Recipe Friday: 'Tis the Season

Preheat the oven for 350 degrees

Blend the graham crackers until fine in a food processor.

Add sugar and cinnamon, and blend to combine. Add the melted butter and blend again.

Pour the mixture evenly into a greased muffin pan, about 1 inch thick (you may have some leftover). Press the crust down tight (you can use a small glass bottle).

Bake the crust alone for 8 minutes

In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to blend the cheesecake filling. Mix everything in a bowl until SMOOTH.

Pour the filling on top of the crust. (you may have leftover, you can use it to make crustless cheesecake!!)

Bake the cheesecake at 350F for 20 – 25 min.

Turn off the oven and leave the eggnog cheesecake in with the oven door cracked open for 10 – 15 minutes (the top of the mini cheesecake will puff up like muffins when they are in the oven. They will come down once cooled)

Let the cheesecake cool for an hour or so and refrigerate for 3 – 4 hours

Serve with whipped cream, crumbled graham cracker or just as it is! Enjoy

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium mixing bowl. In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk eggs, eggnog and melted butter. Gradually stir dry ingredients into wet to form a sticky dough.

Heat waffle griddle to medium-high heat. Grease waffle griddle with cooking spray. Using a small ice cream scoop or cookie scoop, place1 tablespoon scoops of dough in the center of each section of griddle and close lid. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Gently remove cookies with a spatula and place on a wire cooling rack. Repeat with remaining dough.

Once cookies are cooled to room temperature, dust with powdered sugar and serve.

Heat oven to 350°F. BEAT eggs and eggnog in medium bowl until blended. POUR 1/2 of the egg mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. PLACE 6 bread slices in pan; turn slices over and let stand until egg mixture is absorbed. PLACE bread in single layer on well-greased baking sheet.

Repeat with remaining egg mixture and bread, using a second baking sheet.

Bake in 350°F oven, turning once, until browned on both sides and no visible liquid egg remains, about 30 minutes.

In a medium heavy bottom saucepan, beat eggs and sugar until blended. Stir in 1 cup milk.

Cook over low heat, stirring continuously, until mixture just coats the back of a spoon, about 15-20 minutes, or until temperature reaches 160°F, but do not allow to boil.

Remove from heat, then stir in remaining milk and vanilla. Strain into a bowl, then refrigerate until completely chilled.

Place chocolate syrup in a shallow plate. Dip rim of 6 martini glasses into chocolate syrup to coat rims. Refrigerate to chill.

In a pitcher, stir together vodka, chocolate liqueur and eggnog.

Serve in chilled martini glasses and top with grated nutmeg. Refrigerate leftovers up to 3 days.