#89 - Cousin Johnnie's Caramel Apple Cheesecake

We saw this recipe on Food Network while we were flipping channels after work one day, and now that it's Thanksgiving, it's time to give it a shot.

Cousin Johnnie's Caramel Apple Cheesecake

From Paula's Best Dishes It's a Paula Deen recipe, so you know it's going to be good and that you're going to need some butter, y'all. You start out making the graham cracker crust, by mixing graham crackers, butter, and sugar in the food processor and then baking for 10 minutes. Then you make the filling, pour it in the cooled crust, and bake the whole thing, floating in a water bath. Ours sank a little in the middle, but other than that it already looked really good at this point. Then that needs to sit overnight in the fridge, until it's time to work on the topping - caramel apples and pecans. And if that doesn't look delicious, look at how the cheesecake came out when we took it out of the springform pan. This was awesome! Our last attempt at a cheesecake was not the greatest. The no-sugar-added-nonsense made it a little bland, there wasn't any exciting topping, and a lot of cracks formed in it (maybe due to the lack of a water bath). But this cheesecake was unbelievable. It was rich and tasty but not too sweet (a first for a Paula Deen dessert). The crust was delicious, and the topping was crazy. All in all, a perfect Thanksgiving dessert. Try this at home now, and you can claim you're just practicing for next year's Turkey Day.

Crust

Ingredients

• 3 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 9 Tbs butter, melted
• 1/2 cup sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Wrap the bottom and sides of a 10-inch springform pan tightly with foil.
3. In a food processor, mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar.
4. Press the mixture into the bottom and halfway up the sides of the prepared pan.
5. Bake the crust for 10 minutes.
6. Remove crust from the oven and let it cool completely.

Filling

Ingredients

• 4 8-oz packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 Tbs cornstarch
• 1 16-oz container sour cream
• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 5 eggs

Preparation

1. With an electric mixer, mix the cream cheese, sugar, and cornstarch until smooth.
2. Add the sour cream, orange juice, and vanilla and blend until smooth making sure there are no clumps.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, blending until just combined.
4. Pour the filling into the crust.
5. Put a roasting pan on a rack in the center of the oven and transfer the cheesecake to the pan.
6. Fill the roasting pan with hot water to come halfway up the sides of the cake pan and cover it loosely with foil.
7. Bake until the center moves only slightly when the cake pan is shaken, about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
8. Check the water level about 1 hour into the baking, adding more water if needed.
9. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and transfer the cake pan to a wire rack to cool.
10. Refrigerate overnight.

Topping

Ingredients

• 8 Tbs butter
• 1 1/2 lbs Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Preparation

1. Melt the butter in a large skillet over high heat.
2. Add the apples and pecans and cook, stirring, until they are coated with butter, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves and the liquid comes to a boil, about 3 minutes.
4. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the apples and pecans to a bowl.
5. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook the remaining liquid, stirring often, until it turns a deep amber color, about 6 minutes.
6. Remove the skillet from the heat to stop the cooking and add the cream, being careful not to splatter.
7. Return the skillet to the heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly.
8. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the apples and pecans.
9. Allow mixture to cool until lukewarm.
10. Spread the caramel-apple mixture evenly over the top of the cheesecake.
11. Refrigerate until ready to serve.