Yes, this is as delicious as it sounds and yes, you should make it right now.

I had this ages ago at Boot and Shoe Service and was determined to make it some day. It is not a difficult recipe by any means and is essentially a fancy pudding, so it was definitely on the holiday list this season.

Think of this as a super silky crème brûlée, but without the brûlée part. I served this with brown sugar and vanilla whipped cream, plus a sprinkling of salt. Ah-mazing.

Salted Caramel Pot de Crème

adapted from Closet Cooking

1.5 c heavy cream
1/2 cup caramel
dash of salt
4 egg yolks
1 t vanilla

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir the cream, caramel, and salt together. Place the yolks and vanilla in a medium-sized mixing bowl and whisk together. Stir the cream mixture until it comes to a gentle simmer. Slowly pour the cream mixture into the yolks, whisking constantly. If you do this too quickly, then the cream will cook the eggs and it will be gross! When the cream is completely added, pass the mixture through a sieve (I didn’t do this part and it was fine, but if you want to be precise…) and pour into ramekins. The orignal recipe called for 4, but the 4 I had did not fit the entire mixture and I ended up with half in an 8×8″ Pyrex. Place in a baking dish and fill the baking dish with water until it comes halfway up the side of the ramekins. Bake at 300 for 50 minutes, or until the middle was set. Mine finished around 35 minutes, which is strange since the larger one was done at the same time as the small ones. Let cool to room temperature, toss on a dollop of whipped cream, and hey! Party time.

After a flutter of tweets this afternoon over preferred baked goods, I promised vaguely hinted to my coworkers that there might be treats waiting for them tomorrow morning. A request for cream cheese put me on a Pinterest hunt for something a bit new and different, and I was not disappointed in the slightest.

I was aiming for cream cheese danish, but all of the recipes seemed to call for crescent rolls and a trip to the store sounded odious.

*You’ll have to forgive my vocabulary tonight. I have been listening to my “Pride and Prejudice” audiobook and have adopted their vernacular as I pretend to be gliding elegantly through the English countryside, with Mr. Darcy at my side*

I landed on these Snickerdoodle bars, which had me drooling instantly. I. Love. Snickerdoodles. Such a perfect marriage of cinnamon, sugar, and doughy goodness has never been seen before, I am sure.

A quick coupling with a cream-cheese brownie recipe from Joy of Baking and I had landed on my opus.

These bars are delightfully fluffy with a ribbon of richness through them, thanks to the cream cheese filling. There is a slight crust from the cinnamon and sugar, which is a pleasant texture contrast that is quite appreciated.

You will need:
For the bars:
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon

For the cream cheese filling:
8oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 c sugar
1 t vanilla
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350. Beat the sugar and butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Beat in the sour cream. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, baking powder, and salt. Mix in on low speed until thoroughly incorporated.

In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and egg until smooth, but do not over mix.

Grease a 9″x 13″ pan with butter. Mix the cinnamon and sugar together and sprinkle half in the greased pan, making sure to shake it around thoroughly so that it coats the pan. Spoon 3/4 of the dough into the pan and spread gently into the corners. Spread the cream cheese on top and then spoon the rest of the dough as the final layer. Gently run a knife through the layers to slightly swirl it all together.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until just done. If you have trouble with this part, stick a knife into the center. If it comes out with any glisten of moisture, put it back in for a few more minutes. If crumbs cling to the knife, take it out immediately!

Nom!