Turtle Cheesecake
Last Friday was my mom’s birthday… a great big belated happy birthday to my mom!! She spent the latter part of the afternoon and evening running around with me to do last-minute errands before our party on Saturday. I’ll be making her very favorite dinner (sausage, pepper & mushroom risotto with chocolate chip scones for dessert) soon, but since Friday was spent doing party prep, she only requested some Five Guys takeout for dinner. I couldn’t let her birthday come and go without giving her something special to eat, so I surprised her with this cheesecake. Turtles are by far her favorite candy, and I’ve been wanting to make her a turtle-inspired cheesecake for quite some time. It took me awhile to decide how I wanted to build such a cheesecake, and I finally ran with it. This turned out even more fabulous than I imagined, and was a perfect celebratory cake.
I took all of the elements of classic turtle candies and built it into one extremely dreamy cheesecake. I started with an Oreo cookie crust and topped it with a mixture of homemade caramel sauce and chopped pecans. I chilled the pan in the refrigerator while I prepared a fantastic basic cheesecake recipe. Once the cheesecake was baked and cooled, I topped it with a chocolate ganache, then finished it off with more caramel drizzles and chopped pecans.
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The result? One of the most fabulous cheesecakes to ever come out of my kitchen. My mom absolutely loved it, as did the rest of us. Caramel and nuts, sandwiched by chocolate and a luscious cheesecake layer… it’s all win. A perfect dessert for a mom that deserves only the best!
One year ago: Quick & Easy Chicken Pot Pie
Two years ago: Honey Cake
Three years ago: Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple-Cream Cheese Filling
Five years ago: Cream of Mushroom Soup
Six years ago: Cinnamon Rolls
Turtle Cheesecake
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 24 Oreo cookies, finely crushed into crumbs
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Pinch of salt
For the Caramel-Pecan Layer:
- 1½ cups (339 ml) caramel sauce, omit the salt for a sweeter version
- 1 cup (99 g) chopped pecans
For the Cheesecake:
- 32 ounces (907.19 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1¼ cups (250 g) granulated sugar
- 4 eggs, at room temperature
- ¾ cup (178.5 ml) heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
For the Chocolate Ganache:
- ¾ cup (178.5 ml) heavy cream
- ¼ cup (85.25 ml) light corn syrup
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Toss together the Oreo crumbs, melted butter and salt until all of the crumbs are moistened. Press into the bottom and two inches up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Place pan in the freezer for 10 minutes. Bake for 7 minutes, or until crust is firm. Remove from oven and cool completely.
- Make the Caramel-Pecan Layer: In a small bowl, stir together the caramel sauce and pecans. Pour onto the cooled crust and gently spread into an even layer. Refrigerate while the cheesecake is prepared.
- Make the Cheesecake: Beat together the cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well until fully incorporated and scraping down the sides of the bowl between each addition. Add the heavy cream and vanilla and beat until well combined, about 1 minute. Pour the batter on top of the caramel-pecan layer and bake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until the edges are set, but the middle still jiggles a little.
- Keeping the oven door closed, turn off the oven and let the cheesecake rest in the oven for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the cheesecake from the oven, and place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely, about an additional 2 hours. Once completely cool, refrigerate for at least 6 hours (preferably overnight).
- Make the Chocolate Ganache: Combine the heavy cream, corn syrup, chocolate and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Set the glaze aside to cool and thicken at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Pour the ganache over the top of the cheesecake, gently spreading it to the edges. Refrigerate for 15 minutes, or until set. Remove the sides of the pan, garnish with additional caramel sauce and chopped pecans, and serve. Leftover cheesecake can be stored, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It can also be frozen for up to 2 months.
- Note: Some readers have mentioned issued with the caramel sauce leaking through the springform pan while baking. To avoid a mess, place a rimmed baking sheet on the oven rack below the cheesecake to catch any drips.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Why would you put the caramel bit at the end? You should probably put that up front.
I normally use vanilla wafers for the crust, but I’m going to try the Oreo. Do you scrape out the middle or just leave it and crumble the whole cookie?
This is a master recipe. Visually it looks like a professional made it. I decided to buy a well known caramel sauce to cut down on time as I was concerned about consistency. Sometimes when I make Sticky Toffee Pudding sauce it’s quite runny so the store bought was perfect. I used a crock pot bag and set the cheesecake in it for leaks. I am making it again today and bought smaller springform pans to do two smaller sizes. One for a luncheon and I’m keeping one! It’s that yummy. When this doesn’t turn out for people it’s definitely not your recipe. Thanks every so much.
This is absolutely the best turtle cheesecake that I have ever made! It is a bit complicated and time consuming, particularly the first time I made it, but it is well worth it for a special occasions. I now make it for Christmas and for my son’s birthday since it is his favorite dessert.
Method of baking the cheesecake makes a big difference in the final result. Unlike past recipes for cheesecake, I have never had this recipe crack. It is perfect! The caramel is a bit tricky and takes close watching and experience, at least for me. The first time I made it, it was slightly over-cooked and tasted a little bitter, but still delicious. The second time I made it, it was not cooked enough and ran all over the cake. My first attempts were incredibly good, however, even with the mistakes .Now I have conquered it!!
The turtle cheese cake is rich , but I usually serve small pieces. I also have enough left offer to give it to special friends who also think it is the best they have ever eaten.
Did this cheesecake ever have flour in it? I remember making this in the past but it was a bit different.
I made this for my son’s birthday. He was thrilled and it’s a gorgeous presentation. It looks a like you spent a fortune at a bakery. It was delicious. Thank you! I’m making it again for a luncheon. Yum!
Made for a birthday cheesecake and It was beautiful and amazingly delicious! Perfect in every way!
I can’t think of anything I would want to do differently, although I did garnish with whole pecans.
Thank you!
I made this cheesecake for my wife’s birthday and it was the best cheesecake we have ever tasted! Thanks browneyedbaker!!
I can’t find your dulce de leche cheesecake square recipe on your site!!! I love it and should have printed it. I want to make it for Easter. Please can you put it back on your site?
Honestly I did not read the reviews prior to making this which was my bad but following this recipe to a tee and it was… not good :( I hate to write a bad review but while the flavors were there the caramel and nut layer over the crust did ruin it but worst of all the texture of the cheesecake itself was weird and “grainy” as someone else mentioned below. Overall just very disappointing and I wish I had tested it out before bringing it somewhere. Would skip out on this one.
Yum, yum, yum! I have made this cheesecake twice now and both times it turned out beautifully! After reading the reviews, I skipped the step of adding the caramel onto the crust. Instead, I add the caramel on top of the ganache and then add the pecans. It was delicious. I also had “leakage” during the baking process, even without having the caramel included. Maybe it is the butter? I definitely recommend putting a pan underneath to catch all the drips and make clean up easy. Thanks for another “go to” recipe, Michelle!
Can you bake this cheesecake in a water bath?
Cheesecake came out beautiful and delicious! One question though @browneyedbaker my caramel caramelized my crust making it hard, Amy suggestions to avoid this?
The exact same thing happened to me. I omit the caramel layer and just put the cheesecake on top of the cookie crust and then top it with caramel and pecans. also, 4.5 tbl spoons of butter is enough for the 24 oreo crust then not as messy with melting butter from the pan.
I followed the recipe exactly. The cake rose higher than the 10” pan I baked it in and then shrank to less than half the size as it cooled. The texture was very grainy which I’ve never had in any of the many cheesecakes I’ve made. The taste was good.
The pecan caramel mixture right about the crust makes it very difficult to cut. Cake fell apart when cutting and wasn’t pretty. Taste was mediocre. It was the only cake at thanksgiving that didn’t get demolished by large family. I don’t recommend this recipe.
Awesome recipe family and I love it! Thank you so much for sharing this! Made the impossible seem doable. Ive made this three times now. I use 4.5 tbsp of butter for crust n wrap aluminum foil around the base n sides of the pan while it bakes. Also freezing the crust And carmel layer may help so it doesnt become so runny n leak. Love the results from this! Thanks brown eyed Baker!
Best cheesecake we have ever had !! A lot of steps but well worth the effort. I rarely follow a recipe exactly but I did for this recipe and it was FANTASTIC – Wouldn’t change a thing !
Would not recommend this recipe to anyone. . I made this without the Carmel nut layer. (so that is not what leaked on other bakers)
While baking the cream cheese layer, the butter from the crust was leaking all over my oven. Causing severe smoke.
I have made many cheesecakes over the years and never had this problem. 1st time using this Oreo crust recipe.
I have made this cheesecake twice now and received rave reviews each time!
I feel stupid for asking but when you say Oreo cookies are you meaning the entire cookie including the frosting in between the cookie ? Or separate the cookies from the frosting and use 24 cookies without the frosting?
I’m in the process of making this cheesecake right now :) I am in love with it!!!! Such a fun way to spend my day!!! I really hope I can frost it later with the chocolate 😌
It doesn’t say what temperature to cook the cheesecake at. . . .
Hi Helen, It’s in step #1 – 350 degrees F.
I made this for my son’s birthday. Was very disappointed in the Oreo crust. It was like a gooey gel, I’m assuming owing to the caramel on top of it. If I make it again will eliminate that caramel layer. It was quite rich enuf without it!
Do I take the filling out of Oreos?
Hi Becky, No, you should use the whole cookie.
I don’t see the temperature to cook cheesecake anywhere??????
I have done 350f for 65 minutes and still really jiggly. Oyyy what to do now.
Hi Trina, Step #1 – 350 degrees. You want it to be set around the outside but still jiggly in the middle. If it needs more time, continue checking every few minutes.