What's your feeling on Eggnog? 

December 1st comes every year and I have this dream in my mind; sipping on eggnog all day, doing all the Christmasy things - decorating the tree, listening to holiday music, pulling out all the good pairs of holiday pjs.

And while I love to do all the Christmasy things, the one thing that gets old fast is the eggnog sipping, if it even happens at all.

I seem to forget every year that sipping on eggnog really isn't my thing. I'll have maybe one rum and eggnog or a latte, then the bottle will sit in the back of the fridge until I find it again. And by then it’s waaaay past its expiry date. You know, that moment where I'm afraid to open it because I'm not sure what I'm going to see - and smell ;(.

So I had that bottle in the fridge a few years again, but this time I was determined not to let it go to waste. Instead of sipping, I'm baking with it. Because that’s what we do here, right? Get creative and play around with ingredients to create something new. The first experiment was cheesecake and all I can say is this now a reason for me to buy eggnog.

One I can get behind for real because let me just say this one is a showstopper. Don’t believe me? Just scroll down and you’ll see. The cranberry curd is the most gorgeous colour, its tartness balances out the richness of the cheesecake perfectly. And because we can always use more sparkle in our lives, the sugared cranberries make for the perfect finishing touch….they also add something to your holiday cocktails - more on that down below.

This recipe isn't fast, it takes a few steps, making the curd, the crust, the filling and then pulling it all together but I promise it's worth it!

Eggnog Cheesecake with Cranberry Curd

Cranberry Curd:

• 2 cups cranberries

• 1/2 cup water

• 1 egg

• 3 egg yolks

• 3/4 cup sugar

• juice of one lemon

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Crust:

• 2 cups gingersnap crumbs (blend about 15-20 gingersnap wafers in a food processor until crumbs are formed)

• 1/4 cup packed dark-brown sugar 

• 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour  

• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt 

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted 

Filling:

• 3 8 oz bricks cream cheese, room temperature

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 3 tbsp all purpose flour

• 1 cup eggnog

• 3/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 4 large eggs, room temperature

Directions:

To make the cranberry curd:

In a small saucepan, combine the cranberries and water, cover, and place over medium heat. Cook until the cranberries pop and the liquid bubbles. Press the cranberries through a strainer with a wooden spoon. Be sure to scrape all the red puree on the underside of the strainer into the bowl to use. Pour the cranberry puree back into the saucepan, add the lemon juice, stirring until combined. Set aside.

Whisk together the egg yolks and egg until combined. While whisking, pour in sugar and whisk until a light yellow colour. Add the egg mixture to the cranberry puree in the sauce pan, and continue whisking until creamy and well mixed, about one minute. Place over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until the custard thickens and can coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 8-10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the butter, one cube at a time. Strain into a bowl or jar, cover surface with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

To make the crust:

Preheat the over to 350°F

In a large bowl, mix together gingersnap crumbs, brown sugar, flour, and salt. Add butter and stir until mixture is well combined. Press some of the mixture against the side of the bowl with your fingers. If the crumbs do not hold together, add cold water, a little at a time, up to 1 tablespoon, and stir to combine.

Press crumb mixture into an 8 inch springform pan, using the bottom of a water glass to evenly cover the bottom and sides.

Transfer to freezer and chill for 10 minutes.

Place pan on a baking sheet and bake until crust is fragrant and set, about 10 minutes. Transfer pie to a wire rack; let cool completely.

To make the cheesecake:

Reduce oven to 300°F

In a large mixer bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar and flour until well combined and smooth. Use low speed to keep less air from getting into the batter, which can cause cracks. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the eggnog and nutmeg and mix on low speed until well combined.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating slowly and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.

Pour the cheesecake filling into crust and spread evenly.

Place springform pan (covered with aluminum foil) inside another larger pan. Fill the larger pan with enough warm water to go about halfway up the sides of the springform pan. The water should not go above the top edge of the aluminum foil on the springform pan.

Bake for 1 hour and 30-40 minutes.

Turn off heat and leave cheesecake in oven with door closed for 30 minutes.

Crack oven door and leave the cheesecake in the oven for about 30 minutes.

Remove cheesecake from oven and chill until firm, 5-6 hours or overnight. Once chilled, remove the cheesecake from the pan and spread the cranberry curd evenly over the top. Finish with candied cranberries or powdered sugar.

**To make sugared cranberries; dissolve equal parts sugar and water in a pot over medium heat. Remove from the heat once the sugar has dissolved. Cool until room temperature. Toss cranberries in the simple syrup, then spread onto a cooling rack. Let the cranberries sit for 45 min. Toss the coated cranberries in sugar and let sit again on the rack for 45 minutes more. If not used in a few days, store in the freezer. These are also great as cocktail garnishes, slice them to slip on the side of a glass or just drop them straight in.**

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