I came upon this recipe about a year ago, and every time I make it, everyone goes on about it. I have become known for making the best turtle cheesecake. I took this to the office last week for our holiday get together and it was gone in no time. I am a huge cheesecake fan and this is probably my #1 favorite. The first time I made it, I thought the crust (including the caramel layer) was a little thick so I cut back on the ingredients for the crust and caramel layer just a bit. Another time I made it, I messed up and added the pecans to the wafer/butter crust. I ended up loving the mess up. Now, whenever I make it, I always add some extra pecans into the crust. Also, I add a few extra chocolate chips to make the batter a little more chocolatey! The last thing I would recommend is to butter the sides of the springform pan before you add the batter over the caramel/pecan layer.
To make the cheesecake look like you picked it up from the bakery, drizzle chocolate and caramel ice cream topping over the top of the cheesecake. First, remove the ring of the springform pan from the cheesecake. Then, heat about 1/4 c. of both the caramel and the chocolate in the microwave for a few seconds. Cut the corner of a ziploc bag and drizzle the caramel over the cheesecake in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Then do the same with the chocolate. Any cracks or flaws on the top of the cheesecake will be hidden and it looks so professional!
Turtle Cheesecake
- 2 c. vanilla wafers
- 6 T. unsalted butter
- 14 oz (1 bag) caramels
- 1 (5 oz) can evaporated milk
- 1 c. chopped pecans
- 3 pkgs cream cheese
- 1/2 c. sugar
- 1 1/2 t. vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 c. chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter springform pan. Toast pecans at 350 degrees for 6 minutes. In small saucepan, melt butter. Combine wafer crumbs with melted butter and press into pan. Place on cookie sheet and bake 10 minutes. Cool. In double boiler, melt caramels in the evaporated milk. Stir until smooth and pour over crust. Sprinkle nuts on top. In a bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth. Add eggs 1 at a time and beat until smooth. Melt chocolate chips in double boiler and mix into cheese mixture. Pour batter over caramel layer. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Chill overnight before serving.
