Matt's YUMMY Cheesecake

Cheesecake with Pecan crust

Crust
1 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup crushed pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter melted, if you think you need more, then add a little bit

Mix together and mash in the bottom and up the sides of the cheesecake pan. Bake for 10 minutes on 325 degrees. If I think the crust needs a little more butter, I add it.

Filling
3 8oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 8oz sour cream
1 T Vanilla extract

Beat cream cheese at medium speed until creamy, gradually add the sugar, beating well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition and scraping sides and bottom as needed. Stir in sour cream and vanilla. Pour batter into prepared crust.

Bake at 325 for 1 hour and 10 minutes (Center will not be completely set). Turn oven off, and partially open oven door. Leave cake in oven for another hour. Cool completely on a wire rack, cover and chill at least 8 hours. Gently run a knife around edge of cheesecake to release sides from pan before opening.

CHOCOLATE TOPPING - optional - I didn't do this because Matt doesn't eat Chocolate (what a shame!)
1 cup chocolate chips, I use milk chocolate
Melt with a little heavy whipping cream, you will just add a little, when chocolate starts to melt, you can tell if you need to add more by how thick it is. If you happen to get it too thin, just add a few more chocolate chips. After you get it all melted, pour it
on the cheesecake slowly and with a spoon, work it to the edges. You can make some run down the side or just leave it on the top.

CARAMEL TOPPING
Below is what the original recipe said to do. I was lazy and just bought ice cream caramel topping and drizzled it on top. Then I topped it with raspberries.

Use 1 cup of caramels, I use the little individually wrapped ones, IF I can find the bags of little caramel balls, then I use those. I also put a little heavy whipping cream in with the caramels so when it cools, it will be soft enough to cut. Here again, I add enough whipping cream to get it the thickness I think it should be. When it's all melted, I add a cup of chopped pecans. Then take it and pour over the chocolate that you've already poured on the cheesecake and using the back of a spoon, spread it where it needs to go.

A COUPLE OF LITTLE TIPS I DO
I take parchment paper and put on the base of the cheesecake pan before I snap the sides on. This allows the cheesecake to slide off onto a cake plate VERY easily after it's cool. I also make the cheese cake the day before I take it out of the pan and top it, or at least the morning before. It cuts SO much easier if it's been in the fridge for a day or night.

ALSO, your cheesecakes will bake much easier and won't crack if you bake it in a pan of water. I have a large square pan, I put my cheesecake pan on 2 sheets of foil and sorta make a foil boat, then place it in the larger pan and fill it with water, being careful that I don't put too much in so water get's inside the foil boat thingy I made, does that make sense??? The cheesecakes loose some moister when they are baking and the water helps keep that moister in the cheesecake. Someone told me this years ago and it just sorta stuck with me.

The yummy key is the pecan crust. It's to die for.