Make the recipe for this delicious gourmet cheesecake with a crème brûlée top.
December 2006
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Burnt Caramel Cheesecake Brûlée
A Special Cheesecake Recipe From Michael Recchiuti
Michael Recchiuti is a gifted patissier as well as a chocolatier. This gourmet cheesecake recipe has burnt caramel in the body and a crème brûlée top. In creating this cheesecake recipe with a delightful combination of flavors, he says, “Burnt Caramel is one of my favorite flavors and it really adds a unique twist to this recipe. You can purchase the Burnt Caramel Sauce or try your hand at making a batch.”
Serves 10
Ingredients
- Flavorless vegetable oil for the pan
 2 pounds cream cheese, at room
temperature - 1/4 cup sour cream
- 4 extra-large eggs, at room
temperature
- 1-1/3 cups plus 1/3 cup granulated
cane sugar
- 1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 2/3 cup pecans, toasted and ground
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter with
82% butterfat, melted and cooled
- 4 ounces Recchiuti Burnt Caramel
Sauce
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Liberally coat the inside of a 9" springform pan with flavorless vegetable oil or butter.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, pecans, butter and 1/3 cup sugar; stir until blended. Pat the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared springform pan. Pressing the crust just up the side of the pan, create a slight ridge.
- Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- Put the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until smooth and light, about 3 minutes. Add 1 cup sugar and beat another minute. When cool, wrap the pan with foil to create a seal so that water bath does not seep in.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl down before adding the sour cream. Beat to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, incorporating each completely before adding the next. Beat until blended.
- Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust.
- Drizzle the Burnt Caramel Sauce evenly over the cream cheese mixture.
- Stir gently to create a caramel swirl. Do not stir to mix.
- Set the pan in a roasting pan or baking dish that allows about 2 inches space all around and set on the oven rack.
- Pour boiling water into the roasting pan or baking dish (a teapot works best). Fill the pan until it is at least halfway up the side of the springform pan but not overflowing.
- Bake until the filling is set, about 50-60 minutes. When pressed gently with your finger it should jiggle like Jell-O, but not like a wave.
- Transfer to a rack and cool to room temperature.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.
- To serve, unmold the cheesecake. Sprinkle 1/3 cup sugar over the surface and using a kitchen torch, move flame continuously in small circles over surface until sugar melts and browns.
Burnt Caramel Sauce Recipe
From Chocolate Obsession: Confections and Treats to Create and Savor, by Michael Recchiuti and Fran Gage. Yield: About 3 cups.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: The caramelized sugar smokes and sputters when the cream is added, so turn on the exhaust fan in your kitchen when making the sauce. Be very careful, too, as the sugar is extremely hot. Corn syrup is often added to sugar before cooking to prevent crystallization, but in this instance, it is added later, which speeds up caramelization.
Ingredients
 2 cups (16 ounces) granulated cane sugar - 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (9 ounces)
heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup (5-1/3 ounces by weight) light
corn syrup
- 10 tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter with 82% butterfat, at room temperature
Directions
- Put the sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed pot. Use an unlined copper pot if you
have one. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the sugar melts. Then continue to cook, without stirring, until the sugar turns black, about 10 minutes. If any crystals form on the sides of the pan, wash them down with a wet pastry brush. Just before it turns black, the sugar syrup may foam up. If it does, reduce the heat to low and, wearing an oven mitt, carefully stir it down. When the sugar syrup is ready, it will smoke and large bubbles will break on the surface.
- While the sugar is cooking, bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the sugar is black, remove the pot from the heat and carefully stir in the corn syrup. Put a sieve or splatter guard over the pot. Wearing an oven mitt, slowly pour the hot cream into the sugar syrup a little at a time. The mixture will sputter and foam. Be careful, as it is very hot. Whisk in the butter.
- Pour the finished sauce into a bowl and let cool for about 5 minutes before using. If not using immediately, let it cool to room temperature, pour into a jar, cover and refrigerate. It will keep for at least 1 month. It may separate under storage; simply stir it to recombine. To reheat, stir over low heat.
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