Savory Cheesecake with Honeyed Walnuts

Today I have the pleasure of working with Mirassou on some great holiday entertaining ideas.

We're deep into holiday entertaining mode around here. Cocktail parties, appetizers before dinner, something special for New Year's Eve perhaps? I have some great wine and that needed a great appetizer to match. Wine and cheese is a given but a savory cheesecake is so much more impressive. And I promise you there won't be a sliver left because it's just too good.

This time I'm pairing it with Mirassou wines, a favorite of so many of my friends. They are actually the oldest winemaking family in America, crafting affordable California wines for the last 160 years. The Mirassou Moscato has a bright fruity aroma and the Mirassou Pino Noir has deep notes of cherry, vanilla and oak.

You can make this cheesecake milder with ricotta or goat cheese instead of the blue but I wanted to balance the fruity wines with the tang of the blue cheese and the sweet note of the honeyed nuts. Each wine went perfectly but provided a different flavor note. The cheesecake is rich and you don't need much but it all combined with the wines to make a perfect bite.

To help get your holiday entertaining started, Mirassou is offering a $3.00 coupon. Click here for more details on how to redeem.

by Hungry Couple

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 30 Minutes

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Ingredients (8 Servings)

• Crust:
• 1/3 Cup seasoned Panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 Cup walnuts
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 
  
• Filling:
• 8 oz. Cream cheese
• 4 oz. Blue cheese
• 1/4 Cup sour cream
• 2 Tablespoons chopped chives
• 1 Egg
• 1 Teaspoon lemon juice
• Pinch black pepper
• 
  
• Topping:
• 1/2 Cup walnuts
• 1 Tablespoon honey

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Add the walnuts to the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times. Add the breadcrumbs and the melted butter and pulse until the mixture is combined. Press it into the bottom and sides of a 4" spring-form pan.

Wipe out the bowl of the food processor with a paper towel and then add the cream cheese, blue cheese, sour cream, egg, lemon juice and pepper. Puree until fully combined, add the chives and pulse a couple more times to combine.

Pour the batter into the prepared spring-form pan, place on a baking sheet to catch drips and bake for approximately 30 minutes. If you notice that the top is getting too brown during baking, simply cover it with a sheet of aluminum foil. The cheesecake may puff up like a souffle during baking but will settle smoothly once it's cooled.

Allow to cool thoroughly, or ideally overnight, before removing from the pan. Before serving, combine the walnuts and honey, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast in a pre-heated 400 degree oven for 8 - 10 minutes. Sprinkle on top of the cheesecake before serving with crackers and wine.

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This is a sponsored post, written by me, on behalf of Mirassou.