Caramel and Pecan Cheesecake
Hello there!
This is my first blog post ever so I thought I'd do a brief introduction before showing you how to make a super sweet Autumn dessert: Caramel and Pecan Cheesecake!My name is Beth and I am someone who has always loved everything about food, from stirring whatever my mum was making when I was little to taking Food Technology as one of my GCSEs. I hope to share my passion for food with lots of people as I grow up and share any new recipes I create with them. I will be uploading mostly foodie things but maybe other posts as well if something particularly interests me such as travel or general lifestyle posts. Enjoy!
Now down to food! It is well into Autumn now which makes me always think of homely flavours like mixed spices and even caramel. This is actually a recipe I designed about a year ago so I couldn't wait to share it. The base is made of only two ingredients - walnuts and dates. I find this makes the dessert slightly less rich but still sweet at the same time. The cheesecake filling is quite traditional but made much more luxurious by being topped with a caramel sauce and candied pecans. The pecans have a lovely crunch from being candied so all the textures very much compliment each other.
The Recipe: Caramel and Pecan Cheesecake
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| The base is also suitable for vegans |
For the base:
- 170g dried dates, soaked in water for 10 minutes and then drained
- 120g walnut pieces or halves (or 1 cup of each ingredient)
In a food processor blitz together the pitted dates and chopped walnuts to make a thick biscuity base and then line the base of a tart tin. I used a tart tin which was 23cm/9 inches in diameter and fluted around the edges.
For the cheesecake filling:
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| Make sure it is evenly spread on top |
Place the soft
cheese, icing sugar and
the vanilla
extract in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until
smooth. Tip in the double cream and
continue beating until the mixture is completely combined.
Now spoon the cream mixture onto the biscuit base,
working from the edges inwards and making sure that there are no air bubbles.
Smooth
the top of the cheesecake down with the back of a dessert spoon or spatula. Refrigerate.
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| I placed the pecans around the edge |
For the candied pecans:
- 65g white sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg white
- 1 tablespoon water
- 300g pecan halves (Makes quite a lot but can be kept for a while, could half ingredients)
While the cheesecake is chilling in the fridge make the candied pecans Preheat
oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2.
Mix the sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl, then whisk egg white and water
together in a separate bowl until frothy.
Toss the pecans in the egg white mixture and mix sugar mixture into pecan mixture so they are evenly coated then spread the coated pecans onto a baking sheet.
Bake in
the preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, until pecans are evenly browned,
1 hour.
For the caramel sauce:
- 120g light brown sugar
- 120g butter
- 100ml cream or full cream milk
Make the caramel sauce while the pecans are in the oven and the cheesecake is still chilling. You can drizzle the sauce over the cheesecake before or after it has been topped with pecans, it's entirely up to you. You could even try smashing up some of the pecan to a crumb and sprinkling it around the edges.
Melt the butter and
sugar in a saucepan over a low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Watch it
carefully so that it doesn't burn.
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| Pecan and Caramel Cheesecake...Ta dah! |
If you liked this post, visit my full blog at:
https://littlechefbeth.blogspot.com
