Salted Caramel Cheesecake
We recently celebrated Blondie’s 10th birthday & guess what that boy requested for his birthday cake?? ((Well, you probably don’t need to guess, since I gave it away in the title & featured photo…)) So, good job! You are right. He picked cheesecake. Originally, he had an elaborate idea of making me stack a cookie, birthday cake and layers of buttercream on top of a vanilla cheesecake and I quickly, and nicely, refused.
We started brainstorming flavor ideas and after a few minutes it hit me – the perfect flavor :: salted caramel. Shep was immediately locked in – he LOVES my homemade salted caramel. The prospect of using it to make a cheesecake meant lots of taste-tests for the birthday boy.
To his disappointment, I made the cheesecake while he slept ((but I saved the drizzling for him, so “licks-a-plenty” were still in-store.
I used my go-to cheesecake recipe, making only a few adjustments in order to create the perfect Salted Caramel Cheesecake::
- the crust was a combination of Ritz and chocolate wafer cookies ((a little salty, a little sweet and a pop of chocolate — crazy good))
- replace granulated sugar with brown sugar
- fold in 4 oz of jarred salted caramel
- 5 additional minutes of baking time
The remainder of this simple, delicious, perfect cheesecake recipe stays the same!
Once the cheesecake cooled, I noticed ((kind of hard to miss, actually)) that my chilled salted caramel cheesecake had cracked during the cool-down phase. Boo.
Otherwise, the cheesecake was PERFECT. Isn’t that chocolate crust beautiful?? A cracked top really is no big deal — and I have the best solution…
Sweetened homemade whipped cream will cure what ails you! Let’s take an aerial view…
We could stop right there & I would be happy! But, a salted caramel cheesecake needs a little something extra — don’t you agree?
Let’s take a closer look –
Notice the little flakes of salt over the salted caramel? How about how that perfectly thickened homemade salted caramel sauce runs over the edge of the cheesecake, across the buttery chocolate crust and pools onto the plate. I had to refrain from “cleaning” all of that up.
Somebody was pleased.
- 1 pkg of original Ritz
- 3/4 pkg chocolate wafer cookies
- 1 stick butter ((I prefer salted))
- 5 8 oz pkgs cream cheese
- 1 1/2 c packed brown sugar
- 2 1/2 t vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 3 eggs
- 1 pinch of kosher salt
- 4 oz salted caramel sauce
- 2 c heavy whipping cream
- 1/3 c granulated sugar
- 4 oz salted caramel
- several pinches of kosher salt
- Preheat oven to 350°. Using a food processor or by hand, crush cookies & crackers and cut in butter. Press crumbs into a 10" (large) cheesecake pan. Bake at 350° for 5 to 7 minutes. Remove and set aside until ready to add the filling.
- In a large mixing bowl, blend softened cream cheese on medium speed. Add brown sugar, eggs & vanilla. Blend for 2 minutes on medium-high speed until smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl periodically. Fold salted caramel sauce into the batter, leaving ribbons of sauce throughout. Pour filling into the baked crust, tap gently to remove air bubbles and bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Once cooking time is complete, turn the oven off and open the oven door. Allow the cheesecake to cool in the opened oven for 30-45 minutes. Remove from oven, cover with foil and refrigerate over night or for 8 hours.
- In a medium CHILLED** mixing bowl, combine cream & sugar. Whip on high-speed until peaks form and hold (about 90 seconds). Remove cooled cheesecake from fridge ((after 8 hours to overnight)), release the cheesecake pan and spread whipped cream over the cheesecake. Spread evenly, leaving peaks. Drizzle remaining salted caramel over the top of the whipped cream & sprinkle with salt. Chill for on more hour or until ready to serve.
- To serve, cut with a sharp serrated knife ((cleaning the knife between cuts)).
- *use either store-bought or make your own (there are several good recipes floating around). I occasionally make and sell jars of salted caramel. If you would like to order a jar from me, shoot me an email or leave a comment and we can easily make arrangements ((local people please))
- **Chill mixing bowl and beaters in the fridge for 20 minutes before making the whipped cream topping. This will make the process a lot easier.