Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is the day for being thankful! I am thankful God gave me a gift for baking. I enjoy baking and I enjoy the joy others receive though my baked goods! Anyways, this is another dessert I made from all the apples I picked a couple months ago. This recipe is the perfect way to add a twist to your family get together. Tired of pumpkin and apple pies? Then, it is time for cheese cake!

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Servings: 8
Time: 1.5 hours
Difficulty: Hard
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Ingredients

Cheesecake

16 oz cream cheese

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp lemon juice

1/4 cup caramel sauce

1/2 cup sour cream

2 eggs, room temperature

Apple Topping and Filling:

3 apples, peeled and thinly sliced

1 tsp lemon juice

1/4 brown sugar

1/4 granulated sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

caramel for drizzling

Crust:

1 pack of graham crackers (about 8 sleeves)

1 tsp cinnamon

4 Tbsp brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F.
“Season” the Apples: Peel and thinly slice the apples. In a small bowl, mix together with sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice.
Make the Crust: Using a food processor, finely crush the graham crackers. Mix together with cinnamon, melted butter, and brown sugar. Line a foil pan with parchment paper or spray your springform pan with oil. Press crust onto parchment or oiled pan. Pre-bake the crust in oven for 8 minutes.
Make the Filling: In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugars on medium speed, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the the cinnamon, lemon juice, caramel, sour cream, and vanilla. Beat on low, each egg, one at a time until incorporated.
Baking the Cheesecake: Take the crust out of after 10 minutes. Form a single layer of apples on top of crust. Pour filling on top. Bake in oven at 350F for 30 minutes. Take out of the oven. Layer apples over the cheese cake and bake an additional 20-25 minutes. The center will still wobble and that is okay! Turn off your oven and crack the oven door. Let cheesecake cool in oven for 1 hour. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and pan and cool to room temp for an additional hour. Drizzle caramel over top. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours, but ideally overnight. Serve chilled.

A Little Experiment: Spring Form vs Foil Pan with Parchment Paper

If you look closely at the photos, you can tell the edges are not straight. Why is this, you may wonder? This particular cheesecake was not made in a springform pan because I attempted to see the outcome of baking a cheese cake in a foil pan with parchment paper. Do you travel for Thanksgiving, but don’t want to bring a springform pan? Maybe you forgot your springform pan? Maybe you don’t own one, and don’t feel like buying one?

Whatever your reason may be, here is what I noticed with the foil pan technique:

Baking Time was not affected
The parchment paper peeled off very easily
Still Taste Great
Doesn’t produce as beautiful of a cheesecake
More easily cracks (vs using a spring form with water bath)

Overall, you can still produce a beautiful and tasty cheesecake in a foil pan thats covered in parchment paper. It may not be as beautiful, but I am here to tell you it still works!