Pecan Pie Cheesecake
Do you love the taste of pecan pie and cheesecake? If so, you're going to fall in love with this Pecan Pie Cheesecake! It's a beautiful combination of the two that is certain to make your taste buds happy.
Servings 12
Ingredients
FOR THE CRUST:
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1 cup ground pecans
- ¼ cup ground pecans
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- a pinch of salt
FOR THE CHEESECAKE:
- 3 8 ounce packages of cream cheese - softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp corn starch
FOR THE TOPPING:
- 2 cups chopped pecans, or pecan pieces
- ½ cup butter
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- ¼ cup white sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- ¾ cup corn syrup
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large microwave safe bowl, melt the stick of butter for the crust.
- Place the pecans in a small blender and pulse until ground, or crumb-like. Add the graham cracker crumbs, ground pecans, sugar, and salt to the melted butter, and stir well to coat. Line the bottom of a 9 inch spring-form pan with Parchment paper, and press the graham cracker crust mixture evenly into the pan. Place the Spring-form pan/crust into the freezer.
- In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, place the softened cream cheese, and heavy cream, and blend until smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla, and eggs, one at a time, and blend well.
- Add the corn starch, and mix until well blended. Remove the crust from the freezer, and pour the cheesecake filling into the spring-form pan. Place in the oven at 425 degrees for 20 minutes, and then turn the heat down to 300 degrees and bake an additional 45 minutes.
- If the cheesecake cracks on top during baking, that's okay, because you'll be adding the topping. and it won't be visible. Once the cheesecake is baked, Take it out of the oven, and place on the counter white you make the topping.
- PLEASE READ*******(I placed my Spring-form pan (with the cheesecake in it) in a larger spring-form pan to prevent the topping from running over the sides - and added foil to the outside of the spring-form pan the cheesecake is in; you don't have to place it in another pan, I just did that to prevent a spill. You can just place foil under the cheesecake in the oven - but, you do need to wrap the spring-form pan the cheesecake is in, in foil, as it will prevent the crust from burning, because you're going to bake it again to set the topping).
- To make the topping; in a heavy saucepan, add the butter, and heat until melted. Add the pecans, brown sugar, white sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream and vanilla, and cook on low until all blended. add the flour, and stir well to thicken.
- Place foil around the outside of the Spring-form pan the cheesecake is in, and up the sides, to prevent topping from running over. Pour the topping over the cheesecake, and return to the oven.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or until the topping is thick, set, and golden brown. (you can stick a toothpick in the topping to see if it has set up, and no longer runny). Remove from the oven, and allow to cool to room temperature - about 3 hours.
- When cooled, wrap in parchment paper and then in foil, and refrigerate overnight for best results. (I refrigerated mine for 24 hours before serving). Serve in 2 inch pieces, and Enjoy!
Notes
NOTE: There are many recipes for Pecan Pie Cheesecake; I found this combination worked best, and was by far the easiest recipe to follow with the best results. You can place the cheesecake on a cookie sheet to bake if preferred, but make sure you wrap the spring-form pan in foil to bake the topping. This Cheesecake is best when made 1 to 2 days before serving, and then refrigerated for hours and hours to allow it time to completely set.