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Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars

Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars

Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars are made with a vanilla wafer crust that is covered with a creamy filling and a dreamy caramel topping.
Servings: 24 servings
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Chilling Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 50 minutes

Ingredients

Crust:

  • 11 ounces Nilla wafers, crushed
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • 1/2 cup salted butter, melted
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Cheesecake:

  • 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup sour cream

Caramel:

  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 6 tablespoons salted butter
  • 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt , or caramel flavor turbinado sugar, for garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13x9-inch baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.
  • Place the wafers and pecans into a food processor and pulse until mixture becomes crumbs. Add the melted butter and vanilla and pulse again until combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and press down firmly to form the crust.
    press crumbs to make a crust
  • Allow your cream cheese to warm to room temperature. Beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with a mixer until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg. Add the sour cream and beat again until combined. Pour the mixture onto the crust. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly to the edges of the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
    Pour cheesecake mixture over the crust.
  • Turn off the oven and open the door, leaving the cheesecake to sit in the oven with the door open for 15 minutes. Then, remove from the oven and cool for one hour.
  • To make the caramel topping, add the butter and brown sugar to a pan. Stir over medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the condensed milk, corn syrup and vanilla and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Continue to boil until the temperature on a candy thermometer reaches 225 degrees. Turn off the heat and let the caramel cool for 5 minutes. Pour the caramel over the cheesecake and chill the dessert for 2 hours.
  • When you are ready to serve the dessert, cut into bars with a sharp knife and add some sea salt to the top of each bar. This recipe makes 24 bars.
    Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars

Equipment

  • 1 13x9-inch baking pan

Notes

Tips for making Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars:
  • CARAMEL LAYER- If you haven't done it before, making caramel can be a bit intimidating. If you want to make the topping a bit easier, simply use a 14-ounce jar of caramel ice cream topping. Warm the jar of topping in the microwave for a few seconds and pour it over the cooled cheesecake. It tastes almost as good as making your own with much less fuss.
  • CRUST- You can substitute graham crackers for the Nilla wafers. They make a great base for the cheesecake layer and you probably already have some in your pantry. But Nilla wafers are our favorite and make a sturdy vanilla crust.
  • NUTS- Almonds make be used instead of pecans. They are slightly more affordable and are a nice complement to the Nilla wafer, making and crunchy, nutty crust.
  • EXTRA THICK- Use three blocks of cream cheese to make these bars THICK and even more rich. Add in an extra 1/2 cup of sugar to balance the addition of more cream cheese. Bake 5 minutes longer.

Nutrition

Calories: 342kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 4gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 69mgSodium: 297mgPotassium: 130mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 32gVitamin A: 568IUVitamin C: 0.5mgCalcium: 81mgIron: 0.3mg