Mini Nutella Cheesecakes and a perfect Sunday

Long, LONG time, no post. I apologize. You see the problem is...most afternoons with my free time I find myself scouring blogs and recipe for that next thing I just HAVE to make. And most days I link the recipe to my Facebook page proclaiming, "Look! My next project!" Rarely, though, do I follow up with you on with fails and wins of those recipes. I would you see but with work, and chores, and errands, and day to day life blogging often starts to feel more like a chore than a way to relax and share. But moving forward I am going to make a more concerted effort to blog more frequently and keep you updated with all of the going ons in my kitchen and my life.

Today for example is a typical lazy Sunday around the house. Jeff and I sleeping in, watching sports (WHO DEY!!!) and eating some really good, comforting food. I so love this time of year when the house is just a little too chilly in the morning from the windows being open all night and I can see the steam coming up from my cup of hot tea (Earl Grey is my current jive). In the fall my Sunday mornings are usually spent making chili or soup, stuffed to the brim casseroles, or hearty meat loafs. But this morning, a day marked with sadness over another year without my father, my emotional needs took over and thus... I spent it making Mini Nutella Cheesecakes.

I found this recipe on foodandwine.com last night and put my cream cheese/eggs out over night to come to room temperature. I promise you, this is important. With cheesecakes especially you want your cream cheese to be nice and soft so you don't get tiny chunks of it in your batter. I'll also note that I always leave my eggs out over night before baking and have never once been ill from it. The batter is VERY easy to make, the hardest part being measuring out the Nutella without eating it, and was just the right amount to fill 12 regular size muffin cups. When I make them again, not if but when, I will add about 1/4 cup of dark cocoa powder to the batter because, well, I am a chocoholic and just needed a tad bit more. Also, the texture? So luscious and smooth. Really the perfect, tiny dessert. No entire cheesecake to stare down.

But make these. Soon. <3

*Note:

I did not follow the directions to the letter on the crust feeling very lazy this morning. Instead I just used 1 whole Oreo in the bottom of the muffin liner. While the perfect size and no real tragedy coming from it both Jeff and I agreed that it was just so-so tasting and following the recipe might have taken this trial from a 8 to a 10!

RECIPE:

Ingredients-

15 Oreo cookies
2 Tablespoons softened butter
2Tablespoons raw or roasted, skinned Hazelnuts
1- 8oz. block of cream cheese
2- large eggs, room temperature
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 sour cream
3/4 cup Nutella
1/4 dark cocoa powder, you can use any cocoa powder really
mini chocolate chips to top with

STEPS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. 
2. In a food processor, combine the cookies, hazelnuts and butter and process to very fine crumbs. Divide the crumbs among the cups and, using a flat-bottomed glass, press on the crumbs to compact them. Bake for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, wipe out the food processor bowl. Add the cream cheese, Nutella, sour cream, eggs and sugar and puree until smooth. Spoon the filling into the cups until it nearly reaches the top; there may be a few tablespoons of leftover batter. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top and bake for about 20 minutes, until the cheesecakes have risen and the surfaces are lightly cracked. Let the cheesecakes cool slightly, then transfer the muffin tin to a rack and freeze for 10 minutes, until the cheesecakes are slightly cooled. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/mini-chocolate-hazelnut-cheesecakes