I went a twee bit overboard for the hubs’ birthday this year. Since I couldn’t decide between which cheesecake flavor blend to make (salted caramel or peanut butter cup), I ended up making both. Not even just both… I then made 2 different kinds of the peanut butter cup version. Granted, these were taken to birthday celebrations and such, so it’s not like we just sat around and ate 3 cheesecakes by ourselves. But honestly, we probably would have. They all came out SO deliciously, especially this one right here. The center has a layer of lusciously smooth and creamy salted caramel sauce that oozes out and tastes divine. And the brownie crust? Best thing ever! Thank you Pinterest for that idea. The list of ingredients and instructions looks a bit complicated, but it’s really very simple. Just a bit time consuming (but all cheesecakes are, really). This one is absolutely worth the time.
Just look at all that gooey caramel sauce oozing out from the center. Don’t you want to take a big bite? (I know I do!)
Brownie-Bottomed Salted Caramel Cheesecake
Eating this cheesecake might actually be a thin slice of heaven (or a thick slice of heaven, depending on how you cut it). The list of ingredients/instructions looks overwhelming but it is actually one of the easier cheesecakes I have made (and by far one of the tastiest!)
Prep Time1 hr
Cook Time2 hrs
Total Time6 hrs
Servings: 12 to 14 slices, depending on how you cut it
Ingredients
For Brownie Crust:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 4 oz baking chocolate (broken into pieces - I like to use Ghirardelli)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 whole, large eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
For Cheesecake:
- 2 (8oz each) bricks cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 2 whole, large eggs (room temperature)
For Salted Caramel Sauce:
- 1 (14oz) package individually wrapped sea salt caramels, unwrapped (or regular caramels plus fresh ground sea salt to taste)
- 1 (5oz) can evaporated milk
For Hot Fudge Sauce: (if making homemade. Not necessary, but it legit takes 5 minutes tops and is so worth it)
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 cup chocolate chips (standard is semi-sweet, but you could use milk chocolate if you prefer. It will just be very sweet)
- 1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
For Brownie Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour a 9 inch springform pan. Or, grease a 9 inch springform pan, line with a parchment paper circle, then grease the parchment circle and dust entire pan with flour. Set aside.
- Melt the butter and chocolate in pan over low heat, stirring frequently, until nice and smooth.
- Remove from heat and beat in sugar. Leave to cool 5 minutes, stirring constantly. (note: mixture will be grainy)
- Add the eggs and milk to the chocolate mixture, beating on medium speed if using a mixer to prevent the eggs from cooking. (if doing by hand you will need to mix as fast as you can)
- Stir in the flour, mixing until just blended.
- Spoon into the prepared pan, spreading evenly.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
- While the brownie crust bakes, make your salted caramel sauce. (side note - I recommend doing this while they bake, as I found that when I made it after they were done, it seems there wasn't enough time for it to cool enough to where it was more solid, which caused difficulty when putting the cheesecake batter on top)
For Salted Caramel Sauce:
- Melt the caramels with the evaporated milk over low heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.
- Stir frequently (or constantly) and heat until mixture has a smooth consistency.
- Set aside 1/3 cup of the caramel mixture, and pour the rest over the warm, baked brownie crust.
For Cheesecake:
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Pour cream cheese mixture over caramel mixture. (note: I found the mixture to be rather thick, also playing into the difficulty spreading it over the caramel sauce. I recommend dropping it by spoonfuls evenly over the caramel sauce and then lightly spreading it to even it out)
- Bake on the center rack of the oven cheesecake for 40 minutes or until cheesecake internal temperature at the center is at least 155 degrees F (but do not open the oven door to temp it until at least 30 minutes have gone by), then chill completely before decorating. (when done, turn the oven off and prop open the door a bit and leave the cheesecake in the oven for about half an hour. Then, remove the cheesecake to finish cooling on a wire cooling rack.
- When the cheesecake is thoroughly chilled, loosen by running a knife around the edge, and then remove the rim of the pan.
For Hot Fudge Sauce:
- If using pre-made fudge sauce, skip these steps.
- If making homemade fudge sauce, begin by melting the butter in a medium sauce pan on medium heat.
- Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Add the Sweetened Condensed Milk.
- Stir well to combine. The butter will take a bit to incorporate into the sauce and will be done when the sauce is smooth and silky (yum!).
For Decorating:
- Heat the 1/3 cup caramel mixture that you set aside earlier, and spoon over cheesecake. (or drizzle, if you're feeling fancy. My favorite method to drizzle is to put the caramel/fudge/whatever you're drizzling inside a sandwich-sized ziploc bag, then cut a small hole in one of the bottom corners, and then drizzle away. I do recommend conducting a test run on some wax paper first to make sure the drizzling sauce is coming out the way you want it to and if not, adjust the opening in the bag accordingly. Also, make sure your drizzling sauce isn't too hot when you put it in or it will melt the bag!)
- Drizzle some of your fabulous homemade fudge sauce over the cheesecake. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator (it makes a lot of extra).
Notes
**NOTE: This recipe is NOT Low FODMAP and is NOT approved for IBS, GERD/Acid Reflux/Heartburn**
For Cheesecake Tips, see Meredith's Cheesecake Tips
For Cheesecake Tips, see Meredith's Cheesecake Tips