease and knew how important it was to keep referencing back to the recipe to make sure she wasn't skipping any steps.

It was not only a fun time watching her create this wonderfully oooooey, goooooey recipe, it was a great time for the three of us girls to just talk about and remember different fun past times in the kitchen cooking!  It was also a time learning baking terms and how to use a rubber scraper and mixer properly and comfortably.

I remember a time not too long ago in my mind, when my own Grandma Virginia (would be great-grandma Virginia to my niece) took time to show me how to cook/bake, what different cooking terms meant and how to use kitchen tools properly so that you were working smarter and not harder.

I feel very strongly that we must NEVER allow the fast pace of the 21st Century and beyond to push us away from grandma's, mothers, aunts, daughters, grand-daughters, nieces, or even just good friends coming together to learn from one another.  Whether it be an art project, sewing, embroidering, knitting, crocheting, flower gardening, vegetable gardening, canning, cooking or raising our kids we girls must keep all these traditions alive and well!

Thank you Miss J for inviting your Aunt Laura over to watch you having so much fun creating, and for allowing your sister and I to be your "official" tasters of the very first pieces when it came out of the oven!!!

These Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars were
 "So Licious!"

Here is my niece's recipe, taken from the
Taste of Home Winning Recipes Cookbook - Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

• Prep: 20 min. Bake: 45 min.
• Yield: 36 Servings

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Ingredients

• 3/4 cup shortening
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1-1/2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans
• FILLING:
• 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

• In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda; gradually add to the creamed mixture until blended. Fold in the chocolate chips and pecans.
• Set aside a third of the dough for topping. Press remaining dough into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Spoon over crust.
• Drop teaspoonfuls of reserved dough over filling. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and store in the refrigerator. Yield: 3 dozen.