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Rarely do I feel impressed with myself, but I was super proud of this cheesecake. I made this for Thanksgiving because my little bro, Jared, does not dig anything pumpkin or pecan, but he loves some cheesecake. This recipe was a first for me, but the thought of a turtle cheesecake sounded delicious to me. I turned to the Internet to find a recipe and settled on one from recipezaar. My favorite part of this cheesecake was the vanilla wafer crust and the layer of caramel and pecans that was poured onto the crust. This cheesecake was amazing…but next time I make it, I think I will leave the chocolate out of the cheesecake batter because I prefer plain cheesecake to the chocolate variety. I drizzled some caramel and melted chocolate on top and threw on some chopped pecans. If you love cheesecake, make this one…it will make your holiday season a little more delicious! 
Check out the caramel layer above the crust!!!
Turtle Cheesecake Adapted from RecipeZaar
Ingredients
2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 (14 ounce) package caramels
1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
2 cups chopped pecans, toasted and divided
4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels, melted and slightly cooled
whipped cream(optional)
Ingredients
2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 (14 ounce) package caramels
1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
2 cups chopped pecans, toasted and divided
4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels, melted and slightly cooled
whipped cream(optional)
Directions
1. Combine crumbs and butter; blend well.
2. Press into the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of a 10-inch springform pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until set; cool.
4. In a saucepan over low heat, melt caramels in milk, stirring until smooth. Cool 5 minutes.
5. Pour into crust; top with 1 1/2 cups of pecans.
6. Freeze for 15 minutes so ensure layer does not mix in with cream cheese layer.
7. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth.Add sugar and vanilla; mix well.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add chocolate; mix just until blended.
8. Carefully spread over pecans.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until filling is almost set.
10. Cool to room temperature. Chill overnight.
11. Garnish with drizzled chocolate, caramel, remaining pecans and whipped cream if desired.
1. Combine crumbs and butter; blend well.
2. Press into the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of a 10-inch springform pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until set; cool.
4. In a saucepan over low heat, melt caramels in milk, stirring until smooth. Cool 5 minutes.
5. Pour into crust; top with 1 1/2 cups of pecans.
6. Freeze for 15 minutes so ensure layer does not mix in with cream cheese layer.
7. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth.Add sugar and vanilla; mix well.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add chocolate; mix just until blended.
8. Carefully spread over pecans.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until filling is almost set.
10. Cool to room temperature. Chill overnight.
11. Garnish with drizzled chocolate, caramel, remaining pecans and whipped cream if desired.
That is one beautiful cheesecake! Wonderful job.
You should be proud indeed! This cheesecake has some intense flavors. I agree on the chocolate versus vanilla cheesecake, I think the chocolate leaves a bit of a bitter aftertaste!
Ps I am an ex teacher too. Gr. 1 and 2
Beautiful job! I don’t think it gets better than that!
~ingrid
This looks delicious! It’s so pretty too :)
Yes, I’ll have some please.
The cheesecake looks so grand. I want a slice right now!
oohhh ahhhh! Give yourself a HUGE pat on the back! This looks delish!
Oops, that last comment was me. I didn’t realize my husband had signed into his account on my computer.
Nancy
You should be proud – that is a professional looking cheesecake. And I agree; as much as I love chocolate, some things just need to be plain (well, maybe with some chocolate on top!)
Nancy
I am so super jealous right now!! I love, love, love cheesecake!!!