Dulce de Leche Cheesecake with Homemade Dulce de Leche sauce

 I love the Dulce de Leche Cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory. C'mon, who doesn't  love their Cheesecakes? The richness of the Cheesecake with the swirls of Dulce de Leche will be a big hit the next time you have company over.  The recipe from Tasteandtellblog.com is a nice place to start, though I made my own alterations. Please read till the end before you start making this beauty. 

Difficulty level: Medium

Preparation time: 30 min, if you have the Dulce de Leche sauce( which takes atleast 1 hr)

Baking time: 50-55 min

Ingredients

• 3 cups Graham crackers (original recipe used Vanilla wafers)
• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• 24 oz ( 680 gms) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup milk (I used low-fat)
• 1/2 cup Dulce de Leche, plus more for serving

For the Dulce de Leche

I can (400 gms) of sweetened condensed milk

First, prepare the Dulce de Leche sauce. Preheat the oven to 350F. Por the condensed milk into an oven-proof dish. Cover with aluminuim foil. Transfer the covered dish into a water bath ( for those of you who are not sure what a water bath is- it is a deep , say 2-3 inches , baking dish in which you pour boiling water all around the dish to be baked. This allows the item to bake more uniformly.) . Let it stay on the bottom rack of the oven for atleast 1 hour. The longer it takes in the oven, the darker it gets. Viola....the Dulce de Leche sauce is ready...

Once you have the sauce ready, let it cool to room temperature before you start with the Cheesecake. 

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. If using a water bath( I would strongly suggest you do) , wrap a 9-inch springform pan tightly with foil. ( Tips on properly securely the bottom, after the recipe)

Place the graham crackers in a food processor and process until completely crushed. Add the melted butter and pulse a few times until the crumbs are all moistened with the butter.

Press the crumbs into the prepared springform pan. Using a flat bottomed glass or measuring cup, press the crumbs firmly, but gently, to make sure they are packed and even. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, until the crust is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature.

Reset the oven temperature to 325ºF.

Place the cream cheese in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the stand mixer or an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is smooth. Add the sugar, flour and vanilla and beat until combined and smooth.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating only until combined. Be careful to not overmix. Add the milk and mix just until blended.

Measure 3/4 cup of the cheesecake batter and add it to a small bowl.  Add the 1/2 cup dulce de leche and mix to combine.

Place the springform pan with the cooled crust into a larger dish with sides that go up at least 1 inch.  Pour the plain cheesecake mixture into the springform pan. Top with the dulce de leche batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter and gently swirl it into the plain batter with the tip of a knife or a skewer.

Heat about 2 cups until very hot or boiling.

Place the cheesecake in the oven, then add the water carefully into the dish surrounding the cheesecake. Close the oven door and bake until the edges of the cheesecake are puffed and set, but the center should still be a bit jiggly, 45-55 minutes.  Turn off the oven and prop the door open. Leave the cheesecake in the oven to gradually cool for about an hour. Carefully remove the cheesecake from the oven, adding extra caution with the surrounding water. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the cheesecake, then cover the cheesecake and refrigerate until completely cold, at least 4 to 6 hours, but preferably overnight.

If desired, serve the cheesecake slices with additional dulce de leche over the top.

                                

Tips on wrapping the Springform pan

- A 9 inch round springform pan is the perfect size for cheesecakes, I think.

- Remove the bottom of the pan, and place a sheet of parchment paper over the round. Place the top of the springform pan over the round, and push it down where the edges line up and close the lever. This gives you the closed springform pan with parchment paper in the bottom, and the edges of the sheet of parchment paper sticking out.

- Put 2 pieces of foil on a counter, crossing each other. Place the springform pan in the center, and wrap the pan in the foil, making sure to not only bring the sides of the foil up, but the sides of the overhanging parchment paper as well. Make sure the foil is on very tight.  Place this in a pan that is just bigger – I use a 2-inch deep think baking sheet.

- once you have poured your batter into the pan, place it on the middle rack of your preheated oven. Fill the outside pan with very hot water, making sure you don’t splash the cheesecake.