With Valentine’s Day approaching next week, how about serving a dessert that is sure to be a hit and is a departure from the more expected chocolate flavors? Caramel and toffee are foods of the gods - right up there with buttercream frosting in my book! And cheesecake is always romantic…or ‘rotic’ (romantic without the man?!), as the case may be…

The creamy smooth texture of a cheesecake is paired with a caramel-y crust and a rich caramel topping, and garnished with whipped cream, of course, and a sprinkling of toffee chips for a decadent finish.

This toffee cheesecake recipe makes a regular appearance at my annual Holiday Dessert Party, but it is delicious any time of year!

The recipe that follows is from a page torn out of a specialty magazine titled Classic Desserts (possible published by Bon Appetit, but unsure) some 30 years ago.

This makes a 9” cheesecake which serves 10, OR around 3 dozen+ mini bite sized cheesecakes.

I usually adapt it to make mini cheesecakes for buffet parties, as these are much easier to serve and allow guests to choose just a taste without mangling a cake trying to slice slivers!

I’ll included the adaption for minis in the directions alongside the original.

Please note: This post also contains affiliate links to some relevant favorite kitchen tools for your convenience. I may make a small commission on any purchases at no additional cost to you. This helps support this blog, and is appreciated!

On a side note, making the caramel topping on an induction stove is a DREAM! I recently switched from gas, which I loved, to induction when I did a kitchen refresh and I am really enjoying the induction for a lot of reasons, but the bonus of practically foolproof caramel is definitely one of them!

Toffee Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce Recipe

serves 10 as a cake, 3 dozen as mini’s

Ingredients

Crust

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (or ~12 full sheets of graham crackers)
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

Filling

2 lbs cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 large eggs, room temperature
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Topping

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
1 cup shipping cream
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 tsp vanilla extract

Garnishes

3/4 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
3 toffee candy bars (such as Heath or Skor) broken into pieces OR 1 bag of Heath toffee chips

Directions

Crust

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Lightly butter (or spray with nonstick spray such as Pam) 9” springform pan or three dozen mini-size removable bottom pans
Combine crumbs, butter, and brown sugar (I usually use a food processor - this allows me to start with whole graham crackers as well)
Press crumbs over bottoms (and ~1” up the sides if using the 9” pan). I use a #100 scoop (`2 tsp) to dispense the mixture into each mini. Tamp down - the bottom of a measuring cup works well for this in a larger pan, or a smooth surface cocktail muddler works perfectly in the mini pans!
Refrigerate crust while preparing filling.

Filling

In an electric mixer, beat cream cheese in a large bowl until fluffy.
Add sugar and beat until smooth.
Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
Mix in vanilla and lemon juice.
Pour filling into prepared crust. I use a #40 scoop to fill the minis. (This is the MOST used scoop in my kitchen BTW…I use it for portioning cookie dough and for making meatballs!)
Bake 1 hr 15 minutes (or ~45 minutes for minis) until cake rises and center moves only slightly when pan is shaken.
Cool on rack. Cake will fall as it cools, sinking in the center.
Cover and refrigerate until well chilled. At this point, you can also wrap tightly and freeze if you want to make this well in advance.

Topping

Heat sugar and water in heavy medium saucepan over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
Increase heat and boil without stirring until mixture is a rich caramel color ~ 8 minutes, although I found this a bit faster on an induction burner.
Swirl to keep color even and wash down any crystalized sugar clinging to the sides with a brush dipped in ice water. This step proved to be entirely unnecessary with an induction stove as the bottom of the pan is heated perfectly evenly!
Reduce heat to very low and add cream. Stir until smooth. NOTE: mixture will bubble up and steam - I wear an ove glove for this step!
Mix in butter. Cool slightly and mix in vanilla.

Assemble

Using a small sharp knife, cut around sides of pan to loosen the cake (not usually necessary with the minis). Release pan (or remove minis).
Pour 2/3 cup caramel into center of cake OR pour whatever fits onto top of each mini.
Cover remaining caramel sauce and let stand at room temperature.
Chill until caramel topping is nearly set ~ 2 hrs. Can be refrigerated, covered, for a few days.

Garnish

Whip cream and sugar until firm peaks form. You can beat in whipped cream stabilizer if you need to be certain the whipped cream doesn’t break down. I always do this because I make the minis ahead and they stay out at room temperature on a buffet table for several hours.
Using a large star tip, pipe rosettes around the edge of the cake or the on top of each mini.
Garnish whipped cream with broken pieces of toffee bar or a sprinkling of toffee chips.
Refrigerate until serving.
Offer additional caramel sauce separately.