A holiday menu will not be complete unless you serve this Pecan Pie Cheesecake! A toasted nutty graham cracker crust followed by a smooth and velvety cheesecake. Topped with a perfectly sweet caramel topping finished off with a layer of toasted pecans!
Preheat oven to 375; coat a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and wrap entire outside of pan in foil; set aside.
Combine graham cracker crumbs and toasted pecan halves in a food processor until fine. With processor running, drizzle in the melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of the pan; bake 10 minutes. Cool crust completely before filling. Reduce oven to 325.
Beat cream cheese, butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt in a large bowl until mixture is fluffy, periodically scraping sides of the bowl. Add eggs one at a time, fully beating to incorporate into batter after each addition. Add cream and vanilla; beat until ingredients are completely incorporated into batter.Pour filling over crust, smoothing the top of filling.
Transfer cheesecake to a roasting pan; place in the oven. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan a third of the way up the sides of the foil-wrapped springform pan. Bake cheesecake until it reaches 155 and sides are set but center still joggles, about 1 hour. Turn off the oven; leave cheesecake inside for 1 hour with the oven door closed.
Remove cheesecake from oven; cool to room temperature. Cover cheesecake with plastic wrap; chill 3-24 hours. Remove cheesecake from refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.
Spoon caramel over cheesecake carefully and evenly and sprinkle with chopped pecans. If you have any remaining sauce, serve on individual slices.
Adapted from Adapted from Cuisine At Home, Issue No. 78 December 2009