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Elizabeth's Eggnog Cheesecake Bars

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    "I was raised in a Jewish family in Los Angeles, so I didn't celebrate a white Christmas," Elizabeth Colling says. But there was always eggnog. "I just love that flavor." She worked the holiday drink into cheesecake bars, dense on the bottom, silken on top. She spikes them with brandy for a grown-up taste and dusts them with fresh nutmeg.
    Martha Stewart Living, December 2009
    • Yield Makes 18
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    Ingredients

    • Vegetable oil cooking spray, for pan
    • 12 graham crackers, finely ground (1 1/2 cups)
    • 3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
    • 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
    • 1 pound cream cheese, room temperature
    • 2 large eggs
    • 1 large egg yolk
    • 3/4 cup eggnog
    • 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
    • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon brandy
    • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for dusting
    • 1/4 teaspoon salt

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Stir together graham crackers, 3 tablespoons sugar, and the melted butter. Press into bottom of pan. Bake until crust is just brown around the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool.
    2. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, the eggs, yolk, eggnog, flour, brandy, vanilla, nutmeg, and salt; beat until smooth. Pour filling over crust. Set pan in a roasting pan, and add enough hot water to come halfway up sides of baking pan. Bake until just set, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove baking pan from water bath, and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool slightly, about 30 minutes. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
    3. Cut into 1 1/2-by-3-inch bars. Lightly dust tops of bars with freshly grated nutmeg just before serving.

    Recipe Reviews

    • phipi
      22 Feb, 2012

      I found out that is much easier to use food processor instead of mixer to hand. le cream cheese. I added egg and gave it further spin for 30 sec. Then put the rest of the ingredients and gave a few pulse to mix it.

    • megan88
      10 Dec, 2011

      These were pretty easy to make. Please, a word of caution though. If you have never used a water bath, be careful. I suggest putting the cheesecake pan into the roast pan and slowly adding a bit of water. I made the mistake of adding far too much water, then setting my cheesecake in the pan and it was submerged. I had to remake it. But, the second time it turned out great. I'm not sure what the best way is to do this, but it was tricky. Just, be careful! And, take your time.

    • ajwashurn
      26 Apr, 2011

      I made these bars for christmas dinner at my in-laws last year and they were a hit. I LOVE eggnog and thought that the recipe captured all of the flavors perfectly.

      I will be making these again.

    • AmyFlavoristAndFoodie
      15 Dec, 2010

      I made this in a 10" tart pan, no water bath, and baked for exactly 40 min. It turned out great! This recipe really captures the flavor of eggnog and I will be making every Christmas season. My friends really liked it too.

    • phalterman
      13 Dec, 2010

      I made these, and my husband and i devoured it.
      However, i had forgot to buy gramh crackers, but happened to have a two packages of premade keebler mini grahmn pie crusts.. and used those.. they were perfect. I put them in a pan and filled the water to the underside of the pie tins. They came out great. I did bake them longer, cuz i like a browed crust on teh top of my cheesecake. (2-4minutes)

    • carlybabcock
      12 Dec, 2010

      I made these last weekend for a Christmas party and they were devoured! I used fresh nutmeg and fresh vanilla and they turned out delicious...the only thing was that the crust was a bit crumbly.

    • jocasti
      11 Dec, 2010

      Just discovered this recipe....sounds soo good! I love egg nog. Thanks for the hints!

    • nancijr
      14 Mar, 2010

      how much longer is longer? I would love to make them

    • KarenAtl
      26 Dec, 2009

      These need to bake MUCH longer than the recipe calls for. From what I could tell, they tasted great but that was just picking around the edges.

    • ahughes
      26 Dec, 2009

      I made these as a treat for our family Christmas and they were a HUGE hit. Mine needed to bake a little longer than the recommended time, but other than that they were exceptionally easy to make and fantastic to eat! :)

    • catelovinlife
      24 Dec, 2009

      i just made these on monday night (w/o the brandy) and the flavor was amazing... do keep an eye out though... mine definitely should have baked longer... but WOW! what an incredible flavor and so holidays!

    • Henrie
      23 Dec, 2009

      I will make these without brandy. It is too expensive to buy just for one recipe.

    • sungoddess1982
      22 Dec, 2009

      has any one tried these without the brandy? I don't have any and don't have time to go get it before the party.

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