Smoked Bleu Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts Wrapped In Bacon

 Last week, I wound up buying a container of smoked bleu cheese. I had initially thought that I would include this on Bob's requested charcuterie board for Thanksgiving, but I thought there was more than plenty to remake one of my published recipes on allrecipes.com, Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken Breasts Wrapped In Bacon. I used to prepare this recipe quite often, several years ago, but had gotten away from it. It's always nice to revisit (and revamp) one of your highest rated recipes, I think.

I got away from adding anything to the bleu cheese. I figured with the smoke flavor, it didn't need any added ingredients, like shallot or parsley. Also, with the bacon and the cheese, this definitely did not need any added salt.

This also differs from the original recipe in that I baked these on a rack this time.

I baked these on a lower temperature than I did with the original recipe. I found that lowering the temp, even though I had them in the oven for over an hour, resulted in a much juicier version. These were not dried out at all.

Dinner, last night, was a sheer pleasure.


Smoked Bleu Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts Wrapped In Bacon

 

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup smoked bleu cheese
4 slices of pepper bacon
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Penzeys Spices Parisien Bonnes Herbes blend
Cracked black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut a pocket into each chicken breast, without cutting all the way through. Stuff 2 tablespoons of smoked bleu cheese into each pocket. Wrap each breast with 2 slices of bacon. Secure with toothpicks, if necessary. Sprinkle each breast with 1/2 teaspoon of Parisien Bonnes Herbes blend. Sprinkle with freshly cracked black pepper.
Place in oven and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F on a food thermometer. Let stand for 10 minutes, remove wooden picks and serve.

Vanilla Bourbon Cheesecake

 I may be channeling my inner Golden Girl here, but is there anything more delicious and decadent than a homemade cheesecake?
It's getting to be that time of year when everything turns to pumpkin spice, apples and all those delicious fall favorites. To me, it means that it is time to create a new cheesecake.

I have another blog post about making homemade vanilla extract. Click here to view that post. I find that vanilla and bourbon are a marriage made in heaven. I don't buy vanilla flavored spirits, but I will certainly make my own! I used some of my homemade vanilla Jack Daniels in this creation. These flavors scream fall to me.

This recipe starts out with 32 ounces of room temperature cream cheese. Do not use a lower fat or fat-free type of cream cheese. Now is not the time. Use the full-fat variety. Make sure it's at room temperature. Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature.

The first thing you want to do is spray a 10-inch spring-form pan with nonstick cooking spray. Then, assemble your graham cracker crust. Make sure to use brown sugar in your crust. It makes a difference in how the taste of the crust melds with the taste of the cheesecake.

Here is a photo of my homemade vanilla Jack Daniels. This is such a delightful fall flavored ingredient.

Everything gets blended up. Again, to reiterate, make sure all of your ingredients are room temperature.

The cream cheese mixture gets poured into the crust and it bakes up in just over an hour into something extraordinarily decadent and delicious.

Vanilla Bourbon Cheesecake


For the crust:

1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons pure cane sugar
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
7 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

For the filling:

32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup pure cane sugar
2/3 cup sour cream, room temperature
4 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1 pinch of sea salt
3 tablespoons vanilla infused bourbon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
To make crust:
Mix all crust ingredients in a large bowl and press into bottom of a 10-inch spring-form pan. Set aside.

To make filling:
Blend cream cheese, with a mixer, until light and fluffy. Beat in sugar until it is dissolved. Add sour cream and mix to just combine. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing to just combine. Add salt and vanilla infused bourbon.

Pour into prepared crust. Put in preheated oven, on center rack, for 75-85 minutes, or until the center looks jiggly, much like jello. Turn off the oven and prop open the oven door with a wooden spoon and set a timer for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove cheesecake from oven to a rack to cool for another hour. Chill in refrigerator at least 6 hours to overnight.
Refrigerate leftovers.