In the name of full disclosure: We love all cheesecake. We especially love chocolate cheesecake, Oreo cheesecake and pumpkin cheesecake.

So how happy are we today: It’s National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day. Here’s what we’re baking:

RECIPE: PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE WITH
GINGERSNAP CRUST

Ingredients For 10-Inch Cheesecake

Preparation

1. PREHEAT oven to 500°F. Create a bain-marie: Place a pan of water on the bottom rack (or the bottom) of the oven. This creates a moist environment and will help prevent the top of the cheesecake from cracking. (You can wait and add the bain-marie when you insert the cheesecake pan into the oven.)

2. COMBINE gingersnaps, walnuts, sugar and butter in a medium bowl. Press into the bottom and 1-inch up the side of a 10-inch non-stick springform pan. Set aside.

3. BEAT cream cheese, sugar and flour with an electric mixer until smooth. Add 5 eggs, one at a time, then vanilla, beating on low speed. Transfer 2-1/2 cups to a separate bowl; set aside.

4. BEAT 1 egg, pumpkin pie spice and pumpkin into the remaining filling until smooth. Pour half of pumpkin filling into crust, then half of the plain; repeat. Swirl gently with a spoon.

5. BAKE for 10 minutes; reduce temperature to 200°F and bake 30 minutes. Tent with aluminum foil and continue baking for 1 hour or until center appears nearly set.

6. RUN a knife around top of the cheesecake to loosen it from the pan. Turn off oven and open door to allow cake to cool gradually for 20 to 30 minutes in the oven.

7. REMOVE from oven and finish cooling on a rack for 15 minutes, then chill in refrigerator for at least 6 hours. Garnish and serve.
  

[1] Make it in advance. In the morning, just place it in the oven (photo © Kraft).

[2] To cube bread, day-old (or even two-day-old) is better (photo †© King Arthur Baking).

[3] Cook and crumble bacon (photo © iGourmet).

[4] Grate a brick of Cheddar (photo © Microplane).

We tried this do-ahead baked egg bake recipe this past weekend, and enjoyed the ease of doing the prep work in advance.

We rolled out of bed, turned on the oven to preheat, and within the hour were enjoying a sumptuous casserole.

The recipe calls for spinach, bacon, and Cheddar, but you can customize it as you like.

 
 
DO-AHEAD EGG BAKE (CASSEROLE)

The recipe is courtesy Kraft. Prep time is 20 minutes, cook time is 40-50 minutes.

Ingredients For 12 Servings

 
Preparation

1. WHISK eggs and milk in large bowl until well blended. Stir in bread. Add spinach, bacon and 1-1/2 cups cheese; mix lightly.

2. POUR into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. HEAT oven to 350°F. Bake, uncovered, 48 to 50 minutes or until the top is puffed and golden brown.
 
 
TIP: FRESH EGGS ARE THE BEST

You can make your egg dishes and baked goods even more flavorful with Eggland’s Best. Because the eggs are typically delivered to supermarkets within 72 hours of laying, they have a great fresh-from-the-farm taste.

Of course, your retailer needs to put the fresh eggs on the shelf, rather than stockpiling them in the warehouse. Check with the store manager to be sure.
 
 
TIP: DIAL DOWN THE CALORIES

You can save 50 calories and 6 g total fat per serving by preparing this recipe with cholesterol-free egg product, fat-free milk, turkey bacon and 2% milk shredded Cheddar cheese.
 
 
____________________
 
 
*You’ll need about half of 1-pound loaf of bread to get the 8 cups of cubes.
 
 
 
 

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

By the way, today is National Caramel Apple Day, a perfect day to make this cocktail. If you want to make actual caramel apples, here’s the recipe.

The difference between candy apples and caramel apples, and caramel apples vs. toffee apples, is below.
 
 
RECIPE #1: TOFFEE APPLE (CARAMEL APPLE) MARTINI

Ingredients For 1 Drink

 
Preparation

1. SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled Martini glass.

2. GARNISH with an apple slice.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PLACE a handful of toffee in the bottom of a saucepan and add half a cup of warm water.

2. COOK over gentle heat, stirring until the toffee is dissolved. Allow it to cool.
below 

 
 
CARAMEL APPLES VS. TOFFEE APPLES

Caramel apples are the same as toffee apples; the former term is more popular in the U.S., the latter in the U.K. However, caramel candy is different from toffee candy, and the term “toffee apple,” while prevalent, is not accurate.

Both caramel and toffee are made by combining sugar, butter, and water. Caramels add milk or cream (and sometimes, flavors) and are cooked at a lower heat, to the firm-ball stage (248°F). Both of these factors make them softer and chewier than toffee.

So if it’s soft, it’s caramel.

There are numerous sweets on the market called “toffee” that are actually caramel, including “toffee apples.” If the apple were coated in actual toffee, it would be even harder to bite into than the hard red candy apple coating.
 
Here’s more on the differences between butterscotch, caramel, taffy and toffy.
  
 
 

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