Twelve ingredients, an hour in the oven and at least five more of cooling and chilling.
Two things the title never mentions are part of this cheesecake: the crust is chocolate cookie crumbs, and the top is a thick layer of ganache.
Ingredient Notes
- Chocolate sandwich-cookie crumbs
- Two cups for the crust. The dark base in the photograph comes from these, not graham crumbs.
- Toffee, two ways
- Half a cup finely chopped into the filling, and half a cup of large chunks piled on at the end.
- Semisweet chocolate and heavy cream
- Six ounces of chocolate with half a cup of steaming cream, which is the glossy top layer.
- Prepared caramel sauce
- Half a cup, used as bought, so the recipe needs no hot-sugar stage.
Why This Recipe Works
- A chocolate cookie crust holds its own against caramel without tasting merely sweet.
- Chopping the toffee finely for the filling keeps it suspended instead of sinking.
- Eggs on low speed, before the sour cream, keep the batter dense rather than airy.
- Hot cream poured over chopped chocolate makes a ganache smooth enough to spread cold.
- Prepared caramel pours at room temperature, so it runs down the sides without cooking sugar.
Caramel and Toffee, Without a Sugar Pan
A caramel-toffee cheesecake could easily hide a boiling-sugar step. This one does not: it USES COMMERCIALLY PREPARED CARAMEL SAUCE AND TOFFEE, so there is no separate hot-sugar process. Every stage below is either an oven step or a stirring step.
Press8 minutes at 325°F
2 cups CHOCOLATE SANDWICH-COOKIE CRUMBS with 5 tbsp MELTED BUTTER into a 9-INCH SPRINGFORM PAN, BAKED 8 MINUTES. The crust is the first of the two chocolate elements the title does not name.
Beat
24 oz CREAM CHEESE with 3/4 cup SUGAR, then 3 EGGS ON LOW SPEED, 1/2 cup SOUR CREAM and 1 tsp VANILLA, with 1/2 cup FINELY CHOPPED TOFFEE BITS FOLDED IN. Fine bits stay suspended in the batter; large chunks would sink.
Bake50 to 57 minutes, then 5 hours
50 TO 57 MINUTES UNTIL THE EDGES ARE SET AND THE CENTER HAS A SLIGHT WOBBLE, then COOLED 1 HOUR and CHILLED AT LEAST 4 HOURS. This is a baked cheesecake, not a set one.
Pour2 minutes standing
1/2 cup HEAVY CREAM HEATED UNTIL STEAMING over 6 oz CHOPPED SEMISWEET CHOCOLATE, RESTED 2 MINUTES, STIRRED SMOOTH and SPREAD OVER THE CHILLED CHEESECAKE. Steaming, not boiling - that is all the heat this stage needs.
Finish
1/2 cup PREPARED CARAMEL DRIZZLED SO IT RUNS DOWN THE SIDES, then 1/2 cup LARGE TOFFEE CHUNKS PILED OVER THE TOP. The drips down the side are part of the look, so the caramel goes on generously.
How to Make It
Chocolate cookie crust pressed and baked 8 minutes
Heat the oven to 325°F. Mix the cookie crumbs and butter, press into a 9-inch springform pan and bake 8 minutes.
Filling beaten, eggs low, fine toffee folded through
Beat the cream cheese and sugar smooth. Add the eggs on low speed, then the sour cream and vanilla. Fold in the finely chopped toffee bits.
Baked to a slight wobble, cooled, chilled four hours
Bake 50 to 57 minutes, until the edges are set and the centre has a slight wobble. Cool 1 hour and chill at least 4 hours.
Ganache made with steaming cream and spread over the top
Heat the cream until steaming and pour it over the chopped chocolate. Rest 2 minutes, stir smooth, and spread over the chilled cheesecake.
Caramel drizzled down the sides, toffee chunks piled on
Drizzle the prepared caramel so it runs down the sides, then pile the large toffee chunks over the top.
Success Tips
- Bake the crust before the filling goes in; an unbaked cookie crust turns pasty.
- Give the ganache its full two minutes before stirring, so the chocolate melts evenly.
- Add the big toffee chunks last, once the ganache has stopped moving, so they sit proud.
Serving Ideas
Twelve cold slices, each showing the dark cookie crust, the toffee-flecked filling and the glossy chocolate top, with caramel running down the cut side and toffee chunks on top.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I make the caramel from scratch?
No. This recipe uses prepared caramel sauce and prepared toffee, which keeps any hot-sugar stage out of it entirely.
Is the chocolate layer part of the recipe?
Yes. The ganache top and the chocolate cookie crust are both part of it, even though the title names neither.
How is it stored?
Refrigerated at 40°F or below. The ganache firms up in the cold, which helps the slices hold their edges.
