The Week After Thanksgiving + One Last Treat

Remember how I said I was going to go back to my old ways of blogging; or at least try to post more than once every two weeks? Well it looks like that will not be possible until after finals.

Seriously, this semester has really tested my time management skills--and I wish I could say they're superb, but apparently they're not. Anyways, I couldn't even get around to my last installment of the Thanksgiving series until today. It was mainly due to the fact that I slacked all break long and then once I landed in Boston I realized how much work I had.

But here it is, the last--and my favorite--post about the Thanksgiving feast my cousin and I made a week ago.

Before anything though, let me state the facts. I have a huge sweet tooth. When I say that, I mean I'd rather skip a meal if it means I get to eat double the dessert. It's obviously not the best eating habit, but that's just the way I am.

For Thanksgiving I didn't skip dinner--as you can see from the previous posts--but I still had two servings of this delicious caramel cheesecake. That leads me to fact number two: my favorite desserts are by far cheesecake and carrot cake.

So here is the recipe to an absolutely delicious--but seriously, delicious--cheesecake. Enjoy!

Caramel Cheesecake (adapted from Joy the Baker)
Makes one 9-inch pie.
*Active time: 1 hour. Total time: 3 hours + cooling (overnight is best)

Crust:

• 10 oz ginger snap cookies
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1. Place two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Place cookies in a Ziploc bag and crumble using a rolling pin (or an empty wine bottle); until crumbs are fine. Transfer crumbs to a large bowl. Add sugar, salt and butter and mix until crumbs are moistened. 
3. Fill a 9-inch pie plate with crust and press against bottom and edges using your fingertips. Make sure the crust is pressed completely.
4. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool while you make filling.

Filling

• 2 blocks cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 1.3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Fill tea kettle with water and bring to a boil (this water will be used when cheesecake is in the oven).
2. Beat together cream cheese and sugar until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in salt until well incorporated. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until very well combined. Slowly beat in cream until mixture is creamy and luscious.
3. Pour cheesecake into prepared crust and set aside. Fill a 9x13-inch baking dish with boiling water and place in lower third of the oven. Place cheesecake on upper third of the oven and bake for 50 - 60 minutes, or until it is slightly browned and puffed. Once cheesecake is puffed and it doesn't jiggle in the center when moved, prop oven open using a towel and continue baking for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

Caramel:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. In a medium saucepan, heat sugar, water and corn syrup over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally; boil until caramel browns, about 5-10 minutes, make sure caramel doesn't go past an amber color. Remove from heat immediately and add cream and butter; caramel will bubble. Stir well and add salt until incorporated. 
2. Transfer caramel to bowl and cover with plastic wrap (caramel may seem light, but once it's cooled it will thicken). Cool in refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or overnight. 
3. When ready to use, if caramel is too thick to pour, heat in microwave for 10-second intervals, stirring well after each interval. Pour caramel over cooled cheesecake.

*Cool finished cheesecake in refrigerator until ready to serve.