White Chocolate Truffles with Green Tea Ganache

1/3 c heavy cream
3 green tea bags
24 oz white chocolate, finely chopped
1 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped

Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan and place tea bag in it. Remove from heat; cover and steep 5 minutes. Gently squeeze excess cream from bags back into remaining cream. Discard teabags.

Meanwhile, place 8 oz white chocolate in a bowl over simmering water. Melt, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Bring cream to a boil again and whisk into melted chocolate until smooth. Refrigerate until thick and stiff, about 3-4 hours.

Chill a baking sheet and line it with wax or parchment paper. Use a melon baller or spoon to shape chocolate into 3/4" balls on baking sheet. Mixture will be very sticky. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until chilled, 1-2 hours.

Temper remaining white chocolate and, using a fork or candy dipper, dip chocolates one at a time. Place on a lined baking sheet and refrigerate until set.

To decorate: melt dark chocolate in microwave on medium power for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave for 10-30 more second if necessary to melt completely. Scrape chocolate into a small plastic sandwich bag and snip off a small piece of one corner. Pipe decorations onto each truffle. Refrigerate until set.

NOTES
From "Chocolate Astrology" by Joy Nagy.
Untried.

White-Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

12 Oreo cookies, finely crushed
2 Tbsp butter, melted
3 (1 oz) squares white chocolate, divided
2 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 c raspberry preserves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cookie crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of an 8" square pan.

Melt two white chocolate squares.

Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until blended. Add melted white chocolate; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Pour over crust.

Bake 25-28 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool 5 minutes; spread with preserves. Melt remaining white chocolate and drizzle over cheesecake. Refrigerate 4 hours and cut into bars.

NOTES
From Kraft.
Untried.

White Chocolate Apricot Muffins

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1 Tbsp minced crystallized ginger (optional)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 oz white baking chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 c milk
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 c apricot preserves
1 Tbsp sugar

Combine first 6 ingredients in a medium bowl; whisk well. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Combine milk, butter, and egg; mix well. Add to flour mixture, stirring until just moist. Spoon about 1 Tbsp batter into each of 12 prepared muffin cups. Spoon 2 tsp preserves into center of each (do not spread); top with remaining batter. Sprinkle evenly with sugar. Bake at 400 degrees for 22 minutes or until muffins spring back when touched lightly in the center. Remove from pan; cool completely on wire rack.

NOTES
From Cooking Light.
Untried.

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Crust:
1 1/3 c graham cracker crumbs
1/4 c sugar
1 Tbsp butter, melted
3 c fresh raspberries

Filling:
24 oz cream cheese, softened
1 c sugar
1/4 c amaretto
2 Tbsp flour
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
3 oz white chocolate, melted
3 eggs
fresh raspberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

To make crust: Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter; press unto bottom and 1" up sides of a greased 9" springform pan. Wrap outside of pan with foil. Arrange berries in crust.

To make filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add next 6 ingredients and beat until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time; beat well after each. Pour into pan. Place pan in a large shallow pan with 1" hot water in the bottom.

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes at 325 degrees or until almost set. Cool to room temperature; cover and chill at least 4 hours. Garnish with fresh berries.

NOTES
From Cooking Light.
Untried.