Submitted by Jo Vanderwolf

About the cook: I've loved baking since I was very young. Developing recipes and sharing them with family and friends is a hobby I have enjoyed for a long time. Living in a small mountain town in British Columbia, Canada gives me access to some of the best fresh fruit and produce to create with.

About the dish: Fresh fruit, fluffy cheesecake, and decadent dark chocolate. You can't lose.

National Origin: Canadian

Serves: 15

Estimated Time: Under 30 Minutes

Ingredients:

15 large apricots, halved and pitted
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups Cool Whip
2 Tbsp graham cracker crumbs

Preparation:

Place prepared apricots on a cookie tray lined with plastic wrap, pat dry with a paper towel. Set aside.
Place the dark chocolate chips in a microwave safe glass and melt in 20 second increments in the microwave, stirring in between, until smooth.
Dip each apricot halfway into the melted chocolate, gently shake off excess, then place back on cookie sheet. Repeat until all the apricots are done. If the chocolate starts to harden up simply microwave for a few seconds again.
Set dipped apricots aside to solidify while you make the cheesecake filling. You can pop them in the fridge for a few minutes to speed up the chocolate hardening.
In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth, scraping sides of bowl as needed. Add in the brown sugar and vanilla and beat until well combined.
Stir in the Cool Whip.
Place filling in a piping bag (or a large Ziplock bag). Pipe filling into each apricot half.
Sprinkle each with a pinch of graham cracker crumbs to finish.

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