But the fourth snowfall of the month was swirling fiercely, so we did the next best thing: We tried a new recipe for Cheesecake Tart with Salted Caramel Sauce.

The recipe is courtesy U.S. Apple Association. It makes the cheesecake in a tart pan instead of a spring mold, so the pieces are half the height (and half the calories). Other tasty variations:

Ingredients For 10 servings

Crust Ingredients

 
Filling Ingredients

1. PULSE the hazelnuts in the bowl of a food processor, until they have the texture of coarse sand. Add the butter, sugar, flour, and salt, and pulse again until the mixture comes together and forms a dough.

2. GATHER the dough into a ball, then press into the bottom and sides of a 10 or 11-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Transfer to the freezer and chill for at least 15 minutes.

3. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F and set a rack to the lower position. Rinse out the bowl of the food processor, then set it back on the base and add the cream cheese, sugar, cream, egg, vanilla, and salt. Process until evenly mixed, about 1 minute.

4. SET the tart pan on a baking sheet and pour the cheese mixture into the shell. Arrange the apple slices around the tart, pressing them lightly into the filling. Transfer to the oven and bake until the filling is set and the crust is lightly browned, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with salted caramel sauce (recipe below).

RECIPE #2: SALTED CARAMEL SAUCE

Ingredients For 2 Cups

 
Preparation

1. POUR water into a 3- to 4-quart saucepan and set over high heat. Add the sugar in a mound in the center of the pot.

2. COVER the pot and cook until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to bubble. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering until the mixture turns a pale amber, 12 to 15 minutes. Do not swirl or stir during this time.

3. REMOVE the lid and watch the caramel closely. When it turns a darker amber color, remove it from the heat and carefully add the cream. There will be a burst of steam, so be careful.

4. ADD the teaspoon of kosher salt and stir. Serve warm.
  
 
 

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

By using data collected from common food searches at The Daily Meal and many of the country’s other leading search engines and food websites, the writers developed a comprehensive list of the most searched food terms of 2013. They then took the research a step farther to find out what recipes America loves to make with those foods and how many times each recipe was searched.

Finally, they crafted a unique algorithm to yield a search score and rank.

AND THE FAVORITES ARE…

25. Chicken wings
24. Deviled eggs
23. Guacamole
22. Fish tacos
21. Mashed potatoes
20. Crock pot chicken

Continuing on, we get to the two sweets that made the list (which doesn’t mean we don’t eat a lot of sweets—we just may be buying them for immediate gratification.
 
19. Apple pie
18. Choc chip cookies
17. Mac and cheese
16. Hummus
15. Baked chicken
14. Burgers
13. Beef stew
12. Pasta sauce
11. French toast
10. Chicken soup
9. Chocolate chip
8. Spaghetti
7. Pizza
6. Meatball
5. Banana bread
4. Meat loaf
3. Lasagna
2. Pork chop
1. Chili
 
So what are you cooking tonight?

We have friends who are French cheese snobs. They grew up on it, they love it, and they only vary their choice when in need of Parmigiano-Reggiano for pasta or risotto.

So we wondered what we would do without the Cheddar, cream cheese, mozzarella, ricotta and other standards in the American diet. We gave the experts at Cheeses Of France a long list of favorite American recipes with cheese, and asked them to “Frenchify” it.

The recommendations are below. Before jumping in, we have an editorial note:

Each publication creates its own “style sheet”—a consistent set of editing choices from the options available, such as p.m. versus pm and farmers market versus farmers’ market or farmer’s market. THE NIBBLE chooses to capitalize proper names, such as American cheese versus american cheese and Champagne versus champagne. Raclette is not the name of a place (it means “to scrape”) and chevre means “goat,” so they normally would not be capitalized under our conventions. Brie and Morbier are villages on France, so we typically would capitalize them.

Now, on to the cheese. If we’ve left out any of your favorite cheesy dishes, let us know. And if you haven’t heard of particular cheeses, great: The voyage of discovery starts here.

And these wonderful cheeses are not just for recipes: They belong on your cheese plate as well!
 
SO MUCH GREAT FRENCH CHEESE TO SUBSTITUTE

 
Hungry yet? We’re off to make an omelet with one of our new discoveries, fromager d’affinois aux truffes. It was around for the holidays and we loaded up. It will be back again for Easter.

Look for it in gourmet/specialty food stores, Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe’s (theirs is called “truffle brie”) and some Costcos. If you love truffles, don’t miss it!

In the 1700s, the chocolate making process (like most cooking) was very time consuming. Chocolate, made from the cacao beans grown in the Caribbean and Latin America, became a favorite drink among the colonists.

American Heritage Chocolate, a division of the chocolate giant Mars, has recaptured the sophisticated flavors of that early hot chocolate, as well as the “eating chocolate” that was first created in 1847.

The division focuses on historically authentic chocolate. The company sends educators to historical sites around the country to demonstrate early chocolate making: roasting the cacao beans, winnowing off the shells, breaking the bean into nibs and flavoring them with sugar, salt and spices from around the world: annatto, anise, cinnamon, nutmeg, orange peel, red chile and vanilla.

On Presidents Day, February 17th, American Heritage Chocolate will be at the New York Historical Society in New York City, demonstrating the drink that was enjoyed by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

The kid-friendly demonstrations (held from 12 to 4) begin with the imported cacao beans, to the extraction of chocolate from the beans, to the finished hot chocolate. Attendees get to sample it, although the 21st century Cocoa Latte machine they employed sure beats the 18th century hand-whipping with a stick in a chocolate pot.

The entire process is on display, including all of the spices, plus the fascinating experience that even food writers will cherish: tasting the component parts of chocolate (the cocoa butter, the chocolate liquor and the milk powder that creates milk chocolate).

Participants also get to taste “chocolate sticks,” cylinders of chocolate that look historic but wouldn’t have been available until the second half of the 19th century (in time for Lincoln, but not for Washington and Jefferson).

AMERICAN HERITAGE CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS

The American Heritage Chocolate brand was developed in 2006 by Mars Chocolate North America to help educate consumers about the history of chocolate in America. The delicious products are sold exclusively at heritage sites and museums†, an exclusive revenue opportunity for those worthy organizations. You can find the site nearest to you online or online, including Colonial Williamsburg website.

The chocolate recipe was created from an ingredient list from 1750, and represents a true taste of the chocolate our ancestors would have enjoyed. The product line includes:

Individual portion chocolate sticks are 63% cacao and excitingly flavored. Photo by River Soma | THE NIBBLE.

And aside from being a bit of history, the products are truly delicious—and special. The spices wake up the palate in a way that the typical chocolate bar Americans enjoy cannot hope to do. Connoisseurs will love it, too.

The products are so special, they’re our Top Pick Of The Week.

This morning, we woke up and prepared a cup for Valentine’s Day.

 
†It is sold at more than 130 fine gift shops at historic sites, museums and historic inns across the U.S. and Canada.
  

The giftee can decorate a standard 3.5-ounce or a heart-shaped chocolate bar with the toppings of his/her choice.

First, the giftee picks the type of chocolate (dark, milk, white), from the fine Belgian producer Barry Callebaut. It can be topped with up to five selections from almost 100 choices:

You can send an e-gift card for $10 or more at Chocomize.com. (And design a bar or two for yourself, while you’re there.)

Next year, if you plan ahead, you can send all of your Valentines your own custom designs.