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Another gem from yours truly *hic* mmm brandy *hic hic*

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This recipe contains alcohol. Please use it and in your recipes responsibly.

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Cheesecake to charm the senses from the kitchens of chrismukkah

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Just in time for the holidays, if you folks want to make these...and while I happened to use Pumpkin Egg Nog for these, you can use any kind of Egg Nog (Golden, Vanilla, Jack Daniels, even soy egg nog....anything except low fat :P)

Eggnog Cheesecake Bars
Yield: 18 bars
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Bake Time: 1 hour, total

Crust:

12 graham crackers, finely ground (1½ cups of crumbs)
* I actually used crushed up Almond Crescent cookies, from Keebler- if you ARE going to use cookies of ANY kind, instead of the grahams, LEAVE OUT the 3 tablespoons of sugar. I also cut down the sugar in general- only used 1/2 cup instead of 3/4ths- I think this is a plus, it lets the pumpkin and cheese flavors shine!)

¾ cup + 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided (see above note)
2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
16 ounces (2 blocks) cream cheese, at room temperature (and you can use Less fat Neufchatel...I actually used one block regular and one block Neuf)

Filling:

2 eggs } Make sure you separate ALL of the eggs, and have the
1 egg yolk } whites in a separate metal bowl, chilling in the fridge!

¾ cup pumpkin eggnog
*IF you want more of a pumpkin flavor, use maybe ½ cup of canned pumpkin (NOT that pumpkin pie filling, that crap is just...wrong >_<)

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon brandy
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon + 1½ teaspoons all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus extra for dusting
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch or 9-inch square baking pan, then line with parchment paper; set aside.

2. Stir together the graham cracker crumbs, 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar, and the melted butter. (If you use cookies, again, skip the sugar, you really dont need it) Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until the crust is just brown around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool.

3. Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining ¾ cup granulated sugar and beat for an additional couple of minutes, until smooth. Add the yolk, eggnog, brandy and vanilla and beat again until completely combined and smooth. Finally, beat in the flour, nutmeg and salt and mix until smooth.

Now as for those egg whites:

Take those out of the fridge- you can also add a touch of cream of tartar-
and use your electric mixer to beat into white foamy peaks. GENTLY FOLD the egg whites into the filling until blended.

4. Pour the filling over the crust. Set the pan in a larger pan (a 9×13-inch works for this), and add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the baking pan. Bake until just set, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the baking pan from the water bath, and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool for 30 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.

5. Cut into 1½x3-inch bars. Lightly dust the tops of the bars with freshly grated nutmeg just before serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Note: If you don’t wish to use the brandy, you can simply omit it.
(Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart)

These will be the lightest, fluffiest and tastiest cheesecake bars you will make in your entire life, no joke. I happen to like the method of 'fluffing' a cheesecake since more often than not they come out way too heavy!!!

Enjoy the fattening goodness folks :P

ALSO PLEASE NOTE (almost forgot) - PLEASE be careful when cutting these/serving, because the one drawback to a fluffy cheesecake is that it falls apart on you XD)


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