Name: Caramel Pretzel Cheesecake
Cook time: 90 min
Yield: 1 8-inch cheesecake
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 160g Pretzels (crushed); 75g Butter (room temperature); 30g Brown sugar; 452g Cream cheese; 100g Sugar; 2g Kosher salt; 5g Vanilla extract; 130g Heavy cream; 3 eggs; 100g Caramel sauce

Description

A sweet-and-salty cheesecake with a crunchy pretzel crust and ribbons of caramel swirled through the filling. The pretzel crust provides a satisfying salty crunch that contrasts with the sweet, creamy filling.

Special Instructions

For the pretzel crust, crush 180g of hard pretzels into fine crumbs and mix with 60g melted butter and 20g sugar (the pretzels are less sweet than graham crackers, so extra sugar helps). Press into the pan. For the caramel swirl, dollop spoonfuls of caramel sauce over the poured filling and use a knife to create swirls. Do not over-mix or the swirl effect is lost. Note: this flavor is really good with peanuts added — consider topping with chopped peanuts.

Recipe

Pan size:

Number of cakes:

1

Makes 1 × 8″ cheesecake

Filling

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Cream cheese	452g	2 × 8 oz bricks (Philadelphia)
Sugar	100g
Kosher salt	2g
Vanilla extract	5g
Heavy cream	130g
Eggs	3 eggs
Caramel sauce	100g	Swirl into filling

Crust (pretzel)

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Pretzels (crushed)	160g
Butter (room temperature)	75g
Brown sugar	30g

Instructions

Make the filling: Let the cream cheese and eggs come to room temperature, then beat the cream cheese and cream until smooth. Mix in sugar, salt, vanilla extract. Add eggs last, mixing just until combined so you don't work extra air into the mixture that will get stuck in the sous vide bag.
Make the crust: Let the butter come to room temperature. Break up pretzel a bit, then add them with the butter to a food processor and process until fully integrated. Press firmly and evenly into the bottom of your pan — make sure it's well packed with no gaps, or the filling will leak through when you pour it.
Cook: Sous vide at 176°F for 90 minutes. Every 30ish minutes, massage the bag to stir the filling (or stir directly if using an open container). Pay attention to the edges and make sure stirring is complete.
Set: Pour into the mold, then add any solid toppings right away or let the cheesecake cool in the fridge for several hours before adding a gell topping. Ideally, make the cheesecake at least a day before serving so it can set properly.

Caramel Sauce Recipe

Homemade Caramel Sauce

Makes about 1 1/3 cups.

Ingredients

Ingredient	Amount
Sugar	240g
Water	115g
Kosher salt	2g
Heavy cream	225g
Vanilla extract	5g

Instructions

In a 3-quart stainless steel saucier, combine water, sugar, and salt over medium heat. If you like, add an empty vanilla pod, too. Stir with a fork until syrup comes to a boil, about 4 minutes, then simmer without stirring until syrup is honey-colored, roughly 6 minutes, shaking and swirling as needed to ensure even caramelization. Continue cooking until syrup is light to medium amber, a minute more. Immediately add cream and reduce heat to medium-low.
Stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula to knock back the foam, simmer until caramel registers 225°F (107°C) on a digital thermometer, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a heat-resistant container, stir in vanilla extract (if using), and cool to room temperature. (No need to discard the vanilla bean; it will continue to infuse the caramel over time.) Caramel will be runny while warm, but thicken as it cools, turning just a little chewy when cold. Refrigerate up to 1 month in an airtight container.

Shop Ingredients

Purchase planning: Single 8" cake (lowest upfront) Bulk prep (best long-run) Cakes to make:

Philadelphia Cream Cheese (2x 8oz)

~$8.98