Pomegranate Goat Cheese Bars with Red Wine Balsamic Syrup

For the syrup:
Place all the syrup ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and turn the heat to low. Simmer for 45 minutes or until there’s about three teaspoons syrup as well as the pomegranate seeds, let cool.

For the bars:
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 13 x 9 inch baking tray with foil and set aside.

Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until soft. Add the brown sugar and mix until fluffy, Add the salt and the flour and mix on low, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Mix on low until the dough comes together and is no longer dry or crumbly.

Place the dough into the baking tray and using your hands, push the dough out towards the edge of the tray making it as level as possible. Pat it flat and place in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes and golden brown. When done remove it from the oven and allow to cool.

Once the base has cooled, using a pastry brush paint a very light coating of the syrup/seed mixture onto the base.

In the clean bowl of your stand mixer beat the cream cheese and the goat cheese until smooth.

Add the sugar and the flour to the cheese and mix until combined. Add the egg and egg yolk, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix on low scraping down the sides of the bowl at least once and continuing until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Pour the cheesecake mixture over the base making sure it’s level. Take a teaspoon and drop spoonfuls of the syrup/seed mixture randomly over the cheesecake. You can drizzle the syrup and use as much as you like.

Place into the oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until no longer jiggly in the center. It will firm up a bit as it cools.

Can be eaten after it cools but is best kept in the fridge overnight and served the next day. Dust well with powdered sugar just before serving.

Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens.