Turtle cheesecake

I love to bake and I love to eat cheesecake. And Daniel loves to eat cheesecake. I've tried several cheesecake recipes and variations and finally settled on one that we LOVE. And lately he's been bugging me to make a turtle cheesecake.

So a couple weeks ago, I invited myself over to dinner at Dan and Stephanie's house (lapray7.blogspot.com) and they got to be my guinea pigs... I tried a recipe I found online, but have since tweaked it to make it just perfect.

Turtle Cheesecake

Crust:
- 1 c. all-purpose flour (I used bread flour, since that's all I have right now...)
- 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
- 1/4 c. finely chopped pecans (if you want a crunchier crust, add some more!)
- 6-8 T (I've cut it in cold and just mixed it in melted, either way is fine)

Filling:
- 4 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
- 1 c. sugar
- 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
- 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
- 2 T heavy whipping cream (can also use sour cream)
- 1 1/2 t vanilla extract
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled (next time I'm going to try 1/3 c. cocoa powder)

Caramel layer:
- 1/2 c. caramel ice cream topping
- 2/3 c. chopped pecans
- 2 T flour

Ganache:
- 1/2 c. chocolate chips (whatever flavor you like! I used semi-sweet)
- 1/4 c. heavy whipping cream
- 2 T. chopped pecans (or more, whatever)

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 325
- Take cream cheese out of fridge to soften (I always forget to do this and I have to soften it on top of the warm oven... haha)
- Grease a 9-in. springform pan
- In a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar and pecans; cut in butter until crumbly. Press onto the bottom of prepared pan. Bake at 325 for 12-15 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack.

-TURN OVEN OFF. It needs to be mostly cool before you put the cheesecake in!

- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugars until smooth. Beat in flour, cream, and vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until blended. Remove 1 cup batter to a small bowl; stir in melted chocolate. Spread over crust.
- In another bowl, mix caramel topping and remaining flour; stir in pecans. Drop by tablespoonfuls over chocolate batter. Top with remaining batter.
- Place in cooled oven and turn to 400 for 10-15 minutes (do not preheat).
- Turn down to 200 and bake for an additional 3 hours.
- Open oven slightly and let cool for 1 hour.
- Place cheesecake in fridge at least overnight, preferably 24 hours.
- For ganache, place chips in a small bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream just to a boil. Pour over chips; whisk until smooth. Cool slightly, stirring occasionally.
- Remove sides of springform pan. Spread ganache over cheesecake, sprinkle with pecans. Refrigerate until set.
- When you're ready to eat this delicious creation, take it out of the fridge, cut it up, and pour more caramel on it. Soooo good!

I'll put up pictures later! (When we eat it.)

Adapted from http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Layered-Turtle-Cheesecake